Belgium vs France: Rule of law index

Belgium
0.964
in 2025
France
0.967
in 2025
Belgium rank
16th
France rank
15th

Rule of law index over time

  • Belgium
  • France
0.40.60.81178919072025

How they compare

France currently reports 0.967 against 0.964 in Belgium, a difference of 0.003.

The two have swapped places 3 times across 237 shared years of data; in 1789 it was Belgium ahead.

Belgium ranks 16th and France ranks 15th of 173 countries.

Across the 25 decades both report, Belgium averaged higher in 22 and France in 2.

Head to head by decade

Decade Belgium France Difference Ahead
1780s 0.795 0.751 0.044 Belgium
1790s 0.77 0.707 0.063 Belgium
1800s 0.699 0.699 0
1810s 0.6626 0.7265 0.0639 France
1820s 0.7 0.754 0.054 France
1830s 0.9581 0.753 0.2051 Belgium
1840s 0.965 0.7663 0.1987 Belgium
1850s 0.965 0.7109 0.2541 Belgium
1860s 0.965 0.7002 0.2648 Belgium
1870s 0.965 0.8532 0.1118 Belgium
1880s 0.965 0.863 0.102 Belgium
1890s 0.965 0.863 0.102 Belgium
1900s 0.965 0.8892 0.0758 Belgium
1910s 0.9508 0.8946 0.0562 Belgium
1920s 0.97 0.896 0.074 Belgium
1930s 0.97 0.8968 0.0732 Belgium
1940s 0.9554 0.7023 0.2531 Belgium
1950s 0.974 0.9246 0.0494 Belgium
1960s 0.9768 0.9407 0.0361 Belgium
1970s 0.979 0.9596 0.0194 Belgium
1980s 0.9788 0.9637 0.0151 Belgium
1990s 0.976 0.9644 0.0116 Belgium
2000s 0.979 0.9662 0.0128 Belgium
2010s 0.9783 0.967 0.0113 Belgium
2020s 0.9723 0.9638 0.0085 Belgium

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher rule of law index, Belgium or France?
France, at 0.967 against 0.964 in Belgium as of 2025.
What is the difference in rule of law index between Belgium and France?
0.003, with France ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Belgium and France?
237 years are reported by both, from 1789 to 2025.
How do Belgium and France rank globally for rule of law index?
Belgium ranks 16th and France ranks 15th 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.

Individual pages

About this data

Indicator
Rule of law index
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
176 places, 30,303 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed