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 declared to be homosexual, gay, or lesbian. In Brazil and the Netherlands, for instance, nine percent, instead, identified as bisexual, representing the largest group of bisexual respondents among the 30 surveyed countries. Moreover, two 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.

Malta was rated the safest travel destination for members of the LGBT community, according to a 2023 ranking. With 13 points, the European country outperformed Canada and Switzerland - the following safest countries in the list. Out of the 12 best-performing countries that year, eight are located in Europe.

LGBT 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 LGBT 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.

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 global survey conducted in 2021, three in 10 respondents had at least once spoken out against someone who was being prejudiced against LGBT+ people. In addition, some 13 percent attended a public event in support of LGBT+ people, e.g. a Pride march.

In 2021, around ** percent of individuals living in the District of Columbia identified as LGBT. Colorado, Arizona, Nevada, and Oregon also had high rates, exceeding *** percent. Mississippi and North Dakota had the lowest rates of LGBT populations, the only states with less than **** percent.

In a global survey conducted in 2023, ***** percent of respondents from 30 countries declared that they were homosexual, gay, or lesbian, with **** percent who identified as bisexual. *** 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, *** 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.

Spain was ranked fourth out of 49 European countries in the annual Rainbow Europe rankings in 2024, with the country achieving an overall score of 76.41 percent for its legal, political, and human rights provisions. The country performed relatively well on most indicators, having particularly strong protections for LGBTI civil society, family rights, equality & non-discrimination provisions, and laws which ensure the gender recognition rights of transgender citizens and residents. Spain performs less well on intersex bodily integrity laws, although it must be noted that relative to most European countries the score of 50 percent is still high.

France, Portugal, and Greece are the three European countries with the greatest share of respondents indicating that homophobia is either fairly or very widespread in 2019. While this may indicate that these countries have a particular problem with homophobia, there is also a possibility that countries where people are more educated about LGBTQ issues, citizens are also more aware of discrimination.

For instance, some countries such as Bulgaria, Latvia, and Slovakia where most respondents say that discrimination against gay people is rare or non-existent also have higher shares of LGBT respondents indicating they have experienced discrimination in other surveys. It may be the case that in these countries, as LGBTQ issues are less widely discussed and education is less inclusive of the queer communities concerns, that the general public is less aware of homophobia.

On the other hand, countries such as the Netherlands, Belgium, and the UK, where LGBTQ people report being able to have a greater level of openness about being gay in their daily lives, report more widespread homophobia. Paradoxically, it may be because of this widespread awareness and openness about LGBTQ issues that more respondents in the general public respond that homophobia is widespread.

According to the Gay Travel Index published in March 2023, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Chechnya, and Afghanistan were the most dangerous places for LGBT tourists. Each of these nations obtained -19 points, which placed at the bottom of the ranking analizing 199 countries. The category that contributed the most to the four nations' final score was the death sentence for homosexuality.

As of April 2025, the biggest share of Grindr app downloads came from the United States, accounting for over 18 million of the total. Of the ten leading countries, India and Brazil ranked second and third, with approximately 11 million and 10.3 million downloads each.

In Africa, 22 countries did not criminalize homosexual acts in private in 2020, accounting for 41 percent of all African countries. These countries were: Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cabo Verde, Central African Republic, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, DR Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Guinea Bissau, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mali, Mozambique, Niger, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Seychelles, and South Africa.

Homosexuality is still criminalized

Worldwide, 71 countries criminalize homosexuality as of 2021. Most of them are located in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. In 11 countries, the death penalty is imposed or at least a possibility for private, consensual same-sex sexual activity. As of 2020, homosexual relations were criminalized in 32 countries in Africa. In four countries, the legislation foresees even the death for homosexual acts. These countries were Nigeria, Mauritania, Sudan, and Somalia.

LGBT+ rights in South Africa

South Africa is the only African country that has legalized same-sex marriage as well as adoption for same-sex couples. It also ranks as the second most-friendly destination in Africa for LGBT+ travelers after La Réunion. In South Africa, indeed, acceptance of homosexuality s generally higher than in other African countries. Nonetheless, also other countries in Africa have introduced laws to protect people victims of discrimination and violence motivated by their sexual orientation.

In a global survey conducted in 2021, on average, ** 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 ***** and **** percent of the interviewees were attracted only to the same sex. On the other hand, more than *** in 10 people worldwide are mostly attracted to people of the opposite sex.

Worldwide, Brazil reported the highest number of transgender people murdered in 2023, reaching 100 victims. Most of the murders that year were reported in Latin America and the Caribbean. It is assumed that only a minority of the cases actually are reported, and the actual number is estimated to be significantly higher.

As of February 2021, almost half (48 percent) of Mexican dating app users surveyed stated using Tinder. Meanwhile, 29 percent of respondents cited Bumble and about nine percent mentioned Badoo.

Sex and solitude Throughout 2020, lockdown and social distancing measures implemented to counter the spread of the coronavirus pushed many Mexicans to seek human contact on dating apps. In another 2021 survey, approximately 18 percent of Mexicans who used dating apps stated that they did it to find friends. Still nearly three out of ten people surveyed said they turned to those apps to have sexual encounters, while about 40 percent reported focusing on finding a partner. Dating apps may remain an option for those fighting solitude. Of Mexicans participating in a third survey, a quarter of them said they were likely to feel lonely over the course of 2021.

LGBTQ+ online It has been almost a century and a half since homosexuality was legalized in Mexico, but only recently have people with different sexual orientations or gender identities been able to count on spaces thought for them. As the survey results show, Grindr, a dating app focused on men seeking other men, is now also among the most popular in the North American country. After all, lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgenders and other persons who do not identify as heterosexual and/or cisgender in Mexico appear to be very well equipped to stay connected, as more than 9 out of 10 members of the LGBT+ community surveyed stated owning a smartphone, and over 80 percent indicated having a laptop.