In this article, we will explore how Australia fares in terms of drinking water safety compared to other countries around the world.
Access to safe drinking water is essential to human health, yet millions of people around the world lack access to it, leading to illnesses and deaths.
Our Team here at My Water Filter is well and truly aware of this issue and have donated funds to enable
over 1,681,427 million days of access to clean drinking water to people in need.
To measure the safety of drinking water, experts use the DALY rate, which stands for "disability-adjusted life-years."
This measure represents the number of years of healthy life lost due to exposure to unsafe drinking water, standardized by age. A DALY rate of 100 indicates that a country has among the lowest rates in the world, while a score of 0 means that a country has among the highest rates.
The
Institute for Health Metrics & Evaluation's Global Burden of Disease study provides data for this indicator, enabling us to compare drinking water safety across countries.
| Country |
Rank |
EPI Score |
10-Year Change |
| Iceland |
1 |
100 |
0.6 |
| Norway |
1 |
100 |
1.4 |
| Austria |
1 |
100 |
NA |
| Switzerland |
1 |
100 |
NA |
| Finland |
1 |
100 |
NA |
| Greece |
1 |
100 |
NA |
| Ireland |
1 |
100 |
NA |
| Malta |
1 |
100 |
NA |
| Netherlands |
1 |
100 |
NA |
| United Kingdom |
1 |
100 |
1.7 |
| Germany |
11 |
98.6 |
1.3 |
| Sweden |
12 |
97.9 |
1.1 |
| Italy |
13 |
97.8 |
0.9 |
| Luxembourg |
13 |
97.8 |
2.3 |
| Denmark |
15 |
95.8 |
1.7 |
| Spain |
16 |
94.8 |
1.7 |
| Israel |
17 |
93.8 |
1.5 |
| France |
17 |
93.8 |
4.1 |
| Belgium |
19 |
93 |
2.9 |
| Japan |
20 |
91.8 |
1.6 |
| Cyprus |
21 |
91.7 |
0.8 |
| Canada |
22 |
90.9 |
2.6 |
| United States of America |
23 |
89.3 |
2.2 |
| Singapore |
24 |
88.9 |
1.3 |
| Portugal |
25 |
85.7 |
2.7 |
| South Korea |
26 |
84.6 |
1.7 |
| Australia |
27 |
81.2 |
0.7 |
| Brunei Darussalam |
28 |
79.9 |
0.3 |
| New Zealand |
29 |
74.5 |
1 |
| Slovenia |
30 |
70.3 |
-0.2 |
| Taiwan |
31 |
67.2 |
1.1 |
| Chile |
32 |
66.8 |
2.7 |
| Poland |
33 |
65.7 |
1.3 |
| Czech Republic |
34 |
65.2 |
-0.3 |
| Slovakia |
35 |
64.6 |
1.2 |
| Mauritius |
36 |
63.6 |
1.8 |
| Croatia |
37 |
63.3 |
1.2 |
| Uruguay |
38 |
61.8 |
3.5 |
| Armenia |
39 |
61.7 |
4 |
| Belarus |
40 |
60.7 |
1.5 |
| Hungary |
41 |
60.6 |
-0.1 |
| Serbia |
42 |
60.5 |
2.4 |
| Argentina |
43 |
59.5 |
3.1 |
| Estonia |
44 |
59.2 |
0.7 |
| China |
45 |
58.4 |
5.2 |
| North Macedonia |
46 |
58.3 |
2.2 |
| Bulgaria |
47 |
58 |
2.3 |
| Latvia |
48 |
57.7 |
0.9 |
| Lithuania |
49 |
57.4 |
0.5 |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina |
50 |
57.3 |
2.6 |
| Kuwait |
51 |
57.2 |
0.6 |
| Qatar |
52 |
57 |
0.8 |
| Montenegro |
53 |
56.8 |
1.9 |
| Kazakhstan |
54 |
56 |
3.3 |
| Russia |
55 |
55.8 |
0.9 |
| Romania |
56 |
55.4 |
2.3 |
| Costa Rica |
57 |
55.3 |
2.6 |
| Ukraine |
58 |
55.1 |
-0.8 |
| Jordan |
59 |
54.4 |
2.4 |
| Uzbekistan |
60 |
54 |
2.2 |
| Georgia |
61 |
52.3 |
1.6 |
| United Arab Emirates |
62 |
51.7 |
0.9 |
| Saudi Arabia |
63 |
51 |
3.9 |
| Viet Nam |
64 |
50.9 |
3.1 |
| Moldova |
65 |
50.8 |
1.8 |
| Albania |
66 |
50.3 |
1.4 |
| Bahrain |
67 |
50.1 |
1 |
| Colombia |
67 |
50.1 |
5.2 |
| Mexico |
69 |
50 |
4.8 |
| Tunisia |
70 |
49.1 |
0.7 |
| Algeria |
70 |
49.1 |
2.5 |
| Iran |
72 |
48.8 |
2.2 |
| Trinidad and Tobago |
73 |
48.5 |
0.8 |
| Malaysia |
74 |
48.2 |
0.7 |
| Barbados |
75 |
47.8 |
-0.7 |
| Bahamas |
75 |
47.8 |
-0.4 |
| Turkmenistan |
77 |
47.7 |
9 |
| Jamaica |
78 |
47.3 |
-0.5 |
| Kyrgyzstan |
78 |
47.3 |
5.8 |
| Turkey |
80 |
47 |
1.9 |
| Lebanon |
81 |
46.8 |
2.1 |
| Sri Lanka |
82 |
46.7 |
4 |
| Ecuador |
82 |
46.7 |
5.6 |
| Oman |
84 |
46.5 |
1.6 |
| Azerbaijan |
84 |
46.5 |
2.6 |
| Cuba |
86 |
46 |
0.4 |
| Iraq |
87 |
45.9 |
9.9 |
| Seychelles |
88 |
45.8 |
1.3 |
| Antigua and Barbuda |
89 |
45.2 |
NA |
| Paraguay |
89 |
45.2 |
4.7 |
| Brazil |
89 |
45.2 |
7.9 |
| Grenada |
92 |
44.4 |
NA |
| Maldives |
93 |
44.2 |
2.6 |
| Mongolia |
94 |
43.8 |
3.5 |
| Venezuela |
95 |
43.6 |
2.3 |
| Dominica |
96 |
43.5 |
-0.2 |
| Tonga |
97 |
42.8 |
-0.4 |
| Peru |
97 |
42.8 |
2.1 |
| Thailand |
99 |
42.7 |
2.5 |
| Saint Lucia |
100 |
42.2 |
-0.3 |
| Nicaragua |
100 |
42.2 |
7.1 |
| Panama |
102 |
41.7 |
5.7 |
| Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
103 |
41.1 |
0.9 |
| El Salvador |
104 |
40.8 |
3.6 |
| Samoa |
105 |
40.4 |
0.2 |
| Belize |
106 |
39.6 |
1.9 |
| Bolivia |
107 |
38.5 |
5.6 |
| Egypt |
108 |
36.7 |
7.4 |
| Morocco |
108 |
36.7 |
8.3 |
| Suriname |
110 |
35.4 |
2.8 |
| Dominican Republic |
111 |
35.2 |
2.1 |
| Cabo Verde |
112 |
34.5 |
4.4 |
| Philippines |
113 |
34.4 |
5.6 |
| Sao Tome and Principe |
114 |
34.1 |
11 |
| Cambodia |
115 |
33.3 |
7.4 |
| Micronesia |
116 |
33 |
1.7 |
| Guyana |
117 |
32.6 |
4.8 |
| Fiji |
118 |
32 |
2.6 |
| Tajikistan |
119 |
31.7 |
7.1 |
| Bhutan |
120 |
31.5 |
4.9 |
| Honduras |
121 |
30.9 |
6 |
| Marshall Islands |
122 |
30.3 |
4.3 |
| Myanmar |
123 |
30 |
9.8 |
| Equatorial Guinea |
124 |
29.6 |
8.4 |
| Afghanistan |
125 |
27.8 |
8 |
| Guatemala |
126 |
27.2 |
7.6 |
| Gabon |
126 |
27.2 |
9.4 |
| Bangladesh |
128 |
26.9 |
5.4 |
| Timor-Leste |
129 |
26.2 |
4.2 |
| Laos |
130 |
26.1 |
9.5 |
| Nepal |
131 |
25.9 |
8.1 |
| Indonesia |
132 |
24.9 |
5.8 |
| South Africa |
133 |
23.4 |
7.4 |
| Sudan |
134 |
22.6 |
11.1 |
| Vanuatu |
135 |
21.4 |
3.1 |
| Ghana |
136 |
20.4 |
4 |
| Botswana |
137 |
20.2 |
6.1 |
| Gambia |
138 |
19 |
5.6 |
| Namibia |
139 |
18.9 |
5.2 |
| Tanzania |
140 |
18.4 |
5.7 |
| India |
141 |
18.3 |
8.6 |
| Djibouti |
142 |
18.2 |
5 |
| Uganda |
143 |
17.7 |
3.5 |
| Cote d'Ivoire |
144 |
17 |
5.9 |
| Rwanda |
144 |
17 |
7.1 |
| Mozambique |
146 |
16.5 |
6.5 |
| Zimbabwe |
147 |
16.2 |
8.2 |
| Papua New Guinea |
148 |
15.8 |
4 |
| Kiribati |
149 |
15.6 |
4 |
| Comoros |
150 |
15.4 |
5.6 |
| Pakistan |
151 |
15.3 |
4.9 |
| Republic of Congo |
152 |
14.5 |
10.1 |
| Solomon Islands |
153 |
14.4 |
4.7 |
| Haiti |
154 |
13.9 |
3.2 |
| Kenya |
155 |
13.7 |
6.7 |
| Benin |
156 |
13.6 |
4.5 |
| Mauritania |
156 |
13.6 |
8.5 |
| Dem. Rep. Congo |
158 |
13.4 |
10.1 |
| Zambia |
159 |
13.2 |
7.3 |
| Senegal |
160 |
13 |
4.6 |
| Eswatini |
161 |
12.2 |
5.9 |
| Malawi |
162 |
12.1 |
5.3 |
| Angola |
163 |
12 |
9.2 |
| Sierra Leone |
164 |
11.6 |
4.4 |
| Ethiopia |
165 |
11.3 |
5.9 |
| Guinea |
166 |
11 |
4.9 |
| Liberia |
167 |
9.5 |
7.3 |
| Mali |
168 |
8.3 |
5.6 |
| Burkina Faso |
169 |
7.9 |
3.7 |
| Cameroon |
170 |
7.5 |
6.4 |
| Lesotho |
171 |
7.2 |
4 |
| Guinea-Bissau |
172 |
6.6 |
6.6 |
| Eritrea |
173 |
6.4 |
4.5 |
| Madagascar |
174 |
6.2 |
5.1 |
| Burundi |
175 |
5.4 |
2.9 |
| Togo |
176 |
4.9 |
4.9 |
| Nigeria |
177 |
4.3 |
4.3 |
| Niger |
178 |
1.7 |
1.7 |
| Central African Republic |
179 |
NA |
NA |
| Chad |
179 |
NA |
NA |
