Australia vs Sweden: Rule of law index
Australia
0.99
in 2025
Sweden
0.989
in 2025
Australia rank
4th
Sweden rank
5th
Rule of law index over time
- Australia
- Sweden
How they compare
Australia currently reports 0.99 against 0.989 in Sweden, a difference of 0.001.
The two have swapped places 5 times across 237 shared years of data; in 1789 it was Sweden ahead.
Australia ranks 4th and Sweden ranks 5th of 173 countries.
Across the 25 decades both report, Australia averaged higher in 6 and Sweden in 19.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Australia | Sweden | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1780s | 0.777 | 0.849 | 0.072 | Sweden |
| 1790s | 0.476 | 0.849 | 0.373 | Sweden |
| 1800s | 0.347 | 0.8517 | 0.5047 | Sweden |
| 1810s | 0.819 | 0.876 | 0.057 | Sweden |
| 1820s | 0.8785 | 0.876 | 0.0025 | Australia |
| 1830s | 0.904 | 0.876 | 0.028 | Australia |
| 1840s | 0.904 | 0.897 | 0.007 | Australia |
| 1850s | 0.9312 | 0.918 | 0.0132 | Australia |
| 1860s | 0.972 | 0.963 | 0.009 | Australia |
| 1870s | 0.972 | 0.963 | 0.009 | Australia |
| 1880s | 0.972 | 0.974 | 0.002 | Sweden |
| 1890s | 0.972 | 0.985 | 0.013 | Sweden |
| 1900s | 0.9749 | 0.985 | 0.0101 | Sweden |
| 1910s | 0.9768 | 0.9851 | 0.0083 | Sweden |
| 1920s | 0.9772 | 0.9868 | 0.0096 | Sweden |
| 1930s | 0.9764 | 0.9876 | 0.0112 | Sweden |
| 1940s | 0.9761 | 0.988 | 0.0119 | Sweden |
| 1950s | 0.99 | 0.991 | 0.001 | Sweden |
| 1960s | 0.99 | 0.9929 | 0.0029 | Sweden |
| 1970s | 0.9905 | 0.994 | 0.0035 | Sweden |
| 1980s | 0.993 | 0.9948 | 0.0018 | Sweden |
| 1990s | 0.993 | 0.995 | 0.002 | Sweden |
| 2000s | 0.993 | 0.9946 | 0.0016 | Sweden |
| 2010s | 0.9898 | 0.9937 | 0.0039 | Sweden |
| 2020s | 0.9897 | 0.9912 | 0.0015 | Sweden |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher rule of law index, Australia or Sweden?
- Australia, at 0.99 against 0.989 in Sweden as of 2025.
- What is the difference in rule of law index between Australia and Sweden?
- 0.001, with Australia ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Australia and Sweden?
- 237 years are reported by both, from 1789 to 2025.
- How do Australia and Sweden rank globally for rule of law index?
- Australia ranks 4th and Sweden ranks 5th of 173 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Our World in Data, published as Rule of law index. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.