This figure, at 31 deaths per million, puts it slightly ahead of Finland, Germany and the Netherlands and significantly better than Latvia and Lithuania.

Roads in built up areas of Estonia were, however, significantly safer than those in rural areas, and while the incidence of deaths on the roads continues to fall in Estonia, it is not falling at a rate fast enough to meet a state target of half of 2019's figure by or in 2030. Also, the first half of this year saw a rise in road deaths in Estonia.

Sweden and Norway recorded 19 road deaths per million in 2025, followed by Denmark and Switzerland at 24, and Iceland at 26.

These were the only countries to post figures better than Estonia's 31 per million. Estonia was followed by Malta and Ireland at 33, Finland, Germany and the Netherlands (all 34) and Spain at 36, according to figures published on Wednesday.

Lithuania posted 138 road deaths last year, or 48 per million, while Latvia's figure was 64 per million.

The other highest rates were seen in Serbia (75 per million), Bulgaria (71), Romania (68) and Croatia (67).

Across the EU, EFTA countries and Serbia, 19,350 people died on the roads last year, or 43 per million,

The Commission said road deaths across Europe fell 3 percent on year to 2025 (580 fewer), and by 15 percent compared with 2019 (3,400 fewer road traffic deaths).

The Commission noted that, however, compared with the EU average, Estonia had a higher share of fatal road accidents on roads outside urban areas.

Between 2019 and 2025 road deaths in Estonia fell 17 percent. This, the Commission says, suggests Estonia will likely not meet its 2030 target of halving road deaths compared with 2019, though the Commission noted that annual figures can fluctuate significantly given the country's small population and low number of deaths in absolute terms.

The same data shows that in the first months of 2026 road deaths in Estonia rose sharply again, by over 10 percent. ERR reported in August that 30 people had died on Estonian roads in the first seven months of this year, four more than in the same period a year earlier.

For Europe as a whole, preliminary 2026 data show that in the first half of the year more countries saw road deaths fall by more than 5 percent compared with the same period in 2025 than saw them rise. The overall trend is therefore positive, the Commission said.

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