Countries by Rule of Law: Estimate
Finland ranks 1st with a rule of law estimate of 1.97, the highest among all 205 countries assessed in 2023. At the opposite end, Somalia scores -2.21, producing a total spread of more than 4.1 points between the top and bottom. That range reflects the breadth of institutional difference captured by this governance metric across the full global sample.
Ranking 2023
Analysis
This metric measures the Rule of Law estimate, indicator code RL.EST, from the World Bank World Development Indicators. The Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI) are a research dataset summarizing the views on the quality of governance provided by a large number of enterprise, citizen and expert survey respondents in industrial and developing countries. Governance consists of the traditions and institutions by which authority in a country is exercised. This includes the process by which governments are selected, monitored, and replaced. Values are expressed as absolute numbers and can be negative; higher values indicate stronger rule of law. The 2023 dataset covers all 205 countries in this ranking, meeting the 80-country coverage threshold. All 205 data points are from within the last 7 years and are classified as official quality. No extreme outliers were identified using a 3-standard-deviation threshold.
The top of the ranking is dominated by Northern and Western European countries. Finland (rank 1, 1.97) and Denmark (rank 2, 1.91) lead, followed by Norway (rank 3, 1.83), Switzerland (rank 4, 1.76), and Singapore (rank 5, 1.75). Luxembourg (rank 6, 1.75), Austria (rank 7, 1.75), Iceland (rank 8, 1.72), and New Zealand (rank 10, 1.71) also score above 1.70. The United States places 24th at 1.33, while the United Kingdom ranks 23rd at 1.40. Greenland (rank 11, 1.68) appears between the Netherlands (rank 12, 1.64) and Ireland (rank 13, 1.63), reflecting its distinct administrative status within the dataset.
The middle of the ranking shows notable variation. South Africa ranks 92nd at 0.086, just above Bulgaria at -0.007 (rank 93), marking the threshold where scores cross into negative territory. China ranks 95th at -0.040, placing below Bulgaria and Nauru (rank 94, -0.018). Three countries share identical values at ranks 18 through 20: Andorra, Monaco, and San Marino each score 1.477. Similarly, Guam and the Virgin Islands (U.S.) both score 0.948 and share rank 37. Mexico ranks 154th at -0.806, lower than Niger (rank 152, -0.708) and Burkina Faso (rank 153, -0.742). Venezuela ranks 204th at -2.152, second to last ahead of Somalia.
Several data limitations apply to this metric. The WGI estimates are composite scores derived from perception-based surveys of enterprises, citizens, and experts, meaning they reflect subjective assessments rather than direct measurement of legal outcomes. Territories and special administrative regions such as Greenland, Aruba, Guam, Macao SAR, and Hong Kong SAR are included alongside sovereign states, which limits strict comparability. Countries with limited survey coverage may have wider confidence intervals around their estimates, though only point estimates are presented here. Year-over-year volatility averages 48.9 percent, just below the 50 percent threshold, suggesting scores can shift meaningfully between periods. Rankings near the middle of the distribution, where score differences are small, should be interpreted with caution.
Methodology
Metric: Rule of Law Estimate (RL.EST). Data source: World Bank World Development Indicators. Data year: 2023. Country count: 205, exceeding the 80-country coverage threshold. All 205 countries have data from within the last 7 years, and 100 percent of data points are classified as official quality. The definition used is as follows: The Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI) are a research dataset summarizing the views on the quality of governance provided by a large number of enterprise, citizen and expert survey respondents in industrial and developing countries. Governance consists of the traditions and institutions by which authority in a country is exercised. This includes the process by which governments are selected, mo. Values are expressed as absolute numbers ranging from -2.21 (Somalia) to 1.97 (Finland), a spread of 188.9 percent. No extreme outliers were detected at the 3-standard-deviation threshold. Average year-over-year change is 48.9 percent, just below the 50 percent volatility threshold. Higher values indicate stronger rule of law. Includes sovereign states, territories, and special administrative regions.