Travel safety comparison · Africa
Eritrea vs Ethiopia: safety comparison
vs
Side-by-side safety comparison of Eritrea and Ethiopia for 2026: risk scores, FCDO and US State Department advisories, drug law, women's safety, LGBTQ+ legal status, and the practical decision between the two.
Eritrea and Ethiopia have very similar overall Warnely composite scores: 64 and 64. The choice between them is unlikely to be driven by the headline number alone. The biggest single category gap is in civil unrest, where Eritrea scores 3/5 against Ethiopia's 4/5. The US State Department currently carries a Level 2 advisory on Eritrea and a Level 3 on Ethiopia.
| 🇪🇷Eritrea | 🇪🇹Ethiopia | |
|---|---|---|
| Warnely composite (0–100, lower is safer) | 64 / 100 | 64 / 100 |
| Risk tier | High Risk | High Risk |
| UK FCDO advisory | avoid all travel to parts of country | avoid all but essential travel to parts of country; avoid all travel to parts of country |
| US State Department advisory | Level 2 (Exercise Increased Caution) | Level 3 (Reconsider Travel) |
| Global Peace Index rank | #132 | #138 |
| Drug law | Severe (long sentences) | Severe (long sentences) |
| Women's safety rating | Exercise Caution | Exercise Caution |
| LGBTQ+ legal status | illegal | illegal |
| Tap water | n/a | n/a |
| Currency | ERN | ETB |