V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · Physical Violence Index
Physical Violence Index by country
How free are people from political killings and torture by their own state?
2 countries shared first place of the 176 countries compared in 2025, all at 0.989, and North Korea last, at 0.053. In the middle country the figure was 0.790. Among the 168 countries measured in every edition since 1990, the middle one moved from 0.623 to 0.786.
Share
Physical Violence Index · 2025
Key statistic · Peace & Security
2 countries share the highest value, 0.989 — no single country is named first.
012025 · position · derived
Who leads
The three countries at the highest end of 176 compared, the three at the other end, and the first on each continent.
Highest in 2025 · shared
2 countries share the highest reading, 0.989
No single country is named first: picking one from a shared value would be a choice the data does not make.
Lowest in 2025
- 176
North Korea0.053 - 175
Nicaragua0.059 - 174
Afghanistan0.065
Positions out of 176. Where a country sits says how it compares with the others measured, and nothing about why.
Highest on each continent
- Africa
Seychelles0.947 - Americas
Uruguay0.977 - Asia
Cyprus0.982 - Europe
2 countries share 0.989
- Oceania
New Zealand0.986 - Every region
02Every measured country
Physical Violence Index on a map
Each country is shaded by its value, in five groups holding the same number of countries. Hover a country for its value, or select it to open its profile. Below the map, each continent’s middle country.
Darker is a higher value — the better end.
- 0.053–0.345
- 0.356–0.687
- 0.688–0.852
- 0.857–0.941
- 0.943–0.989
- No reading in 2025
- Europe
0.953
the middle country, of 40 measured · 49 members
2 share 0.989
Belarus0.160Highest and lowest reading in Europe.
- Oceania
0.905
the middle country, of 6 measured · 21 members
New Zealand0.986
Papua New Guinea0.782Highest and lowest reading in Oceania.
- Americas
0.812
the middle country, of 27 measured · 48 members
Uruguay0.977Nicaragua0.059Highest and lowest reading in Americas.
- Asia
0.561
the middle country, of 48 measured · 52 members
Cyprus0.982North Korea0.053Highest and lowest reading in Asia.
- Africa
0.549
the middle country, of 55 measured · 55 members
Seychelles0.947
Chad0.079Highest and lowest reading in Africa.
- Every region
20 sub-regions, highest middle country first
- Northern Europe
0.977
the middle country, of 10 measured · 13 members
2 share 0.989
United Kingdom0.897Highest and lowest reading in Northern Europe.
- Western Europe
0.977
the middle country, of 7 measured · 9 members
Germany0.983
Austria0.926Highest and lowest reading in Western Europe.
- Southern Europe
0.933
the middle country, of 13 measured · 17 members
Spain0.976
Serbia0.811Highest and lowest reading in Southern Europe.
- Eastern Asia
0.905
the middle country, of 7 measured · 8 members
Taiwan0.971North Korea0.053Highest and lowest reading in Eastern Asia.
- Eastern Europe
0.879
the middle country, of 10 measured · 10 members
Czechia0.985Belarus0.160Highest and lowest reading in Eastern Europe.
- Caribbean
0.850
the middle country, of 6 measured · 24 members
Barbados0.938
Cuba0.512Highest and lowest reading in Caribbean.
- Southern Africa
0.849
the middle country, of 5 measured · 5 members
Namibia0.880
Eswatini0.132Highest and lowest reading in Southern Africa.
- South America
0.835
the middle country, of 12 measured · 12 members
Uruguay0.977
Venezuela0.163Highest and lowest reading in South America.
- Central America
0.721
the middle country, of 7 measured · 8 members
Costa Rica0.964Nicaragua0.059Highest and lowest reading in Central America.
- Western Africa
0.696
the middle country, of 16 measured · 16 members
2 share 0.937
Guinea0.256Highest and lowest reading in Western Africa.
- Western Asia
0.646
the middle country, of 17 measured · 19 members
Cyprus0.982
Yemen0.121Highest and lowest reading in Western Asia.
- Southern Asia
0.582
the middle country, of 9 measured · 9 members
Maldives0.893Afghanistan0.065Highest and lowest reading in Southern Asia.
- South-eastern Asia
0.442
the middle country, of 10 measured · 11 members
Singapore0.973
Myanmar0.099Highest and lowest reading in South-eastern Asia.
- Eastern Africa
0.413
the middle country, of 19 measured · 19 members
Seychelles0.947
Eritrea0.101Highest and lowest reading in Eastern Africa.
- Middle Africa
0.395
the middle country, of 9 measured · 9 members
São Tomé and Príncipe0.941Chad0.079Highest and lowest reading in Middle Africa.
- Northern Africa
0.353
the middle country, of 6 measured · 6 members
Morocco0.823
Sudan0.129Highest and lowest reading in Northern Africa.
- Central Asia
0.306
the middle country, of 5 measured · 5 members
Kazakhstan0.532
Tajikistan0.122Highest and lowest reading in Central Asia.
- Australia and New Zealand
2 of 2 measured — too few for a middle: Australia, New Zealand.
New Zealand0.986
Australia0.954Highest and lowest reading in Australia and New Zealand.
- Melanesia
4 of 5 measured — too few for a middle: Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu.
Vanuatu0.926Papua New Guinea0.782Highest and lowest reading in Melanesia.
- Northern America
2 of 4 measured — too few for a middle: Canada, United States.
Canada0.943
United States0.789Highest and lowest reading in Northern America.
03The whole field at once
The spread
176 countries, one dot each, on one scale — further right is a higher value. Half the countries are above 0.790; a quarter are above 0.932, and a quarter below 0.416. The bar in each row marks that continent’s middle country.
04All 176 ever measured
Every country
In order, highest value first. “=” marks a position shared with another country. V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg ranks nobody on this measure; the position is derived here by ordering the published values. The two columns beside the index are its parts, on V-Dem’s original 0–4 scale: freedom from political killings and freedom from torture. A country can score much better on one than the other, and which one tells you what kind of state it is.
Showing 25 of 176 countries
Values for 2025. The change column compares 2025 with 2024 only; the sparkline covers the recent editions.
051990–2025 · 36 reference years
Over time
Each point is one year from 1990, all of them re-estimated together in the v16 release. Sharp falls usually mark a coup, a crackdown or a war; recoveries are slower than collapses almost everywhere.
- the middle country
- the middle half of countries
- the middle of the 168 countries measured every time
- each continent’s middle country
The same, year by year
| Year | Countries | Middle country | Middle half | Measured every time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 176 | 0.790 | 0.416 – 0.932 | 0.786 |
| 2024 | 176 | 0.785 | 0.423 – 0.930 | 0.782 |
| 2023 | 176 | 0.789 | 0.449 – 0.930 | 0.783 |
| 2022 | 176 | 0.819 | 0.427 – 0.933 | 0.815 |
| 2021 | 176 | 0.825 | 0.451 – 0.922 | 0.821 |
| 2020 | 176 | 0.827 | 0.472 – 0.924 | 0.823 |
| 2019 | 176 | 0.802 | 0.490 – 0.927 | 0.793 |
| 2018 | 176 | 0.820 | 0.484 – 0.927 | 0.813 |
| 2017 | 176 | 0.788 | 0.495 – 0.935 | 0.783 |
| 2016 | 176 | 0.787 | 0.498 – 0.941 | 0.781 |
| 2015 | 176 | 0.793 | 0.499 – 0.946 | 0.787 |
| 2014 | 176 | 0.779 | 0.510 – 0.944 | 0.774 |
| 2013 | 176 | 0.770 | 0.513 – 0.942 | 0.762 |
| 2012 | 176 | 0.781 | 0.501 – 0.941 | 0.770 |
| 2011 | 176 | 0.790 | 0.505 – 0.941 | 0.784 |
| 2010 | 175 | 0.799 | 0.488 – 0.941 | 0.788 |
| 2009 | 175 | 0.789 | 0.465 – 0.941 | 0.770 |
| 2008 | 175 | 0.777 | 0.465 – 0.938 | 0.761 |
| 2007 | 175 | 0.770 | 0.459 – 0.935 | 0.745 |
| 2006 | 175 | 0.770 | 0.478 – 0.931 | 0.748 |
| 2005 | 175 | 0.755 | 0.480 – 0.932 | 0.733 |
| 2004 | 175 | 0.770 | 0.478 – 0.933 | 0.740 |
| 2003 | 175 | 0.760 | 0.483 – 0.932 | 0.733 |
| 2002 | 175 | 0.744 | 0.466 – 0.935 | 0.730 |
| 2001 | 175 | 0.748 | 0.473 – 0.937 | 0.732 |
| 2000 | 175 | 0.728 | 0.444 – 0.942 | 0.710 |
| 1999 | 175 | 0.710 | 0.388 – 0.933 | 0.704 |
| 1998 | 174 | 0.704 | 0.376 – 0.925 | 0.693 |
| 1997 | 173 | 0.699 | 0.377 – 0.920 | 0.687 |
| 1996 | 173 | 0.699 | 0.392 – 0.920 | 0.687 |
| 1995 | 173 | 0.687 | 0.389 – 0.919 | 0.687 |
| 1994 | 173 | 0.675 | 0.361 – 0.919 | 0.675 |
| 1993 | 173 | 0.675 | 0.359 – 0.903 | 0.675 |
| 1992 | 172 | 0.660 | 0.343 – 0.898 | 0.664 |
| 1991 | 171 | 0.648 | 0.333 – 0.895 | 0.646 |
| 1990 | 168 | 0.623 | 0.276 – 0.887 | 0.623 |
062024 → 2025
Who rose and fell
The biggest changes in value between the two newest editions — reference years recalculated in one report, not two separate publications. Places are shown second, because they also move when other countries do.
Improved most
before → after
Syria0.116 → 0.417 · 169th → 132nd+0.301
Mauritius0.687 → 0.870 · 108th → 66th+0.183
South Korea0.812 → 0.952 · 80th → 28th+0.140
Lesotho0.709 → 0.839 · 102nd → 75th+0.130
Bangladesh0.464 → 0.582 · 129th → 116th+0.118
Declined most
before → after
Niger0.696 → 0.504 · 105th → 125th−0.192
Guinea-Bissau0.695 → 0.518 · 106th → 121st−0.177
Kyrgyzstan0.478 → 0.306 · 127th → 148th−0.172- United States0.949 → 0.789 · 30th → 89th−0.160
Tanzania0.884 → 0.728 · 63rd → 95th−0.156
176 countries were measured in both 2024 and 2025.
07Across every edition
Physical Violence Index in records
The extremes of the statistic. A record reached by more than one country names none of them.
Highest reading on record
Reached 72 times by 2 countries — shared, so no holder is named
0.989
Freedom from political killings and torture (0–1)
Lowest reading on record
0.012
Freedom from political killings and torture (0–1)
Biggest improvement between editions
+0.738
0.159 → 0.897
Biggest decline between editions
−0.688
0.774 → 0.086
Most improved since first measured
+0.875
0.076 → 0.951
08The measure
About Physical Violence Index
V-Dem’s Physical Violence Index scores how free people are from political killings and torture at the hands of their own state. It runs from 0 to 1, and a HIGHER score is better — the name describes what is being measured, not which end is good.
What the number is: Freedom from political killings and torture (0–1).
What it does not measure
It covers violence by state agents only; crime, armed groups and violence in the home are measured elsewhere.
09Where it fits
Connections
Its part in the Country Index, the statistics whose values line up most closely with it across countries, and others on the same subject.
In the Country Index
A key statistic for Peace & Security
“Whether the state kills or tortures the people it governs.”
- Edition used
- 2025 (data 2025)
- Countries
- 176
- Licence
- CC BY-SA 4.0
Moves with
Where Physical Violence Index is higher, these tend to be higher too.
- Voice and AccountabilityWorld Bank Group · 175 countries in commonρ 0.91
- Egalitarian Democracy IndexV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 176 countries in commonρ 0.90
- Liberal Democracy IndexV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 176 countries in commonρ 0.89
Moves against
Where Physical Violence Index is higher, these tend to be lower.
- Neopatrimonial Rule IndexV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 176 countries in commonρ −0.89
- Political Corruption IndexV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 176 countries in commonρ −0.80
- Exclusion by Socio-Economic GroupV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 174 countries in commonρ −0.77
Rank correlation (ρ, from −1 to 1) across countries, on each statistic’s newest edition, out of 379 statistics sharing at least 80 countries with this one. Two statistics that move together do not cause each other.
10Keep reading
Explore further
The subject
The countries at either end
More from V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg
11Questions
Physical Violence Index: questions and answers
Which country has the highest Physical Violence Index?
2 countries share the highest reading, 0.989, among the 176 compared in 2025, so no single country is named.
Which country has the lowest Physical Violence Index?
North Korea, at 0.053, among the 176 countries compared in 2025.
How many countries does the Physical Violence Index cover?
176 in 2025. The number measured varies from 168 to 176 between editions.
What is the world average Physical Violence Index?
This site does not calculate a world average, which would depend on how countries are weighted. In the middle country of the 176 compared in 2025, the figure was 0.790.
Is this V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg’s own ranking?
No. V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg publishes the values but ranks nobody; the position on this page is derived by Nations Inquiry by ordering the published values, and equal values share a position.
How often is the Physical Violence Index published?
This site holds 36 reference years, 1990–2025, all recalculated in V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg’s 2026 report on one method — not 36 separate publications.
Where does the data come from, and can I download it?
From V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg, under CC BY-SA 4.0. From the V-Dem Country-Year Core dataset, the same download behind the democracy indices on this site. Expert-coded and fitted with V-Dem’s measurement model, so every figure carries uncertainty V-Dem publishes separately. Every edition is on this site’s Datasets pages as a full table, and downloads as a CSV file with every value unrounded.
12Method
Sources, method and citation
Source
Physical Violence Index — V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg
From the V-Dem Country-Year Core dataset, the same download behind the democracy indices on this site. Expert-coded and fitted with V-Dem’s measurement model, so every figure carries uncertainty V-Dem publishes separately.
Newest edition
Report year 2025Data year 2025
Cite the source as: Coppedge, M. et al. V-Dem Country-Year Dataset v16. Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) Project, University of Gothenburg.
Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0, checked 2026-09-05.
How this page reads the numbers
- V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg ranks nobody on this measure. The position is derived by Nations Inquiry by ordering the published values; equal values share a position.
- Which end is better follows the publisher’s own reading of the measure.
- A country is named at an end only when it holds that value alone. Where several share it, the page says how many and names none first.
- Values are stored exactly as published and trimmed only for display. “The middle country” is the median of the countries measured, not a world average.
The file itself, column by column — where it came from, what each column holds, and every edition as a CSV — is on its dataset page.
Cite this page
Nations Inquiry (2026). Physical Violence Index by country: Physical Violence Index, data from V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg. https://nationsinquiry.com/statistics/physical-violence