Rule of Law - Governance estimate in China (People’s Republic of)

China (People’s Republic of): Rule of Law - Governance estimate was -0.5793 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
-0.5793 approx. -2.5 to +2.5
Change on year
down 4.9%
World rank
139th
of 206 countries
All-time high
-0.4967 approx. -2.5 to +2.5
in 1998
All-time low
-0.8515 approx. -2.5 to +2.5
in 2006
Years of data
26
1996–2024

Rule of Law - Governance estimate in China (People’s Republic of), 1996–2024

-0.9-0.8-0.7-0.6-0.51996201020241996: -0.535 approx. -2.5 to +2.51998: -0.497 approx. -2.5 to +2.52000: -0.61 approx. -2.5 to +2.52002: -0.651 approx. -2.5 to +2.52003: -0.751 approx. -2.5 to +2.52004: -0.722 approx. -2.5 to +2.52005: -0.835 approx. -2.5 to +2.52006: -0.852 approx. -2.5 to +2.52007: -0.728 approx. -2.5 to +2.52008: -0.695 approx. -2.5 to +2.52009: -0.701 approx. -2.5 to +2.52010: -0.7 approx. -2.5 to +2.52011: -0.597 approx. -2.5 to +2.52012: -0.691 approx. -2.5 to +2.52013: -0.795 approx. -2.5 to +2.52014: -0.69 approx. -2.5 to +2.52015: -0.662 approx. -2.5 to +2.52016: -0.621 approx. -2.5 to +2.52017: -0.535 approx. -2.5 to +2.52018: -0.52 approx. -2.5 to +2.52019: -0.552 approx. -2.5 to +2.52020: -0.509 approx. -2.5 to +2.52021: -0.539 approx. -2.5 to +2.52022: -0.564 approx. -2.5 to +2.52023: -0.552 approx. -2.5 to +2.52024: -0.579 approx. -2.5 to +2.5

Source: The Worldwide Governance Indicators: Revised Methodology for Measuring Governance Using Perception Data., World Bank Group (WBG). Measured in approx. -2.5 to +2.5.

Analysis

In 2024, rule of law - governance estimate in China (People’s Republic of) stood at -0.5793 approx. -2.5 to +2.5.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 4.9% on the previous year and up 16.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, rule of law - governance estimate in China (People’s Republic of) peaked at -0.4967 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 1998 and was at its lowest, -0.8515 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, in 2006.

That places China (People’s Republic of) 139th out of 206 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 26 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s -0.5156 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -0.5345 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -0.4967 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 2
2000s -0.727 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -0.8515 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -0.61 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 9
2010s -0.6365 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -0.795 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -0.5204 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 10
2020s -0.5487 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -0.5793 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -0.5094 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 5

Countries ranked near China (People’s Republic of)

  1. 136 Papua New Guinea -0.5713 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
  2. 137 Philippines -0.574 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
  3. 138 Côte d’Ivoire -0.5781 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
  4. 140 Paraguay -0.5836 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
  5. 141 Cuba -0.6236 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
  6. 142 Timor-Leste -0.6257 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare

See the full ranking of 206 places →

More reference data data for China (People’s Republic of)

All data for China (People’s Republic of) →

Frequently asked questions

What is rule of law - governance estimate in China (People’s Republic of)?
Rule of law - governance estimate in China (People’s Republic of) was -0.5793 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2024, according to The Worldwide Governance Indicators: Revised Methodology for Measuring Governance Using Perception Data., World Bank Group (WBG).
What is the highest rule of law - governance estimate recorded in China (People’s Republic of)?
The highest recorded value was -0.4967 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 1998.
What is the lowest rule of law - governance estimate recorded in China (People’s Republic of)?
The lowest recorded value was -0.8515 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2006.
How does China (People’s Republic of) rank for rule of law - governance estimate?
China (People’s Republic of) ranks 139th out of 206 countries with data for 2024.
Is rule of law - governance estimate rising or falling in China (People’s Republic of)?
Over the last ten years it is up 16.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this China (People’s Republic of) data come from?
The figures come from The Worldwide Governance Indicators: Revised Methodology for Measuring Governance Using Perception Data., World Bank Group (WBG), published as part of Rule of Law - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Rule of Law - Governance estimate in China (People’s Republic of). Statizoid, drawing on The Worldwide Governance Indicators: Revised Methodology for Measuring Governance Using Perception Data., World Bank Group (WBG). Retrieved 21 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/rule-of-law-governance-estimate-approx-2-5-to-2-5/china/

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About this data

Indicator
Rule of Law - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5)
Unit
approx. -2.5 to +2.5
Source
The Worldwide Governance Indicators: Revised Methodology for Measuring Governance Using Perception Data., World Bank Group (WBG)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
206 places, 5,270 data points, 1996–2024
Last refreshed

Rule of Law (RL) captures perceptions of the extent to which agents respect and follow the rules of society, including contract enforcement, property rights, the police, courts, and the likelihood of crime and violence. Governance estimate from the aggregation model, in units of a standard normal distribution, i.e. ranging from approximately -2.5 to 2.5. Larger values correspond to better governance. The (country-series-time) metadata include the (a) number of sources, and (b) standard error. The number of sources indicates the number of underlying data sources on which the governance estimate is based. The standard error indicates the precision of the governance estimate. Larger values indicate less precise estimates. A 90% confidence interval for the governance estimate is given by the estimate +/- 1.64 times the standard error.