In 2023, Brazil was the country with the largest share of LGBT+ population at 15 percent. Spain and Switzerland followed next, with 14 and 13 percent of their population identifying as LGBT+, respectively.

In a global survey conducted in 2023, three percent of respondents from 30 countries declared that they were homosexual, gay, or lesbian, with four percent who identified as bisexual. One percent of the interviewees said that they were pansexual or omnisexual. Pansexuality describes people who feel attracted to other people regardless of their biological sex, gender, or gender identity, whereas omnisexuality refers to people attracted to people of all gender identities and sexual orientations. Finally, one percent of respondents were asexual, which means they experience little to no sexual attraction to anyone, regardless of their gender. LGBT people around the world LGBT stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. Introduced in the 1990s, LGBT generally includes anyone who is not heterosexual or cisgender. Heterosexual refers to a person attracted to people of the opposite gender, whereas cisgender describes a person whose gender identity is the same as their sex at birth. Acceptance of other gender identities and sexual orientations is usually higher in Western countries. In a study conducted among 34 countries, acceptance of homosexuality was higher in Sweden, the Netherlands, and Spain. Homosexuality in African countries Worldwide, 71 countries criminalize homosexuality as of 2021, most of which are located in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. In Africa, 32 out of 54 countries criminalize homosexuality. In four countries, the legislation imposed the death penalty for sexual relations between people of the same sex. In fact, in most African countries, homosexuality has low levels of acceptance, or is not accepted at all. In a recent survey, most respondents in Africa showed high levels of intolerance towards LGBT+ in their vicinity.

Worldwide, 64 countries criminalize homosexuality as of 2024. Most of them are located in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. In 12 countries, the death penalty is imposed or at least a possibility for private, consensual same-sex sexual activity. These countries are Iran, Northern Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Yemen, Afghanistan, Brunei, Mauritania, Pakistan, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, and Uganda.

Acceptance of homosexuality has notably increased in many countries across the globe. In South Africa and India, acceptance of homosexuality increased by 22 percentage points between 2013 and 2019. Despite being still low, some countries in the world recorded significant increases over the last years. Acceptance tended to be highest among Western European countries.

In a global survey conducted in 2023, ***** percent of respondents declared to be homosexual, gay, or lesbian. In Brazil and the Netherlands, for instance, **** percent, instead, identified as bisexual, representing the largest group of bisexual respondents among the 30 surveyed countries. Moreover, *** percent of the interviewees in Switzerland said to be pansexual or omnisexual. Pansexuality describes people who feel attracted to other people regardless of their biological sex, gender, or gender identity, whereas omnisexuality refers to people attracted to people of all gender identities and sexual orientations.

Réunion was rated the safest travel destination in Africa for members of the LGBT community, according to a 2024 ranking. With eight points, the French overseas department outperformed South Africa, ranking 21st worldwide, while the Southern African country stood in the 38th position. These were the only destinations considered friendly for LGBT tourists in Africa. A country scores less than zero in the index when human rights are not observed, nor guaranteed, or even violated. This means that Angola, Botswana, Cabo Verde, Mozambique, Lesotho, Niger, Seychelles, and Mauritius were far from being considered safe, but were better-rated destinations compared to other countries in the continent.

According to a 2019 survey, 54 percent of respondents from South Africa believed homosexuality should be accepted by society. Recognition of homosexuality in the world was highest in Western European countries, Canada and Australia. Despite Kenya ranking comparatively low in the global comparison, acceptance of people identifying as LGBTQ+ notably increased since 2002. Among the four African countries taken into consideration, the lowest degree of acceptance among interviewees was recorded in Nigeria, at seven percent.

In Europe, the Netherlands and Denmark have the highest percentages of LGBTI people who feel free to be open about their sexual orientation. In a survey conducted in 2019, 66 percent of respondents from the Netherlands and Denmark, declared that they were fairly or very open about their sexual orientation. Sweden, Belgium, Germany, and the United Kingdom followed. In the European Union, lesbian and gay people are more likely to be open about their sexual orientation than bisexual, trans, and intersex people. In a survey conducted in 2019 in 28 EU countries, bisexual men and intersex people were mostly never or almost never open about their sexual orientation.

Same-sex couples in Europe

In Europe, 23 countries recognized same-sex couples as of 2020. There are various forms of recognition of rights and duties of same-sex couples, including civil unions, concubinary unions, de facto partnerships, registered partnerships, and other types of partnerships. Same-sex marriage, has been legalized in 17 countries in Europe, with Switzerland the latest to do so. In 17 European countries, same-sex couples can also jointly adopt children as of 2020. In America and Europe, more countries permitted homosexual couples to adopt children than in Oceania, Asia, and Africa.

LGBT+ in Eastern Europe

Among East European countries, support for the equal rights of LGBT+ people is low. According to a recent survey, about one half of respondents in Czechia expressed support toward equal rights for the LGBT+ community, the largest share among surveyed countries in Central and Eastern Europe. The Parliament in Hungary approved in 2021 an anti-LGBT law, which was condemned by the European Union, as it breaches guarantees of freedom of expression and non-discrimination. This motion was openly supported by the Polish government.

This statistics shows a ranking of the friendliness towards the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community in Latin America in 2016, broken down by country. In that year, Uruguay and Argentina ranked first on the LGBT friendliness scale, whereas Paraguay came in last with a score of 14.

According to the Gay Travel Index published in February 2025, Yemen was the most dangerous place for LGBTQ tourists. This nation obtained -23 points, which placed at the bottom of the ranking analizing *** countries and territories. The category that contributed the most to the four nations' final score was the death sentence for homosexuality.

32 countries in the world have legalized same-sex marriage. Most of the countries have legalized it through legislation. Austria, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, and Slovenia legalized same-sex marriage through court decisions, while two countries, South Africa and Taiwan, enacted legislation legalizing same-sex marriage after courts' mandates.

In a global survey conducted in 2021, on average, 70 percent of respondents from 27 countries declared to be sexually attracted only to people of the opposite sex. Russia and Hungary had the highest shares of interviewees who stated to be heterosexual. The largest percentages of homosexual respondents, instead, came from Australia, Great Britain, Belgium, and the Netherlands. In these countries, between eight and nine percent of the interviewees were attracted only to the same sex. On the other hand, more than one in 10 people worldwide are mostly attracted to people of the opposite sex.

Worldwide, more than six in 10 respondents support adoption for same-sex couples. Among the 30 countries surveyed, the Spain, Thailand, Portugal, and Sweden registered the highest share of interviewees who agreed that same-sex couples should have the same rights to adopt children as heterosexual couples do. On the contrary, the most adversary countries towards adoption for same-sex couples were Romania, Turkey, and Poland.

Acceptance of homosexuality in Nigeria is very low. In 2019, only seven percent of respondents in the country declared that homosexuality should be accepted by the society. Nevertheless, this was an increase by six percentage points compared to 2013. Homosexuality in Nigeria is criminalized - the death penalty is imposed or at least a possibility for same-sex sexual activity.

According to a survey published in 2020, intolerance toward LGBTQ people in Africa is considerably high. In 2018, the vast majority of respondents from 34 African countries showed strong intolerance toward having LGBTQ people as neighbors. In Eastern Africa, only seven percent of the interviewees would either not care or like to have LGBTQ people as neighbors. The least concern was shown by respondents from Southern Africa, where 30 percent of the respondents would either not care or like it if this situation occurred.

Worldwide, more than half of respondents support same-sex marriage. According to a survey conducted in 2023, the largest support for same-sex marriage was registered in the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Belgium. On the contrary, 14 percent of global respondents believed that same-sex couples should not be allowed to marry or obtain any kind of legal recognition. This position was considerably more common in Romania and Turkey.

Five countries achieved 13 points in the 2025 Gay Travel Index: one of them is on the American continent and the other four are in Europe. With 12 points, New Zealand and Germany followed in the ranking. LGBTQ rights in Canada Back in 2005, Canada was the fourth country worldwide to legalize same-sex marriage. The North American nation is in the vanguard of LGBTQ rights and has passed multiple laws assuring equality for this group, such as allowing adoption by same-sex couples, protecting transgender rights, and banning conversion therapy. Meanwhile, its land neighbor, the United States, had the share of the population that identifies as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender increased steadily between 2012 and 2021. Acceptance around the globe According to a survey conducted in 2021 in 27 countries, opinions on the rights of same-sex couples varied greatly around the world. Western European and American nations were particularly supportive of marriage or, failing that, some form of legal recognition for homosexual couples.

Uruguay was rated the safest Latin American country for LGBTQ tourists in 2025, scoring 11 points. Following in the ranking was Chile, which rated 10 points. In the Caribbean region, Cuba, Guadeloupe, and Martinique ranked in the top three places as the safest travel destinations for this group of travelers.

As of 2024, same-sex marriage in Latin America is still considered illegal or not recognized in the majority of countries. Nonetheless, since 2010, many countries have legalized these types of unions. Among those, Brazil ranked at the top of the list with over 11,100 same-sex marriages in 2023, followed by Mexico and Chile with 6,606 and 2,254 marriages, respectively. LGBTQ+ in Brazil Brazil is not only the leader of the ranking with the most same-sex marriages in Latin America; it was also one of the first countries to make it legal. Since May 2013, the number of same-sex marriages has only increased, almost duplicating from 2015 to 2022. And the forecast is positive for the next generations; as a 2025 survey shows, the Brazilian population from 16 to 44 years of age has an overwhelmingly positive perception of same-sex marriages. A difficult start for Mexico A recent survey in Mexico shows that around five percent of the total population self-identifies as part of the LGBTQ+ community. Nonetheless, the country has failed to provide equal footing for the community. In early 2010, Mexico City was the first federal entity to legalize same-sex marriages, but it was not until the last day of 2022 that all states allowed this type of union. The support for the LGBTQ+ community keeps growing in the Aztec country, as the engagement in supporting activities is also becoming more widespread.

In a global survey conducted in 2023, three percent of respondents from 30 countries identified themselves as transgender, non-binary/non-conforming/gender-fluid, or in another way. In Switzerland, around six percent of the respondents stated to identify themselves with one of the listed genders.