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Rule of law index in South Korea

South Korea: Rule of law index was 0.917 in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
0.917
Change on year
up 4.6%
World rank
31st
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.952
in 2020
All-time low
0.123
in 1849
Years of data
237
1789–2025

Rule of law index in South Korea, 1789–2025

0.20.40.60.81178919072025

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

South Korea recorded 0.917 for rule of law index in 2025.

The figure is up 4.6% on the previous year and up 10.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, rule of law index in South Korea peaked at 0.952 in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.123, in 1849.

South Korea ranks 31st of 176 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Rule of law index in South Korea, year by year

Year Value Change
1789 0.25 —
1790 0.25 +0.0%
1791 0.25 +0.0%
1792 0.25 +0.0%
1793 0.25 +0.0%
1794 0.25 +0.0%
1795 0.25 +0.0%
1796 0.25 +0.0%
1797 0.25 +0.0%
1798 0.25 +0.0%
1799 0.25 +0.0%
1800 0.179 -28.4%
1801 0.179 +0.0%
1802 0.179 +0.0%
1803 0.179 +0.0%
1804 0.179 +0.0%
1805 0.179 +0.0%
1806 0.179 +0.0%
1807 0.179 +0.0%
1808 0.179 +0.0%
1809 0.179 +0.0%
1810 0.179 +0.0%
1811 0.179 +0.0%
1812 0.179 +0.0%
1813 0.179 +0.0%
1814 0.179 +0.0%
1815 0.179 +0.0%
1816 0.179 +0.0%
1817 0.179 +0.0%
1818 0.179 +0.0%
1819 0.179 +0.0%
1820 0.179 +0.0%
1821 0.179 +0.0%
1822 0.179 +0.0%
1823 0.179 +0.0%
1824 0.179 +0.0%
1825 0.179 +0.0%
1826 0.179 +0.0%
1827 0.179 +0.0%
1828 0.179 +0.0%
1829 0.179 +0.0%
1830 0.179 +0.0%
1831 0.179 +0.0%
1832 0.179 +0.0%
1833 0.179 +0.0%
1834 0.179 +0.0%
1835 0.179 +0.0%
1836 0.179 +0.0%
1837 0.179 +0.0%
1838 0.179 +0.0%
1839 0.179 +0.0%
1840 0.162 -9.5%
1841 0.162 +0.0%
1842 0.162 +0.0%
1843 0.162 +0.0%
1844 0.162 +0.0%
1845 0.162 +0.0%
1846 0.162 +0.0%
1847 0.162 +0.0%
1848 0.162 +0.0%
1849 0.123 -24.1%
1850 0.123 +0.0%
1851 0.123 +0.0%
1852 0.123 +0.0%
1853 0.123 +0.0%
1854 0.123 +0.0%
1855 0.123 +0.0%
1856 0.123 +0.0%
1857 0.123 +0.0%
1858 0.123 +0.0%
1859 0.123 +0.0%
1860 0.123 +0.0%
1861 0.123 +0.0%
1862 0.123 +0.0%
1863 0.123 +0.0%
1864 0.234 +90.2%
1865 0.234 +0.0%
1866 0.234 +0.0%
1867 0.234 +0.0%
1868 0.234 +0.0%
1869 0.234 +0.0%
1870 0.234 +0.0%
1871 0.234 +0.0%
1872 0.234 +0.0%
1873 0.234 +0.0%
1874 0.176 -24.8%
1875 0.176 +0.0%
1876 0.176 +0.0%
1877 0.176 +0.0%
1878 0.176 +0.0%
1879 0.176 +0.0%
1880 0.134 -23.9%
1881 0.134 +0.0%
1882 0.134 +0.0%
1883 0.134 +0.0%
1884 0.134 +0.0%
1885 0.134 +0.0%
1886 0.134 +0.0%
1887 0.134 +0.0%
1888 0.134 +0.0%
1889 0.134 +0.0%
1890 0.134 +0.0%
1891 0.134 +0.0%
1892 0.134 +0.0%
1893 0.134 +0.0%
1894 0.124 -7.5%
1895 0.127 +2.4%
1896 0.127 +0.0%
1897 0.202 +59.1%
1898 0.202 +0.0%
1899 0.202 +0.0%
1900 0.196 -3.0%
1901 0.196 +0.0%
1902 0.196 +0.0%
1903 0.196 +0.0%
1904 0.191 -2.6%
1905 0.191 +0.0%
1906 0.191 +0.0%
1907 0.191 +0.0%
1908 0.191 +0.0%
1909 0.191 +0.0%
1910 0.156 -18.3%
1911 0.16 +2.6%
1912 0.16 +0.0%
1913 0.16 +0.0%
1914 0.16 +0.0%
1915 0.16 +0.0%
1916 0.16 +0.0%
1917 0.16 +0.0%
1918 0.16 +0.0%
1919 0.16 +0.0%
1920 0.157 -1.9%
1921 0.157 +0.0%
1922 0.157 +0.0%
1923 0.157 +0.0%
1924 0.157 +0.0%
1925 0.157 +0.0%
1926 0.157 +0.0%
1927 0.157 +0.0%
1928 0.157 +0.0%
1929 0.157 +0.0%
1930 0.157 +0.0%
1931 0.157 +0.0%
1932 0.157 +0.0%
1933 0.157 +0.0%
1934 0.157 +0.0%
1935 0.157 +0.0%
1936 0.157 +0.0%
1937 0.157 +0.0%
1938 0.157 +0.0%
1939 0.157 +0.0%
1940 0.157 +0.0%
1941 0.148 -5.7%
1942 0.148 +0.0%
1943 0.148 +0.0%
1944 0.148 +0.0%
1945 0.169 +14.2%
1946 0.275 +62.7%
1947 0.275 +0.0%
1948 0.38 +38.2%
1949 0.4 +5.3%
1950 0.407 +1.7%
1951 0.387 -4.9%
1952 0.387 +0.0%
1953 0.394 +1.8%
1954 0.409 +3.8%
1955 0.41 +0.2%
1956 0.41 +0.0%
1957 0.41 +0.0%
1958 0.409 -0.2%
1959 0.409 +0.0%
1960 0.569 +39.1%
1961 0.434 -23.7%
1962 0.393 -9.4%
1963 0.401 +2.0%
1964 0.418 +4.2%
1965 0.418 +0.0%
1966 0.418 +0.0%
1967 0.418 +0.0%
1968 0.418 +0.0%
1969 0.418 +0.0%
1970 0.418 +0.0%
1971 0.418 +0.0%
1972 0.365 -12.7%
1973 0.34 -6.8%
1974 0.34 +0.0%
1975 0.34 +0.0%
1976 0.34 +0.0%
1977 0.34 +0.0%
1978 0.34 +0.0%
1979 0.34 +0.0%
1980 0.371 +9.1%
1981 0.358 -3.5%
1982 0.376 +5.0%
1983 0.382 +1.6%
1984 0.382 +0.0%
1985 0.386 +1.0%
1986 0.386 +0.0%
1987 0.594 +53.9%
1988 0.799 +34.5%
1989 0.804 +0.6%
1990 0.806 +0.2%
1991 0.806 +0.0%
1992 0.819 +1.6%
1993 0.894 +9.2%
1994 0.894 +0.0%
1995 0.894 +0.0%
1996 0.894 +0.0%
1997 0.901 +0.8%
1998 0.919 +2.0%
1999 0.919 +0.0%
2000 0.929 +1.1%
2001 0.929 +0.0%
2002 0.936 +0.8%
2003 0.946 +1.1%
2004 0.949 +0.3%
2005 0.949 +0.0%
2006 0.949 +0.0%
2007 0.948 -0.1%
2008 0.908 -4.2%
2009 0.908 +0.0%
2010 0.904 -0.4%
2011 0.904 +0.0%
2012 0.894 -1.1%
2013 0.86 -3.8%
2014 0.86 +0.0%
2015 0.834 -3.0%
2016 0.834 +0.0%
2017 0.951 +14.0%
2018 0.951 +0.0%
2019 0.95 -0.1%
2020 0.952 +0.2%
2021 0.937 -1.6%
2022 0.937 +0.0%
2023 0.893 -4.7%
2024 0.877 -1.8%
2025 0.917 +4.6%

South Korea compared with similar countries

  • South Korea's 0.917 is below the median for high income countries, which is 0.927, 99% of the median. (55 countries reporting)
  • South Korea's 0.917 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.59, 1.6× the median. (22 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1780s 0.25 0.25 0.25 1
1790s 0.25 0.25 0.25 10
1800s 0.179 0.179 0.179 10
1810s 0.179 0.179 0.179 10
1820s 0.179 0.179 0.179 10
1830s 0.179 0.179 0.179 10
1840s 0.1581 0.123 0.162 10
1850s 0.123 0.123 0.123 10
1860s 0.1896 0.123 0.234 10
1870s 0.1992 0.176 0.234 10
1880s 0.134 0.134 0.134 10
1890s 0.152 0.124 0.202 10
1900s 0.193 0.191 0.196 10
1910s 0.1596 0.156 0.16 10
1920s 0.157 0.157 0.157 10
1930s 0.157 0.157 0.157 10
1940s 0.2248 0.148 0.4 10
1950s 0.4032 0.387 0.41 10
1960s 0.4305 0.393 0.569 10
1970s 0.3581 0.34 0.418 10
1980s 0.4838 0.358 0.804 10
1990s 0.8746 0.806 0.919 10
2000s 0.9351 0.908 0.949 10
2010s 0.8942 0.834 0.951 10
2020s 0.9188 0.877 0.952 6

Countries ranked near South Korea

  1. 28 Barbados 0.927 compare
  2. 29 United States 0.924 compare
  3. 30 Lithuania 0.92 compare
  4. 31 Taiwan 0.917 compare
  5. 33 Slovenia 0.9 compare
  6. 34 Israel 0.889 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More reference data data for South Korea

All data for South Korea →

Frequently asked questions

What is rule of law index in South Korea?
Rule of law index in South Korea was 0.917 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest rule of law index recorded in South Korea?
The highest recorded value was 0.952 in 2020.
What is the lowest rule of law index recorded in South Korea?
The lowest recorded value was 0.123 in 1849.
How does South Korea rank for rule of law index?
South Korea ranks 31st out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is rule of law index rising or falling in South Korea?
Over the last ten years it is up 10.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this South Korea data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Rule of law index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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

Relationships involving this indicator

Comparisons with other indicators across countries. Each was re-measured with population and national income held constant, so a relationship that only reflected country size is not listed here.

All correlations →

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Rule of law index in South Korea. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 14 November 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/rule-of-law-index/korea-rep/

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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