Something that travelers don’t often think about is the “power” of their passport. In other words, how many countries can you enter without needing to get an advance visa or by purchasing one on arrival?
A passport from the U.S. or U.K. can get you into more countries than any other. This means, according to the latest Passport Index power ranking, if you hold a U.S. or U.K. passport you can get into 147 other countries without needing an advance visa, or by purchasing a visa on arrival.
The power ranking determined by Passport Index is based on how passports are ranked on their Visa Free Score. (Passports accumulate points for each visa free country that their holders can visit without a visa, or they can obtain a visa on arrival.)
South Korea, Germany, and France have the second highest ranking and travelers from these countries can get into 145 other countries without having an advanced visa.
The Top Power Passports
United Kingdom
In addition to the U.S., U.K., South Korea, Germany and France, the remaining top 10 rankings include:
Power Rank 3 – 144 countries
Sweden and Italy
Power Rank 4 – 143 countries
Denmark, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Singapore, Japan, and Finland
Power Rank 5 – 142 countries
Switzerland
Power Rank 6 – 141 countries
Norway, Portugal, Spain, Ireland, and Belgium
Power Rank 7 – 140 countries
Canada, Greece, Austria, and Malaysia
Power Rank 8 – 139 countries
New Zealand
Power Rank 9 – 138 countries
Australia, Hungary, and Czech Republic
Power Rank 10 – 137 countries
Slovakia and Poland
The Bottom of the Power List
Myanmar
Which countries landed at the bottom of the list? With a power rank of 80 and access to only 28 other countries without needing a visa are: Solomon Islands, Palestinian Territories, Myanmar (Burma), South Sudan, and Sao Tome and Principe.
You can view all the passport power rankings at Passport Index. And, if you are curious about what another country’s passport looks like, you’re in luck. Passport Index has images of all the passports of the world.
