As the US reaches 250,000 Covid deaths, how many other lives has coronavirus claimed around the world?

Covid-19 pays no mind to national borders and it certainly has no need of a passport to travel, with only a handful of countries managing to keep out the deadly virus and many more struggling to control it amid spiralling infection rates and deaths.

The virus has had a devastating global impact, with some countries witnessing hundreds of thousands of deaths - the United States passed the bleak landmark of 250,000 Covid deaths on Wednesday.

The global coronavirus death toll currently totals more than 1.3 million while the virus has infected over 56.2 million people around the world.

There are caveats to these comparisons: Covid-19 test rates can vary per country and how coronavirus-linked deaths are reported also differs widely, for example, Belgium counts suspected coronavirus deaths in their figures, whereas other countries have not done that (yet).

But, even taking in mind these differences in reporting, some nations have been ravaged by Covid-19, others have seen comparatively few deaths. We take a look at the contrasting global Covid picture.

Which countries have the highest death toll?

The United States has suffered the highest death toll in the world from the novel coronavirus, with fatalities related to Covid-19 passing a quarter of a million on 18 November, marking a grim milestone for the nation.

Which countries have recorded death tolls over 100,000?

• United States 252,555

• Brazil 167,455

• India 132,162

• Mexico 100,104

Brazil, under Jair Bolsonaro's chaotic Covid response, has the highest number of fatalities in South America, with Mexico passing the 100,000 mark in Covid-19 deaths on Thursday.

Argentina is the third worse-affected country on the continent with 36,532 dead.

How many Covid-related deaths have there been in Europe?

Covid has hit European countries hard - the continent has recorded more than 29,000 deaths in the past week alone - one person is dying from coronavirus every 17 seconds in Europe, according to the regional head of the World Health Organization, Dr Hans Kluge.

The death toll in Italy, the first European country to enforce a nationwide lockdown, is likely to top 50,000 deaths by the end of the week with recent daily death figures in the high hundreds (Italy registered 753 deaths on Wednesday).

Spain and France have also seen regular three figure death tolls in November as the second wave continues to roll across Europe.

The UK has Europe's highest Covid-linked death toll with 53,775. Separate figures published by the UK’s statistics agencies for deaths where Covid-19 has been mentioned on the death certificate, together with additional data on deaths that have occurred in recent days, show there have now been 68,000 deaths involving Covid-19 in the UK.

Covid deaths in Europe

• UK 53,775

• Italy 47,870

• France 47,201

• Spain 42,291

• Belgium 15,196

What about Covid-linked deaths per head of population?

Three European countries feature in the top five countries with the most deaths relating to population size, with Belgium the worst hit nation in terms of deaths relative to population.

The worst hit countries per head of population:

• Belgium 15,196 deaths; 1,308.34 deaths per million

• Peru 35,317 deaths; 1,086.33 deaths per million

• Spain 42,297 deaths; 892.99 deaths per million

• Argentina 36,532 deaths; 808.81 deaths per million

• UK 53,180 deaths; 795.7 deaths per million

While the US tops the global chart of most deaths, per head of population it fares a little better when this astonishing number is compared to its large population, with 760.02 deaths per million of population. But it is still one of the worst-hit of the developed nations.

As mentioned above, these figures are not like-for-like and only time and transparent reporting will show the true scale of Covid-related deaths globally.

Different countries use different methodology; some omit deaths from the community, and care home deaths are not always included (the UK only started reporting these on April 29 and adjusted the total accordingly) for example. Some regions, such as New York and Wuhan, revise these figures later as the methodology changes.

Which countries have seen fewest deaths?

East and South East Asian countries have seen relatively few deaths from the virus. South Korea's swift response has kept deaths below 500 while Vietnam has been singled out for praise for its swift response to the virus which is credited for the country recording a handful of deaths.

New Zealand too is often held up as an example on how to fight the virus. Prime minister Jacinda Ardern's strong and decisive leadership, which included closing the country's borders and enforcing quarantine laws, has seemingly paid off.

Germany has fared better at keeping infection and death rates below that of its continental neighbours, but it too is now grappling with a second wave and the country is under partial lockdown, with bars, restaurants and entertainment venues shut.

Iran is the worst-hit country in the Middle East with the death toll from the coronavirus outbreak rising to 43,417, with 476 deaths recorded on Wednesday.

Which nations have recorded relatively few deaths?

• New Zealand 25

• Vietnam 35

• Singapore 28

• Thailand . 60

• Estonia 86

South Africa has been the epicentre on a continent that has largely seemed to have escape the worst of the crisis. The southern African country has recorded 20,671 Covid deaths, which equates to 351.03 deaths per million of population. There have been 1,330 novel coronavirus victims in Kenya, a country of 52 million, while Nigeria has recorded 1,163 fatalities.

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Figures correct as on 0800 GMT Friday 20 November. Figures from Centre for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University (JHU).