Iceland has the freest internet in the world, scoring 94 out of 100 in Freedom House's Freedom on the Net 2025 report. It has topped the ranking for several years running, with Estonia close behind.
How Iceland earns the top spot
Freedom House scores each country on three areas: obstacles to access, limits on content, and violations of user rights. Iceland got a perfect 25 out of 25 on access, with near-universal connectivity. No social media or websites were blocked, networks weren't restricted, and no users were arrested for what they posted online during the June 2024 to May 2025 coverage period.
The rest of the top tier
- Estonia scored 91 out of 100, down one point from 2024.
- The United States scored 73, a three-point drop, and kept its "Free" status.
- Only 18 of the 72 countries assessed were rated Free, and half of them saw their scores decline.
At the other end, China and Myanmar tied as the worst environments for internet freedom, and global internet freedom fell for the 15th year in a row. Kenya had the biggest single-year drop after a protest-related shutdown.
What this means when you travel
In a top-rated country like Iceland or Estonia, you can use a VPN purely for privacy on public Wi-Fi, with no legal grey areas. A service such as NordVPN is useful there for securing hotel and café networks, not for getting around censorship. In low-scoring countries, the picture flips: sites you use daily may be blocked, and VPN use itself can be restricted, so check the local rules before you go.
A new edition is close. Freedom House is set to launch Freedom on the Net 2026 on October 22, 2026, so the rankings above may shift within weeks.