Is Manama safe?
Bahrain · Asia · data updated 2026-09-04
Manama is a city in Bahrain, home to about 1.5M people, and one of 6,168 cities worldwide ranked on this site from published safety data. It currently ranks 3 of 6,168, with a safety score of 98.7 out of 100 - among the safest cities in this dataset.
Emergency 999 (ambulance, fire, police)
- US State Department: Reconsider travelOfficial travel advisory level 3 of 4 for Bahrain, updated 2026-03-01.
No official source names specific areas to avoid here: travel advisories for Bahrain are country-level, and no published dataset covers neighborhood-level crime - so this briefing does not invent it.
How safe is Manama really?
No published homicide figure exists for Manama itself, so the national rate stands in: Bahrain recorded 0.2 homicides per 100,000 people in 2022 - well below the global city median. The city itself may be safer or more dangerous than its country's average.
What the travel advisories say
The US State Department currently rates Bahrain at level 3 of 4 - "Reconsider travel" (updated 2026-03-01). The UK Foreign Office publishes travel advice for Bahrain without any avoid-travel warning in force. Both advisories are country-level: no official source publishes verified neighborhood-level crime guidance for individual cities, which is why this page reports named areas only where an official source names them.
What to watch out for in Bahrain
Terrorism in Bahrain · Political situation · Crime · Security sites and incidents · Social media · Personal ID · Dress code · Respect for religion · Ramadan · Public offences · Illegal drugs and prison sentences · Drones and UAVs · LGBT+ travellers · Road travel · +1 more
Topic headings from the official UK FCDO travel advice for Bahrain — country-level, not specific to Manama. Read what each one says →
The numbers
- Homicide rate
- 0.2 /100knational rate, 2022
- Conflict deaths
- 0within 100 km, 2022-2024 (UCDP)
- Income inequality
- no datacountry,
- Human development
- HDI 0.899country, 2023
- Income
- $65,500/yrGNI per capita PPP · context only, not scored
- Population
- 1.5Murban centre · 4,692/km²
Country context for travelers
- Road deaths
- 5.2 /100kWHO, 2019 · often the biggest real travel risk
- Political stability
- 61/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · higher = more stable
- Rule of law
- 60/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · police and courts reliability
- Corruption perceptions
- 50/100Transparency International, 2025 · higher = cleaner
- Natural-hazard risk
- 1.8/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Women, Peace & Security
- 0.77Georgetown WPS Index, 2025 · 0-1, higher = better
- Air quality
- 56.6 µg/m³PM2.5 annual mean, 2023 · WHO guideline is 5
- Safely managed drinking water
- 99%of the population, 2024 · WHO/UNICEF JMP
- Healthcare capacity
- 0.7 doctors /1k1.8 hospital beds per 1,000
Same-sex sexual activity is legal in Bahrain (as of 2025).
All country-level figures shared by every city in Bahrain; none of them affect the safety score.
How the score works
One fixed, calibrated mix for every city: 40% homicide · 25% peace · 25% equality · 10% HDI. Homicide and conflict deaths are measured outcomes; income inequality carries the structural share because it predicts real city violence far better than national income (which is shown above but scored at zero). Each factor maps to 0-100 against fixed anchors, missing data drops out and is never estimated, and cities with data behind less than half the weighting get “no data” instead of a score. For Manama that gives 98.7/100. Full methodology, anchors and sources →
Manama compared with Dammam
| Measure | Manama | Dammam | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Safety score | 98.7 | 85.7 | +12.9 — better for Manama |
| Homicide ratecity-measured where published, otherwise the national rate | 0.2 /100k | 0.8 /100k | −0.6 /100k — better for Manama |
| Conflict deaths within 100 km | 0 | 0 | ±0 |
| Income inequality (Gini) | no data | no data | — |
| Human development (HDI) | 0.899 | 0.900 | −0.001 — better for Dammam |
| Road deaths | 5.2 /100k | 35.9 /100k | −30.7 /100k — better for Manama |
| Rule of law | 60/100 | 61/100 | −1/100 — better for Dammam |
| Corruption perceptions | 50/100 | 57/100 | −7/100 — better for Dammam |
| Air quality (PM2.5) | 56.6 µg/m³ | 73.5 µg/m³ | −16.9 µg/m³ — better for Manama |
| Natural-hazard risk | 1.8/10 | 3.1/10 | −1.3/10 — better for Manama |
Differences are plain arithmetic between the two stored figures — nothing is modelled. Country-level rows describe the two countries, not the cities themselves. Full report for Dammam →
Nearby cities
- Dammam, Saudi Arabia 85.7
- Al Ahsa, Saudi Arabia 85.7
- Doha, Qatar 90.5
- الفاروق, Saudi Arabia 85.7
- Al Wakrah, Qatar 90.5
- ساحلی, Iran 68.0
- Jahrom County, Iran 69.9
- Kavar, Iran 62.7
See Manama on the interactive map → · Safest cities in Asia → · Full travel briefings →