Data for 2021

Rule of Law, 2021

Name: Rule of Law, 2021
Creator: World Bank Group
License: https://data.worldbank.org/summary-terms-of-use

Figures for 2021, as World Bank Group published them · stored as published, never rewritten

Rule of Law, 2021 covers 211 countries on 2 measures. Finland is highest, at 2.0568; Venezuela is lowest, at -2.2919. The middle country reads -0.1364. Against 2020, 211 values changed (87 up, 124 down), the same countries are covered.

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Rule of Law · Data for 2021

HighestFinland

2.0568

LowestVenezuela

-2.2919

Shaded by value in five groups of equal size, darkest at the better end.

211countries
2measures per country
2021the year it describes
211distinct values19 decimals, as published
Sep 26, 2026read from the publisher
CC BY 4.0licence

01Position · derived

The table

Every country and every column of Rule of Law, 2021, as published. World Bank Group ranks nobody on this measure; the position is derived here by ordering the published values. “=” marks a shared position.

Search this table

Showing 25 of 211 countries · select a heading to sort

Rule of Law, 2021: every country, as published by World Bank Group.
derived
1	Finland`FIN`Northern Europe	2.0568	92.523
2	Norway`NOR`Northern Europe	2.0531	92.462
3	Denmark`DNK`Northern Europe	2.0002	91.591
4	Sweden`SWE`Northern Europe	1.7955	88.217
5	Netherlands`NLD`Western Europe	1.7819	87.993
6	Switzerland`CHE`Western Europe	1.7695	87.789
7	Luxembourg`LUX`Western Europe	1.7460	87.402
8	New Zealand`NZL`Australia and New Zealand	1.7430	87.353
9	Austria`AUT`Western Europe	1.7318	87.168
10	Iceland`ISL`Northern Europe	1.7019	86.676
11	Liechtenstein`LIE`Western Europe	1.6460	85.754
12	Greenland`GRL`Northern America	1.6416	85.682
13	Andorra`AND`Southern Europe	1.6383	85.627
14	Germany`DEU`Western Europe	1.6305	85.498
15	Canada`CAN`Northern America	1.5832	84.719
16	Australia`AUS`Australia and New Zealand	1.5777	84.629
17	Ireland`IRL`Northern Europe	1.5395	83.999
18	Japan`JPN`Eastern Asia	1.5313	83.863
19	San Marino`SMR`Southern Europe	1.4867	83.129
20	Estonia`EST`Northern Europe	1.4698	82.850
21	Singapore`SGP`South-eastern Asia	1.4590	82.672
22	Niue`NIU`Polynesia	1.4297	82.191
23	Belgium`BEL`Western Europe	1.4191	82.016
24	Monaco`MCO`Western Europe	1.3955	81.627
25	United Kingdom`GBR`Northern Europe	1.2943	79.958
26	Taiwan`TWN`Eastern Asia	1.2823	79.761
27	Cook Islands`COK`Polynesia	1.2372	79.018
28	Aruba`ABW`Caribbean	1.2263	78.838
29	Lithuania`LTU`Northern Europe	1.2140	78.636
30	American Samoa`ASM`Polynesia	1.2123	78.608
31	South Korea`KOR`Eastern Asia	1.1832	78.129
32	Guam`GUM`Micronesia	1.1707	77.922
33	Portugal`PRT`Southern Europe	1.1682	77.880
34	Palau`PLW`Micronesia	1.1583	77.718
35	Czechia`CZE`Eastern Europe	1.1578	77.709
36	New Caledonia`NCL`Melanesia	1.1382	77.386
37	Kiribati`KIR`Micronesia	1.1014	76.780
38	France`FRA`Western Europe	1.1013	76.778
39	Samoa`WSM`Polynesia	1.0891	76.578
40	United States`USA`Northern America	1.0727	76.308
41	French Polynesia`PYF`Polynesia	1.0564	76.038
42	Hong Kong`HKG`Eastern Asia	1.0476	75.894
43	Tuvalu`TUV`Polynesia	1.0268	75.551
44	Latvia`LVA`Northern Europe	1.0006	75.119
45	Uruguay`URY`South America	0.9458	74.217
46	Slovenia`SVN`Southern Europe	0.9381	74.089
47	Micronesia`FSM`Micronesia	0.9293	73.945
48	Spain`ESP`Southern Europe	0.9214	73.814
49	United States Virgin Islands`VIR`Caribbean	0.8859	73.229
50	Malta`MLT`Southern Europe	0.8822	73.169
51	Cayman Islands`CYM`Caribbean	0.8594	72.793
52	Israel`ISR`Western Asia	0.8570	72.753
53	Marshall Islands`MHL`Micronesia	0.8281	72.277
54	Macau`MAC`Eastern Asia	0.7860	71.584
55	Chile`CHL`South America	0.7758	71.415
56	Tonga`TON`Polynesia	0.7696	71.313
57	Mauritius`MUS`Eastern Africa	0.7553	71.078
58	Cyprus`CYP`Western Asia	0.7538	71.053
59	Slovakia`SVK`Eastern Europe	0.7124	70.371
60	Bhutan`BTN`Southern Asia	0.7035	70.223
61	Barbados`BRB`Caribbean	0.6749	69.752
62	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines`VCT`Caribbean	0.6728	69.718
63	Saint Lucia`LCA`Caribbean	0.6610	69.523
64	Vanuatu`VUT`Melanesia	0.6563	69.446
65	Bermuda`BMU`Northern America	0.6545	69.416
66	Dominica`DMA`Caribbean	0.5983	68.490
67	Saint Kitts and Nevis`KNA`Caribbean	0.5889	68.336
68	Costa Rica`CRI`Central America	0.5849	68.269
69	Italy`ITA`Southern Europe	0.5726	68.066
70	Antigua and Barbuda`ATG`Caribbean	0.5714	68.047
71	Brunei`BRN`South-eastern Asia	0.5584	67.832
72	Seychelles`SYC`Eastern Africa	0.5532	67.747
73	Puerto Rico`PRI`Caribbean	0.5362	67.466
74	Qatar`QAT`Western Asia	0.4994	66.860
75	Cabo Verde`CPV`Western Africa	0.4986	66.847
76	Romania`ROU`Eastern Europe	0.4586	66.187
77	Greece`GRC`Southern Europe	0.4483	66.018
78	Grenada`GRD`Caribbean	0.4347	65.795
79	Poland`POL`Eastern Europe	0.4269	65.667
80	Croatia`HRV`Southern Europe	0.4255	65.643
81	Anguilla`AIA`Caribbean	0.4232	65.604
82	Botswana`BWA`Southern Africa	0.3905	65.065
83	Hungary`HUN`Eastern Europe	0.3686	64.705
84	Bahamas`BHS`Caribbean	0.3410	64.251
85	Malaysia`MYS`South-eastern Asia	0.3373	64.189
86	United Arab Emirates`ARE`Western Asia	0.3331	64.121
87	Namibia`NAM`Southern Africa	0.2934	63.466
88	Oman`OMN`Western Asia	0.2298	62.419
89	Nauru`NRU`Micronesia	0.2215	62.281
90	Georgia`GEO`Western Asia	0.2191	62.242
91	Fiji`FJI`Melanesia	0.2184	62.231
92	South Africa`ZAF`Southern Africa	0.1405	60.946
93	Kuwait`KWT`Western Asia	0.1083	60.417
94	Solomon Islands`SLB`Melanesia	0.0480	59.423
95	Jordan`JOR`Western Asia	0.0391	59.275
96	Montenegro`MNE`Southern Europe	0.0312	59.146
97	Ghana`GHA`Western Africa	0.0254	59.050
98	Rwanda`RWA`Eastern Africa	0.0079	58.762
99	Tunisia`TUN`Northern Africa	0.0030	58.680
100	Bahrain`BHR`Western Asia	0.0014	58.655
101	Bulgaria`BGR`Eastern Europe	-0.0256	58.210
102	Jamaica`JAM`Caribbean	-0.0754	57.390
103	North Macedonia`MKD`Southern Europe	-0.0966	57.039
104	Maldives`MDV`Southern Asia	-0.1157	56.725
105	Armenia`ARM`Western Asia	-0.1313	56.468
106	Trinidad and Tobago`TTO`Caribbean	-0.1364	56.384
107	Senegal`SEN`Western Africa	-0.1516	56.133
108	Indonesia`IDN`South-eastern Asia	-0.1558	56.065
109	Kosovo`XKX`Southern Europe	-0.1586	56.018
110	India`IND`Southern Asia	-0.1609	55.980
111	Serbia`SRB`Southern Europe	-0.1641	55.928
112	Saudi Arabia`SAU`Western Asia	-0.1741	55.762
113	Mongolia`MNG`Eastern Asia	-0.1820	55.632
114	Albania`ALB`Southern Europe	-0.1882	55.530
115	Suriname`SUR`South America	-0.1931	55.449
116	Panama`PAN`Central America	-0.2065	55.229
117	Sri Lanka`LKA`Southern Asia	-0.2185	55.030
118	Thailand`THA`South-eastern Asia	-0.2272	54.888
119	Moldova`MDA`Eastern Europe	-0.2482	54.541
120	Malawi`MWI`Eastern Africa	-0.2509	54.497
121	Dominican Republic`DOM`Caribbean	-0.2844	53.945
122	Vietnam`VNM`South-eastern Asia	-0.2944	53.780
123	Bosnia and Herzegovina`BIH`Southern Europe	-0.3056	53.595
124	Argentina`ARG`South America	-0.3076	53.563
125	Nepal`NPL`Southern Asia	-0.3597	52.705
126	Gambia`GMB`Western Africa	-0.3631	52.649
127	Brazil`BRA`South America	-0.3792	52.383
128	Guyana`GUY`South America	-0.3858	52.274
129	Ecuador`ECU`South America	-0.3970	52.090
130	São Tomé and Príncipe`STP`Middle Africa	-0.4031	51.989
131	Burkina Faso`BFA`Western Africa	-0.4079	51.910
132	Benin`BEN`Western Africa	-0.4167	51.765
133	Morocco`MAR`Northern Africa	-0.4195	51.719
134	Kenya`KEN`Eastern Africa	-0.4300	51.546
135	Lesotho`LSO`Southern Africa	-0.4310	51.529
136	Kazakhstan`KAZ`Central Asia	-0.4616	51.025
137	Colombia`COL`South America	-0.4782	50.752
138	Paraguay`PRY`South America	-0.5012	50.373
139	China`CHN`Eastern Asia	-0.5059	50.296
140	Peru`PER`South America	-0.5091	50.243
141	Belize`BLZ`Central America	-0.5187	50.085
142	Tanzania`TZA`Eastern Africa	-0.5598	49.408
143	Ukraine`UKR`Eastern Europe	-0.5757	49.146
144	Niger`NER`Western Africa	-0.5769	49.125
145	Zambia`ZMB`Eastern Africa	-0.5834	49.019
146	Cuba`CUB`Caribbean	-0.6111	48.561
147	Togo`TGO`Western Africa	-0.6199	48.417
148	Azerbaijan`AZE`Western Asia	-0.6210	48.398
149	Côte d’Ivoire`CIV`Western Africa	-0.6348	48.172
150	Timor-Leste`TLS`South-eastern Asia	-0.6361	48.150
151	Papua New Guinea`PNG`Melanesia	-0.6450	48.004
152	Uzbekistan`UZB`Central Asia	-0.6663	47.653
153	Philippines`PHL`South-eastern Asia	-0.6664	47.651
154	Uganda`UGA`Eastern Africa	-0.6830	47.378
155	Eswatini`SWZ`Southern Africa	-0.6964	47.156
156	Türkiye`TUR`Western Asia	-0.7409	46.424
157	Laos`LAO`South-eastern Asia	-0.7500	46.274
158	Sierra Leone`SLE`Western Africa	-0.7571	46.156
159	Algeria`DZA`Northern Africa	-0.7755	45.854
160	Egypt`EGY`Northern Africa	-0.7799	45.780
161	Pakistan`PAK`Southern Asia	-0.8009	45.434
162	El Salvador`SLV`Central America	-0.8089	45.303
163	Liberia`LBR`Western Africa	-0.8396	44.797
164	Mauritania`MRT`Western Africa	-0.8632	44.408
165	Mali`MLI`Western Africa	-0.8667	44.351
166	Palestine`PSE`Western Asia	-0.8751	44.212
167	Madagascar`MDG`Eastern Africa	-0.8765	44.189
168	Gabon`GAB`Middle Africa	-0.8936	43.908
169	Ethiopia`ETH`Eastern Africa	-0.9098	43.641
170	Russia`RUS`Eastern Europe	-0.9100	43.637
171	Kyrgyzstan`KGZ`Central Asia	-0.9148	43.558
172	Nigeria`NGA`Western Africa	-0.9284	43.333
173	Bangladesh`BGD`Southern Asia	-0.9456	43.050
174	Guatemala`GTM`Central America	-0.9737	42.587
175	Mexico`MEX`Central America	-0.9888	42.338
176	Guinea`GIN`Western Africa	-1.0191	41.838
177	Lebanon`LBN`Western Asia	-1.0305	41.651
178	Djibouti`DJI`Eastern Africa	-1.0365	41.553
179	Mozambique`MOZ`Eastern Africa	-1.0473	41.375
180	Iran`IRN`Southern Asia	-1.0669	41.051
181	Angola`AGO`Middle Africa	-1.0759	40.903
182	Comoros`COM`Eastern Africa	-1.0919	40.639
183	Bolivia`BOL`South America	-1.0964	40.565
184	Honduras`HND`Central America	-1.1004	40.499
185	Belarus`BLR`Eastern Europe	-1.1084	40.367
186	Cambodia`KHM`South-eastern Asia	-1.1156	40.250
187	Guinea-Bissau`GNB`Western Africa	-1.1997	38.863
188	Cameroon`CMR`Middle Africa	-1.2049	38.777
189	Republic of the Congo`COG`Middle Africa	-1.2241	38.461
190	Tajikistan`TJK`Central Asia	-1.2841	37.472
191	Zimbabwe`ZWE`Eastern Africa	-1.2969	37.261
192	Burundi`BDI`Eastern Africa	-1.3229	36.833
193	Chad`TCD`Middle Africa	-1.3412	36.532
194	Sudan`SDN`Northern Africa	-1.3457	36.458
195	Haiti`HTI`Caribbean	-1.3620	36.189
196	Nicaragua`NIC`Central America	-1.4655	34.484
197	Iraq`IRQ`Western Asia	-1.4713	34.387
198	Equatorial Guinea`GNQ`Middle Africa	-1.5053	33.827
199	DR Congo`COD`Middle Africa	-1.5514	33.067
200	Central African Republic`CAF`Middle Africa	-1.5602	32.922
201	Myanmar`MMR`South-eastern Asia	-1.5646	32.850
202	Libya`LBY`Northern Africa	-1.5686	32.784
203	Turkmenistan`TKM`Central Asia	-1.5718	32.731
204	Eritrea`ERI`Eastern Africa	-1.6490	31.459
205	North Korea`PRK`Eastern Asia	-1.6578	31.314
206	Afghanistan`AFG`Southern Asia	-1.7414	29.938
207	Yemen`YEM`Western Asia	-1.8588	28.003
208	Syria`SYR`Western Asia	-1.8781	27.684
209	South Sudan`SSD`Eastern Africa	-1.9926	25.798
210	Somalia`SOM`Eastern Africa	-2.1783	22.738
211	Venezuela`VEN`South America	-2.2919	20.866

02In 2021

At either end

The 5 countries at each end of the headline, then the highest and lowest on each other measure.

Highest

1Finland2.0568
2Norway2.0531
3Denmark2.0002
4Sweden1.7955
5Netherlands1.7819

Lowest

211Venezuela-2.2919
210Somalia-2.1783
209South Sudan-1.9926
208Syria-1.8781
207Yemen-1.8588

A higher value is the better result. The middle country reads -0.1364. “Shared” marks a value another country also holds.

Each measure’s ends

Governance Score, Rule of Law (0–100)
HighestFinland92.523
LowestVenezuela20.866
Middle country: 56.384

032020 → 2021

Since 2020

What changed between 2020 and this one: who joined or left, and how far the headline moved.

+0 / −0countries joined / left
211values changed, of 211 in both
87 · 124rose · fell
0unchanged

Rose most

Uzbekistan-0.9477 → -0.6663+0.2814
Micronesia0.7217 → 0.9293+0.2076
Slovakia0.5137 → 0.7124+0.1987
Maldives-0.3031 → -0.1157+0.1874
Lithuania1.0296 → 1.2140+0.1844

Fell most

Myanmar-1.1577 → -1.5646−0.4069
Belarus-0.9116 → -1.1084−0.1968
Mauritius0.9487 → 0.7553−0.1934
Haiti-1.1730 → -1.3620−0.1889
Solomon Islands0.2303 → 0.0480−0.1822

Changes in value, not in places: a country’s place also moves when others do. Every country’s full history is charted on the statistic page.

04Caveats

Read before you use

What this edition’s numbers are and are not, worked out from the file itself.

How values are stored

The position is ours
World Bank Group publishes values only; the order is this site’s.
Nothing missing
Every one of the 211 countries has every column.

05The files

Download and cite

The table as a file, digit for digit, what this site changed, and a citation for this edition.

Licence in full

.csv
For a spreadsheet or code
211 rows · 9.8 KB · UTF-8, opens in Excel
Opens with 11 lines of source notes; the table starts on row 13.
Download rule-of-law-2021-nations-inquiry.csv
↗
The publisher’s original
World Bank Group’s own file, on its own site.
WB_WGI_WIDEF.csv

What this site changed: Reshaped into one row per country: regional and income-group totals are left out, only the columns listed are kept, each row gets its ISO 3166 code, and some country names are brought to one spelling. No value is recalculated, rescaled or rounded.

Licence: CC BY 4.0 · what it allows, in plain words

Cite this edition

World Bank Group (2021). Rule of Law, 2021 [data set], describing 2021. As held by Nations Inquiry, https://nationsinquiry.com/datasets/rule-of-law/2021

0627 held

Other years

‹ The year before
Rule of Law, 2020
211 countries
The year after ›
Rule of Law, 2022
211 countries
All of them
Rule of Law: every year
27 held, with the data dictionary, coverage and licence.
How it has moved, charted by country

07Questions

Rule of Law, 2021: questions and answers

Which country has the highest rule of law in Rule of Law, 2021?

Finland, at 2.0568, of the 211 countries in the file.

What year does Rule of Law, 2021 describe?

2021.

How many countries does Rule of Law, 2021 cover?

211.

Where can I download Rule of Law, 2021?

On this page, as a CSV file holding every value exactly as published, or from the publisher’s own site, linked below.

Is Rule of Law, 2021 the newest?

No. The newest held here is Rule of Law, 2025.

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