Rule of Law - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) in Italy

Italy: Rule of Law - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) was 0.5853 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)
0.5853 approx. -2.5 to +2.5
Change on year
up 3.9%
World rank
59th
of 208 countries
All-time high
0.9425 approx. -2.5 to +2.5
in 1996
All-time low
0.4102 approx. -2.5 to +2.5
in 2009
Years of data
27
1996–2025

Rule of Law - Governance estimate in Italy, 1996–2025

00.20.40.60.811996201020251996: 0.943 approx. -2.5 to +2.51998: 0.792 approx. -2.5 to +2.52000: 0.864 approx. -2.5 to +2.52002: 0.769 approx. -2.5 to +2.52003: 0.716 approx. -2.5 to +2.52004: 0.687 approx. -2.5 to +2.52005: 0.638 approx. -2.5 to +2.52006: 0.514 approx. -2.5 to +2.52007: 0.544 approx. -2.5 to +2.52008: 0.451 approx. -2.5 to +2.52009: 0.41 approx. -2.5 to +2.52010: 0.481 approx. -2.5 to +2.52011: 0.545 approx. -2.5 to +2.52012: 0.517 approx. -2.5 to +2.52013: 0.507 approx. -2.5 to +2.52014: 0.525 approx. -2.5 to +2.52015: 0.488 approx. -2.5 to +2.52016: 0.486 approx. -2.5 to +2.52017: 0.458 approx. -2.5 to +2.52018: 0.418 approx. -2.5 to +2.52019: 0.534 approx. -2.5 to +2.52020: 0.512 approx. -2.5 to +2.52021: 0.573 approx. -2.5 to +2.52022: 0.559 approx. -2.5 to +2.52023: 0.611 approx. -2.5 to +2.52024: 0.563 approx. -2.5 to +2.52025: 0.585 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

The most recent figure for rule of law - governance estimate in Italy is 0.5853 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, measured in 2025.

That represents a change of up 3.9% on the previous year and up 19.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, rule of law - governance estimate in Italy peaked at 0.9425 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 1996 and was at its lowest, 0.4102 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, in 2009.

That places Italy 59th out of 208 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 27 years of available data.

Rule of Law - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) in Italy, year by year

Annual values for Rule of Law - Governance estimate (approx. -2.5 to +2.5) in Italy, 1996 to 2025.
Year approx. -2.5 to +2.5 Change
1996 0.9425 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 —
1998 0.7921 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -16.0%
2000 0.8642 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +9.1%
2002 0.7687 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -11.0%
2003 0.7161 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -6.8%
2004 0.687 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -4.1%
2005 0.6378 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -7.2%
2006 0.5137 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -19.5%
2007 0.5441 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +5.9%
2008 0.4509 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -17.1%
2009 0.4102 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -9.0%
2010 0.4813 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +17.3%
2011 0.5451 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +13.3%
2012 0.5173 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -5.1%
2013 0.507 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -2.0%
2014 0.5248 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +3.5%
2015 0.4883 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -6.9%
2016 0.4858 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -0.5%
2017 0.4578 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -5.8%
2018 0.4178 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -8.7%
2019 0.5338 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +27.8%
2020 0.5118 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -4.1%
2021 0.5726 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +11.9%
2022 0.5588 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -2.4%
2023 0.6108 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +9.3%
2024 0.5631 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 -7.8%
2025 0.5853 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 +3.9%

Italy compared with similar countries

  • Italy's 0.5853 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 is below the median for high income countries, which is 0.9506 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, 62% of the median. (75 countries reporting)
  • Italy's 0.5853 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.6192 approx. -2.5 to +2.5, 95% of the median. (53 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 0.8673 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 0.7921 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 0.9425 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 2
2000s 0.6214 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 0.4102 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 0.8642 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 9
2010s 0.4959 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 0.4178 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 0.5451 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 10
2020s 0.5671 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 0.5118 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 0.6108 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 6

Countries ranked near Italy

  1. 56 Malta 0.6662 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
  2. 57 French Polynesia 0.6491 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
  3. 58 Costa Rica 0.6028 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
  4. 60 Grenada 0.581 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
  5. 61 Saint Kitts and Nevis 0.5801 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare
  6. 62 Seychelles 0.5779 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 compare

See the full ranking of 208 places →

More reference data data for Italy

All data for Italy →

Frequently asked questions

What is rule of law - governance estimate in Italy?
Rule of law - governance estimate in Italy was 0.5853 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2025, 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 Italy?
The highest recorded value was 0.9425 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 1996.
What is the lowest rule of law - governance estimate recorded in Italy?
The lowest recorded value was 0.4102 approx. -2.5 to +2.5 in 2009.
How does Italy rank for rule of law - governance estimate?
Italy ranks 59th out of 208 countries with data for 2025.
Is rule of law - governance estimate rising or falling in Italy?
Over the last ten years it is up 19.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Italy 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 Italy. Statizoid, drawing on The Worldwide Governance Indicators: Revised Methodology for Measuring Governance Using Perception Data., World Bank Group (WBG). Retrieved 15 October 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/rule-of-law-governance-estimate-approx-2-5-to-2-5/italy/

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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
208 places, 5,527 data points, 1996–2025
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.