What is rule of law index in Vatican?

Rule of law index in Vatican was 0.276 in 1870, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

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

The highest recorded value was 0.437 in 1849.

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

The lowest recorded value was 0.227 in 1825.

How does Vatican rank for rule of law index?

Vatican ranks 131st out of 176 countries with data for 1870.

Is rule of law index rising or falling in Vatican?

Over the last ten years it is up 14.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.

Where does this Vatican 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 Vatican

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

Vatican: Rule of Law Index was 0.276 in 1870. ▬ Flat

Latest (1870)

0.276

Change on year

unchanged

World rank

131st

of 176 countries

All-time high

0.437

in 1849

All-time low

0.227

in 1825

Years of data

1789–1870

Rule of Law Index in Vatican, 1789–1870

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

Analysis

Vatican recorded 0.276 for rule of law index in 1870.

That represents a change of up 14.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, rule of law index in Vatican peaked at 0.437 in 1849 and was at its lowest, 0.227, in 1825.

Vatican ranks 131st of 176 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

Rule of Law Index in Vatican, year by year

Annual values for Rule of Law Index in Vatican, 1789 to 1870.
Year	Value	Change
1789	0.229	—
1790	0.229	+0.0%
1791	0.229	+0.0%
1792	0.229	+0.0%
1793	0.229	+0.0%
1794	0.229	+0.0%
1795	0.229	+0.0%
1796	0.229	+0.0%
1797	0.258	+12.7%
1798	0.412	+59.7%
1799	0.412	+0.0%
1800	0.28	-32.0%
1801	0.28	+0.0%
1802	0.28	+0.0%
1803	0.28	+0.0%
1804	0.28	+0.0%
1805	0.28	+0.0%
1806	0.28	+0.0%
1807	0.28	+0.0%
1808	0.28	+0.0%
1809	0.28	+0.0%
1814	0.254	-9.3%
1815	0.254	+0.0%
1816	0.254	+0.0%
1817	0.254	+0.0%
1818	0.254	+0.0%
1819	0.254	+0.0%
1820	0.254	+0.0%
1821	0.254	+0.0%
1822	0.254	+0.0%
1823	0.254	+0.0%
1824	0.254	+0.0%
1825	0.227	-10.6%
1826	0.227	+0.0%
1827	0.227	+0.0%
1828	0.227	+0.0%
1829	0.227	+0.0%
1830	0.227	+0.0%
1831	0.227	+0.0%
1832	0.227	+0.0%
1833	0.227	+0.0%
1834	0.227	+0.0%
1835	0.227	+0.0%
1836	0.227	+0.0%
1837	0.227	+0.0%
1838	0.227	+0.0%
1839	0.227	+0.0%
1840	0.227	+0.0%
1841	0.227	+0.0%
1842	0.227	+0.0%
1843	0.227	+0.0%
1844	0.227	+0.0%
1845	0.227	+0.0%
1846	0.227	+0.0%
1847	0.276	+21.6%
1848	0.305	+10.5%
1849	0.437	+43.3%
1850	0.272	-37.8%
1851	0.272	+0.0%
1852	0.272	+0.0%
1853	0.272	+0.0%
1854	0.272	+0.0%
1855	0.272	+0.0%
1856	0.272	+0.0%
1857	0.272	+0.0%
1858	0.272	+0.0%
1859	0.272	+0.0%
1860	0.241	-11.4%
1861	0.276	+14.5%
1862	0.276	+0.0%
1863	0.276	+0.0%
1864	0.276	+0.0%
1865	0.276	+0.0%
1866	0.276	+0.0%
1867	0.276	+0.0%
1868	0.276	+0.0%
1869	0.276	+0.0%
1870	0.276	+0.0%

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1780s	0.229	0.229	0.229	1
1790s	0.2685	0.229	0.412	10
1800s	0.28	0.28	0.28	10
1810s	0.254	0.254	0.254	6
1820s	0.2405	0.227	0.254	10
1830s	0.227	0.227	0.227	10
1840s	0.2607	0.227	0.437	10
1850s	0.272	0.272	0.272	10
1860s	0.2725	0.241	0.276	10
1870s	0.276	0.276	0.276	1

Countries ranked near Vatican

129 Syria 0.282 compare
130 Bolivia 0.281 compare
132 Pakistan 0.261 compare
133 Algeria 0.25
134 Bahrain 0.245

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More reference data data for Vatican

Democracy 0 (1861)
Equality of Political Power across Social Groups Score -2.2 (1870)
Equality of Civil Liberties across Social Groups Score -2.58 (1870)
Private Civil Liberties Index 0.072 (1870)
Meaningful democratic electoral institutions 0 (1870)
Chief executive of the government is chosen in multi-party elections 0 (1861)
Elected Political Leaders Index 0 (1870)
Free and Fair Elections Index 0.22 (1870)
Individual Liberties and Equality before the Law Index 0.154 (1870)
Equal Access to Power Index 0.034 (1870)

All data for Vatican →

Frequently asked questions

What is rule of law index in Vatican?: Rule of law index in Vatican was 0.276 in 1870, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest rule of law index recorded in Vatican?: The highest recorded value was 0.437 in 1849.
What is the lowest rule of law index recorded in Vatican?: The lowest recorded value was 0.227 in 1825.
How does Vatican rank for rule of law index?: Vatican ranks 131st out of 176 countries with data for 1870.
Is rule of law index rising or falling in Vatican?: Over the last ten years it is up 14.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this Vatican 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.

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Rule of Law Index in Vatican. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 28 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/rule-of-law-index/vatican/

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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: 18 September 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.