What is rule of law index in Afghanistan?

Rule of law index in Afghanistan was 0.084 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

What is the highest rule of law index recorded in Afghanistan?

The highest recorded value was 0.402 in 1789.

What is the lowest rule of law index recorded in Afghanistan?

The lowest recorded value was 0.047 in 1993.

How does Afghanistan rank for rule of law index?

Afghanistan ranks 158th out of 173 countries with data for 2025.

Is rule of law index rising or falling in Afghanistan?

Over the last ten years it is down 47.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.

Where does this Afghanistan data come from?

The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Rule of Law Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Rule of Law Index in Afghanistan

Name: Rule of Law Index in Afghanistan
Creator: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

Afghanistan: Rule of Law Index was 0.084 in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)

0.084

Change on year

down 5.6%

World rank

158th

of 173 countries

All-time high

0.402

in 1789

All-time low

0.047

in 1993

Years of data

237

1789–2025

Rule of Law Index in Afghanistan, 1789–2025

Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for rule of law index in Afghanistan is 0.084, measured in 2025.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 5.6% on the previous year and down 47.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, rule of law index in Afghanistan peaked at 0.402 in 1789 and was at its lowest, 0.047, in 1993.

That places Afghanistan 158th out of 173 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 237 years of available data.

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1780s	0.402	0.402	0.402	1
1790s	0.402	0.402	0.402	10
1800s	0.402	0.402	0.402	10
1810s	0.402	0.402	0.402	10
1820s	0.402	0.402	0.402	10
1830s	0.402	0.402	0.402	10
1840s	0.402	0.402	0.402	10
1850s	0.402	0.402	0.402	10
1860s	0.402	0.402	0.402	10
1870s	0.402	0.402	0.402	10
1880s	0.323	0.323	0.323	10
1890s	0.323	0.323	0.323	10
1900s	0.314	0.302	0.317	10
1910s	0.3191	0.317	0.333	10
1920s	0.3814	0.367	0.386	10
1930s	0.37	0.363	0.373	10
1940s	0.373	0.373	0.373	10
1950s	0.373	0.373	0.373	10
1960s	0.383	0.359	0.392	10
1970s	0.3373	0.217	0.392	10
1980s	0.2237	0.206	0.226	10
1990s	0.0995	0.047	0.212	10
2000s	0.1184	0.095	0.137	10
2010s	0.1386	0.112	0.16	10
2020s	0.118	0.084	0.177	6

Countries ranked near Afghanistan

155 Democratic Republic of Congo 0.108 compare
156 Guinea 0.106 compare
157 Cameroon 0.086 compare
159 Burundi 0.083 compare
160 El Salvador 0.082 compare
161 South Sudan 0.076 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More reference data data for Afghanistan

Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.8991 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O (AR5) - Crop Residues 629.4 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O (AR5) - Agricultural Soil 6,807 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O (AR5) - Burning - Crop re 23.95 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (CH4) - IPCC Agriculture 683.71 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (CH4) - Manure Management 35.27 (2050)
Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 4.89 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 26.62 (2050)
Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.4362 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 18.65 (2050)

All data for Afghanistan →

Frequently asked questions

What is rule of law index in Afghanistan?: Rule of law index in Afghanistan was 0.084 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest rule of law index recorded in Afghanistan?: The highest recorded value was 0.402 in 1789.
What is the lowest rule of law index recorded in Afghanistan?: The lowest recorded value was 0.047 in 1993.
How does Afghanistan rank for rule of law index?: Afghanistan ranks 158th out of 173 countries with data for 2025.
Is rule of law index rising or falling in Afghanistan?: Over the last ten years it is down 47.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Afghanistan data come from?: The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Rule of Law Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 237 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator: Rule of Law Index
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 176 places, 30,303 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

Central estimate of the extent to which the government complies with the law, courts are independent, laws transparent, justice accessible, corruption absent, and the bureaucracy is impartial.