Now, a new study has taken the study further. They have examined every European country in depth, and analysed them according to 12 measurable factors, including pay gap, tampon tax rates, access to contraception, employment rate, percentage of women in government, female life expectancy, and more.

Overall, the results put Germany at the top of the list, thanks to its high volume of female billionaires, percentage of young women in secondary education, high female life expectancy and excellent paternal leave allowance. Germany was followed closely by Norway, France and Iceland.

However, it is worth noting that Portugal, France and Belgium boasted the highest contraception scores – and the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom ruled supreme when it came to countries with the lowest tampon tax.

The top 10 European countries for women

Germany
Norway
France
Iceland
Sweden
Finland
Republic of Ireland
United Kingdom
Netherlands
Slovenia

“While much of the continent, especially the Scandinavian countries, have been working towards gender equality for a long while, some have only made big steps in recent years,” explained researchers, noting that women in Portugal only won equal voting rights in 1976 and abortion was only made legal in the Republic of Ireland last year.

These are the 10 best countries to be a woman around Europe