The cleanest countries in the world in 2025 are countries that are always pristine. Cleanliness is very important, just as the common saying, "cleanliness is next to godliness". Cleanliness promotes good health.
For example, in one of the countries mentioned below, its residents have an average life expectancy of 83 years. Most people like to visit these countries as cleanliness is an important factor when selecting a tourist destination.
Everyone is attracted to a clean place, including you reading this. The current Environmental Performance Index (EPI) Score used in ranking these countries is from the joint project of the Yale Center for Environmental Law & Policy and the CIESIN (The Center for International Earth Science Information Network).
These are the top 15 cleanest countries in the world in 2025, they are,
- Denmark
- United Kingdom
- Finland
- Malta
- Sweden
- Luxembourg
- Slovenia
- Austria
- Switzerland
- Iceland
- Netherlands
- France
- Germany
- Australia
- Slovakia
Check them out, and get to know about their fascinating pieces of information.
Please read on...
15. Slovakia
EPI Score: 60.00
Population: 5.46 million
Land Area: 49050.85 sq. km
Continent: Europe
Slovakia is definitely one of the cleanest countries in the world in 2025. It is among the leading countries with clean air, which means less pollution.
The country has a reliable source of clean water. Even though the population is not much, the government and the Slovaks are putting in efforts to make the country clean.
Tourists do enjoy their trip here as there are 14 protected landscapes as well as 9 national parks. It has the highest number of castles, 180 castles, and 425 chateaux.
14. Australia
 |
| Image credit: Helpling |
EPI score: 60.10
Population: 25.69 million
Land Area: 7716526.16 sq. km
Continent: Oceania
The Australian government put all efforts needed to make the country's cleanliness a priority. It is mandatory from the government for commercial enterprises to fully comply with the cleanliness and hygiene set for them.
This is done through public health and environmental awareness. In all apart of the country, professional cleaning services are used for both commercial and residential cleaning services.
The quality of air is good in this country as the citizens experience less pollution.
Australians enjoy one of the cleanest air and they are of course one of the cleanest countries in the world in 2024 as well. Although it is a large country, most residents are living in coastal towns.
13. Germany
 |
| Image credit: Tobias Reich / Unsplash |
EPI score: 62.40
Population: 83.24 million
Land Area: 356767.60 sq. km
Continent: Europe
Germany is also one of the forefront countries good at recycling waste. The country has a reputation for being clean and every waste is recycled.
There are workers on the street whose job is to always look around and make sure the streets are free from the garbage. Germans considered laundry cleanliness as important too.
Germans are clean at all angles, and any beer used here must adhere to German purity standard law. Kids are taught from childhood as regards cleanliness and hygiene.
The cleanliness of Germany and Switzerland is similar, only that Switzerland is extremely clean in comparison to Germany. It is a country with low unemployment.
See also:
12. France
 |
| Image credit: Anthony DELANOIX / Unsplash |
EPI score: 62.50
Population: 67.43 million
Land Area: 549198.91sq. km
Continent: Europe
In order to build a healthy planet, France has supported the CCAC (Climate and Clean Air Coalition). With this, they are able to fix the issue of climate change by reducing carbon emissions that pollute and make our climate short-lived.
This initiative has had positive effects in which the quality of air has really improved. In order for its citizens to experience good quality air, this country is trying to do its best at all costs.
The country targets a reduction in emissions of toxic gases while following the National low-carbon strategy. About 99.25 French people have access to clean drinking water that is free from contamination according to statistics from macrotrends.
About 50 percent of the clean water is from rivers and the other 50 percent is from underground sources (aquifers). If you visit this country, it is safe to drink water from the tap.
11. Netherlands
 |
| Image credit: Brogan Abroad |
EPI score: 62.60
Population: 17.44 million
Land Area: 37810.95 sq. km
Continent: Europe
The Netherlands is a cleanliness-obsessed country. The Dutch are obsessed with cleanliness interest might have sprung from geography and the cultural impacts such as laws, religion, or even weather.
Public and personal hygiene is a cultural phenomenon. As regards the waste management regimes, this country is a great one. Nothing is a waste here, in fact, waste is money.
Streetlights, underground trains, and city trams got their energy from throw away converted from industrial and domestic waste. DWMA (Dutch Waste Management Association) website explains this statistic more.
Residents also self-finance their waste here. Scrap metals, glass, and plastic are collected separately and recycled. While composite waste materials are gotten from organic waste.
Carts and cattle are not allowed on the streets, even when a cow's tail is cut to prevent doung from falling. The country's capital is clean as well despite the fact that it has a dense population, you will hardly see litter there.
10. Iceland
 |
| Image credit: Iceland & Tours |
EPI Score: 62.80
Population: 0.37 million
Land Area: 102124.28 sq. km
Continent: Europe
Iceland is one of the leading countries as regards renewable energy. Regarding sustainable energy production, Iceland is at the forefront. The country is rich in clean renewable energy that supplies its citizens with hydro- and geothermal resources.
This is possible through the country's amazing geography and geology. These factors help the country to reach and maintain a high standard of living from being poor.
Around 73 percent of the electricity used here is from hydropower plants. While geothermal energy generates a total of 26.8%. Each household has access to clean water as well as affordable hot water pipelines that are directly connected to boreholes.
If you want to visit this country, at the visitor centers, you can get to know the process involved in converting geo- or hydrothermal water for space heating.
The government here are also encouraging electric vehicle which is recently growing more as there are charging station and the government are also investing largely in the building of charging infrastructures.
See also:
9. Switzerland
EPI score: 65.90
Population: 8.64 million
Land Area: 41702.90 sq. km
Continent: Europe
Switzerland has a very good score in pesticide regulation, forest health, water quality, and sanitation. Being clean is a culture here, everyone knows that being clean is important and that is their pride.
Swiss people know that even in public places, you do not litter the floor, trash needs to be thrown in the bin. In fact, citizens get annoyed when they see liters.
While disposing of garbage here, bottles are usually separated from other trash. Their sanitation for cleanliness may have also contributed to their high expectancy which on average is 83.10 years.
Nonetheless, this country has slightly dropped its rank on the list of the cleanest countries in the world as littering started to grow into a problem.
8. Austria
 |
| Image credit: Pixabay |
EPI score: 66.50
Population: 8.92 million
Land Area: 83795.71sq. km
Continent: Europe
Water quality in this country is superb, as it is one of the highest. Austria is a water-wealthy country in Europe. In this country, 50 percent of drinking water is from springs and the other 50 is from groundwater.
All Austrians have access to good sanitation and drinking water. We all know that water is very important as it helps citizens to be healthy.
The government here has also put much effort into maintaining a good quality of water and the environment. For instance, programs were created such as The Environmental Impact Assessment Act and the EU Water Framework Directive.
This helps in evaluating how proposed initiatives will affect the surrounding environment and its inhabitants positively, including people and animals. And with this, Austrian lakes now have commendable levels of water purity, thanks to the program.
Owing to the fact that Austria has high-quality water plus good sanitation, makes it to have a very high score of EPI, bringing it among the top 10 cleanest countries in the world.
7. Slovenia
 |
| Image credit: Travel Slovenia |
EPI Score: 67.30
Population: 2.10 million
Land Area: 20272.50 sq. km
Continent: Europe
As regards being clean, this country has received much recognition for its sustainability and ecology. Right from childhood, children are taught to be extremely clean here.
For example, right from kindergarten, kids are involved in cleaning projects around their schools. This helps them to think before littering around them.
Many citizens also joined the Slovenian volunteers from time to time in assisting in huge cleanups of some places like streets and forests. It is among the cleanest countries in the world and it has also been named the greenest country.
They are able to achieve this through awareness, education, and special services like the services from volunteers. It has the highest natural water resources in all of Europe and its spring water is very clean.
You can drink directly from tap water without worrying. The country is blessed with a lot of fresh healthy waters, natural foods, and clean air.
6. Luxembourg
EPI score: 72.30
Population: 0.63 milliin
Land Area: 2561.98 sq. km
Continent: Europe
The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg is situated between, Belgium, France, and Germany; it is such a clean country. The country has welcome about 200 eco-companies that work for the country in succeeding in having good water treatment, waste management, and working renewable energy.
You will not find liters on the road, nor will you see graffiti on the walls. There are workers here whose job is to constantly look around to ensure everywhere is clean.
The building here too is in good condition, making the place so attractive. From the EPI score above, we can see that this country is certainly is part of the top cleanest countries in the world.
It has a remarkable score when it comes to Pollution Emissions which is 100, Sanitation which is also 100, and Drinkable water as well is 97.7. It is a small country with lots of forests and beautiful nature parks.
See also:
5. Sweden
 |
| Image credit: Dear Sabrina |
EPI score: 72.70
Population: 10.35 million
Land Area: 448215.38 sq. km
Continent: Europe
Anyone visiting this country always compliments its cleanliness, it is a very clean place. Everywhere is clean, when you look around you will see zero trash. Public transport is clean including buses and trains.
One of the global environmental problems is the emission of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases through emissions causing environmental pollution.
The country is doing its best to lower emissions which is important in saving the climate. The government is doing this by supplying the nation's energy through renewables and strict legislation.
The country is trying its best to use bioeconomy, which is not only to make environment friendly, it helps the use of natural materials that are 100% recyclable as well as being among the ‘cradle-to-grave’ process.
This country is known for its undeveloped archipelagoes and wilderness, from the Artic to European. The government is working, doing its part in protecting and conserving the country's landscape.
4. Malta
 |
| Image credit: Photosforyou / Pixabay |
EPI Score: 75.20
Population: 0.53 million
Land Area: 326.04 sq. km
Continent: Europe
In addition to posing a serious threat to aquatic life, plastic pollution may also be extremely harmful to humans since microplastics can build up in the bloodstream and have negative health effects.
Malta has been the leading country in cleaning the ocean. The initiative was taken to combat plastic pollution in the oceans. Many government officials take part in the activity including José Herrera, the minister of the environment.
The golden bay was the first cleaned spot and was awarded as the White flag symbol.
It was given that award because international diving inspectors participated in the cleaning of the area and regarding the commitment efforts the authority has put in place.
In this country, there are good and improved sources of clean water such as boreholes or tubewells, secured dug wells, safe springs, piped water, bottled water, and delivered water.
Statistics from macrotrends show that the proportion of persons who drink water from an upgraded source that is available at all times, and uncontaminated by feces and top-priority chemicals is 100 percent.
3. Finland
 |
| Image credit: Julius Jansson / Unsplash |
EPI score: 76.50
Population: 5.53 million
Land Area: 335174.96 sq. km
Continent: Europe
Regarding air quality, Finland is the best, but other countries are coming behind. According to WHO, 90% of the world's population is breathing in contaminated air.
This does not include Finland Citizens. This country is listed among the cleanest countries in the world because they have strong environmental regulations.
The government here protects forests and lakes, invests in renewable energy, and promotes the benefits of owning electric vehicles. Apart from that, there is no industrial waste here, they are far from pollution from industries converging.
Neither is there waste burning, coal-fired power plants, or deforestation. With this, there is less air pollution plus the fact the country is not densely populated. You may be surprised to learn that Finland, it has a population density of 17 persons per square kilometer.
That's breathing fresh air, right? The government is delibating on making the country's capital, Helsinki, motor vehicle free by 2025 replacing it with the best quality transport system.
2. United Kingdom
 |
| Image credit: Matthulland / Pixabay |
EPI score: 77.70
Population: 67.25 million
Land Area: 243737.28 sq. km
Continent: Europe
Even though there are still some places here not so clean. However, there are a lot of clean areas and cities in the UK. Generally, the UK is definitely one out of the cleanest countries in the world.
The EPI Score obviously shows that. And the government is putting in all the needed efforts on cleanliness making the country to be on the top 5 cleanest countries' list today.
Such as launching coordinated litter pickup, putting together community-wide cleanup initiatives like the Darlington Big Spring Clean and LitterFreeDurham as well as assembling responsive teams to actively combat fly-tipping.
There are lots of factors used in determining the cleanest cities such as tonnage of recyclable waste, water quality, and air quality. Didcot (Oxfordshire), Penicuik (Midlothian), and Narbeth (Pembrokeshire) are the cleanest town.
When it comes to quality air, Scotland top the list. Air pollution is able to be combated this through machinery maintenance (leak reduction), good car engine, conserving energy at home, cleaner public transport links, and cycle-to-work schemes. West Wales has the cleanest water and best water quality.
1. Denmark - The Cleanest Country in the World
 |
| Image credit: Adrian Cuj |
EPI score: 77.90
Population: 5.83 million
Land Area: 43091.74 sq. km
Continent: Europe
Denmark is famous as the cleanest country in the world. They highly value cleanliness. From a young age, Danes are thought that littering is highly unacceptable. People here are very polite too.
Their culture promotes the fact that everyone must maintain their immediate surroundings. The community cooperates with each other. The citizens, businesses and the government work together in making the country clean.
They are so committed that they can do anything to keep their environment clean and beautiful. This also helps them to make sustainable choices, for example, when they want to buy a detergent, they will check the chemicals on it.
If there is a harsh chemical, they will drop it, as it can affect the environment and in addition to that, it can spoil the cloth. Since the 1970s, the cultural priority is to be clean. Citizens here drink directly from their tap and even believed that bottled water is not clean.
Unlike other places that treat water, they use prevention methods. Most of their waste is being recycled and it is believed that by 2025, about 70% of it will be totally recycled.
Another reason this country is so clean is that they greatly respect nature. Danes do not experience air pollution as few people drive, this is because cars are expensive here.
Since cars are not environmentally friendly, taxes on them are extremely huge. With this, citizens here prefer public transport, walking or biking around.
What do you think about these countries on the list of the cleanest countries in the world in 2025? We will like to hear your own view in the comments section below (Post a comment). Please share this article and subscribe tour email list and you can as well follow us on our social media handles. Thanks for reading, stay safe and healthy!
Beautiful clean countries
ReplyDeleteYes, top cleanest countries.
DeletePost a Comment