One of the benefits of having a United States passport is the fact that it’s one of the very best travel documents anyone can have. While there are some countries whose passports have even more travel clout, the U.S. passport is comparable to these other countries and will allow travelers to visit countless nations without needing to organize a visa beforehand. Just fly to the country, step out into the airport and get your passport stamped with an automatic tourist visa.
In terms of ranking the most powerful passports, Business Insider recently offered a ranking of passports in order of how many countries the passport holders can enter without pre-arranging a visa. Here are the five most powerful passports ranked in this fashion:
5. Belgium, Canada, Ireland, Belgium and Switzerland are said to be tied as the fifth-most powerful passports in the world as passport holders from these nations can enter 185 different countries without a visa.
4. The United States, United Kingdom, Portugal, The Netherlands, Luxembourg, Austria and Norway tie as the fourth-most powerful passports in the world as they allow you to visit 186 countries without a visa.
3. Sweden, Spain, Italy, South Korea, France, Finland and Denmark tie as the third most powerful passports because they allow you to enter 187 countries visa-free.
2. Germany wins second-most powerful passport as it lets you enter 188 countries visa-free.
1. Finally, Singapore gets first place as its passport allows you to enter 189 countries without a visa!
As you can see, obtaining a U.S. passport will open the gates of many nations to you. Therefore, if you’re a traveler, going through the legal process of getting a U.S. passport may be a very useful goal.