What is executive corruption index in South Korea?

Executive corruption index in South Korea was 0.078 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

What is the highest executive corruption index recorded in South Korea?

The highest recorded value was 0.735 in 1948.

What is the lowest executive corruption index recorded in South Korea?

The lowest recorded value was 0.037 in 2022.

How does South Korea rank for executive corruption index?

South Korea ranks 147th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.

Is executive corruption index rising or falling in South Korea?

Over the last ten years it is down 79.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.

Where does this South Korea data come from?

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

Executive Corruption Index in South Korea

Name: Executive Corruption Index in South Korea
Creator: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

South Korea: Executive Corruption Index was 0.078 in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)

0.078

Change on year

unchanged

World rank

147th

of 176 countries

All-time high

0.735

in 1948

All-time low

0.037

in 2022

Years of data

237

1789–2025

Executive Corruption Index in South Korea, 1789–2025

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

Analysis

In 2025, executive corruption index in South Korea stood at 0.078.

The figure is down 79.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, executive corruption index in South Korea peaked at 0.735 in 1948 and was at its lowest, 0.037, in 2022.

South Korea ranks 147th of 176 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

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

Executive Corruption Index in South Korea, year by year

Annual values for Executive Corruption Index in South Korea, 1789 to 2025.
Year	Value	Change
1789	0.666	—
1790	0.666	+0.0%
1791	0.666	+0.0%
1792	0.666	+0.0%
1793	0.666	+0.0%
1794	0.666	+0.0%
1795	0.666	+0.0%
1796	0.666	+0.0%
1797	0.666	+0.0%
1798	0.666	+0.0%
1799	0.666	+0.0%
1800	0.666	+0.0%
1801	0.666	+0.0%
1802	0.666	+0.0%
1803	0.666	+0.0%
1804	0.666	+0.0%
1805	0.666	+0.0%
1806	0.666	+0.0%
1807	0.666	+0.0%
1808	0.666	+0.0%
1809	0.666	+0.0%
1810	0.666	+0.0%
1811	0.666	+0.0%
1812	0.666	+0.0%
1813	0.666	+0.0%
1814	0.666	+0.0%
1815	0.666	+0.0%
1816	0.666	+0.0%
1817	0.666	+0.0%
1818	0.666	+0.0%
1819	0.666	+0.0%
1820	0.666	+0.0%
1821	0.666	+0.0%
1822	0.666	+0.0%
1823	0.666	+0.0%
1824	0.666	+0.0%
1825	0.666	+0.0%
1826	0.666	+0.0%
1827	0.666	+0.0%
1828	0.666	+0.0%
1829	0.666	+0.0%
1830	0.666	+0.0%
1831	0.666	+0.0%
1832	0.666	+0.0%
1833	0.666	+0.0%
1834	0.666	+0.0%
1835	0.666	+0.0%
1836	0.666	+0.0%
1837	0.666	+0.0%
1838	0.666	+0.0%
1839	0.666	+0.0%
1840	0.666	+0.0%
1841	0.666	+0.0%
1842	0.666	+0.0%
1843	0.666	+0.0%
1844	0.666	+0.0%
1845	0.666	+0.0%
1846	0.666	+0.0%
1847	0.666	+0.0%
1848	0.666	+0.0%
1849	0.666	+0.0%
1850	0.666	+0.0%
1851	0.666	+0.0%
1852	0.666	+0.0%
1853	0.666	+0.0%
1854	0.666	+0.0%
1855	0.666	+0.0%
1856	0.666	+0.0%
1857	0.666	+0.0%
1858	0.666	+0.0%
1859	0.666	+0.0%
1860	0.666	+0.0%
1861	0.666	+0.0%
1862	0.666	+0.0%
1863	0.666	+0.0%
1864	0.666	+0.0%
1865	0.666	+0.0%
1866	0.666	+0.0%
1867	0.666	+0.0%
1868	0.666	+0.0%
1869	0.666	+0.0%
1870	0.666	+0.0%
1871	0.666	+0.0%
1872	0.666	+0.0%
1873	0.666	+0.0%
1874	0.666	+0.0%
1875	0.666	+0.0%
1876	0.666	+0.0%
1877	0.666	+0.0%
1878	0.666	+0.0%
1879	0.666	+0.0%
1880	0.666	+0.0%
1881	0.666	+0.0%
1882	0.666	+0.0%
1883	0.666	+0.0%
1884	0.666	+0.0%
1885	0.666	+0.0%
1886	0.666	+0.0%
1887	0.666	+0.0%
1888	0.666	+0.0%
1889	0.666	+0.0%
1890	0.666	+0.0%
1891	0.666	+0.0%
1892	0.666	+0.0%
1893	0.666	+0.0%
1894	0.666	+0.0%
1895	0.666	+0.0%
1896	0.666	+0.0%
1897	0.666	+0.0%
1898	0.666	+0.0%
1899	0.666	+0.0%
1900	0.666	+0.0%
1901	0.666	+0.0%
1902	0.666	+0.0%
1903	0.666	+0.0%
1904	0.666	+0.0%
1905	0.666	+0.0%
1906	0.666	+0.0%
1907	0.666	+0.0%
1908	0.666	+0.0%
1909	0.666	+0.0%
1910	0.654	-1.8%
1911	0.622	-4.9%
1912	0.622	+0.0%
1913	0.622	+0.0%
1914	0.622	+0.0%
1915	0.622	+0.0%
1916	0.622	+0.0%
1917	0.622	+0.0%
1918	0.622	+0.0%
1919	0.622	+0.0%
1920	0.622	+0.0%
1921	0.622	+0.0%
1922	0.622	+0.0%
1923	0.622	+0.0%
1924	0.622	+0.0%
1925	0.622	+0.0%
1926	0.622	+0.0%
1927	0.622	+0.0%
1928	0.622	+0.0%
1929	0.622	+0.0%
1930	0.622	+0.0%
1931	0.622	+0.0%
1932	0.622	+0.0%
1933	0.622	+0.0%
1934	0.622	+0.0%
1935	0.622	+0.0%
1936	0.622	+0.0%
1937	0.622	+0.0%
1938	0.622	+0.0%
1939	0.622	+0.0%
1940	0.622	+0.0%
1941	0.622	+0.0%
1942	0.622	+0.0%
1943	0.622	+0.0%
1944	0.622	+0.0%
1945	0.605	-2.7%
1946	0.605	+0.0%
1947	0.605	+0.0%
1948	0.735	+21.5%
1949	0.735	+0.0%
1950	0.735	+0.0%
1951	0.735	+0.0%
1952	0.735	+0.0%
1953	0.735	+0.0%
1954	0.735	+0.0%
1955	0.735	+0.0%
1956	0.735	+0.0%
1957	0.735	+0.0%
1958	0.735	+0.0%
1959	0.735	+0.0%
1960	0.509	-30.7%
1961	0.527	+3.5%
1962	0.613	+16.3%
1963	0.613	+0.0%
1964	0.613	+0.0%
1965	0.613	+0.0%
1966	0.613	+0.0%
1967	0.613	+0.0%
1968	0.613	+0.0%
1969	0.613	+0.0%
1970	0.613	+0.0%
1971	0.613	+0.0%
1972	0.646	+5.4%
1973	0.646	+0.0%
1974	0.646	+0.0%
1975	0.646	+0.0%
1976	0.646	+0.0%
1977	0.646	+0.0%
1978	0.646	+0.0%
1979	0.646	+0.0%
1980	0.667	+3.3%
1981	0.667	+0.0%
1982	0.667	+0.0%
1983	0.667	+0.0%
1984	0.667	+0.0%
1985	0.667	+0.0%
1986	0.667	+0.0%
1987	0.667	+0.0%
1988	0.619	-7.2%
1989	0.619	+0.0%
1990	0.619	+0.0%
1991	0.619	+0.0%
1992	0.551	-11.0%
1993	0.361	-34.5%
1994	0.361	+0.0%
1995	0.361	+0.0%
1996	0.361	+0.0%
1997	0.361	+0.0%
1998	0.233	-35.5%
1999	0.229	-1.7%
2000	0.205	-10.5%
2001	0.205	+0.0%
2002	0.195	-4.9%
2003	0.113	-42.1%
2004	0.082	-27.4%
2005	0.082	+0.0%
2006	0.082	+0.0%
2007	0.082	+0.0%
2008	0.219	+167.1%
2009	0.219	+0.0%
2010	0.219	+0.0%
2011	0.219	+0.0%
2012	0.281	+28.3%
2013	0.339	+20.6%
2014	0.339	+0.0%
2015	0.386	+13.9%
2016	0.386	+0.0%
2017	0.072	-81.3%
2018	0.06	-16.7%
2019	0.046	-23.3%
2020	0.046	+0.0%
2021	0.046	+0.0%
2022	0.037	-19.6%
2023	0.071	+91.9%
2024	0.078	+9.9%
2025	0.078	+0.0%

South Korea compared with similar countries

South Korea's 0.078 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.078, 1.0× the median. (55 countries reporting)
South Korea's 0.078 is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.45, 17% of the median. (22 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1780s	0.666	0.666	0.666	1
1790s	0.666	0.666	0.666	10
1800s	0.666	0.666	0.666	10
1810s	0.666	0.666	0.666	10
1820s	0.666	0.666	0.666	10
1830s	0.666	0.666	0.666	10
1840s	0.666	0.666	0.666	10
1850s	0.666	0.666	0.666	10
1860s	0.666	0.666	0.666	10
1870s	0.666	0.666	0.666	10
1880s	0.666	0.666	0.666	10
1890s	0.666	0.666	0.666	10
1900s	0.666	0.666	0.666	10
1910s	0.6252	0.622	0.654	10
1920s	0.622	0.622	0.622	10
1930s	0.622	0.622	0.622	10
1940s	0.6395	0.605	0.735	10
1950s	0.735	0.735	0.735	10
1960s	0.594	0.509	0.613	10
1970s	0.6394	0.613	0.646	10
1980s	0.6574	0.619	0.667	10
1990s	0.4056	0.229	0.619	10
2000s	0.1484	0.082	0.219	10
2010s	0.2347	0.046	0.386	10
2020s	0.0593	0.037	0.078	6

Countries ranked near South Korea

144 Barbados 0.089 compare
144 Lithuania 0.089 compare
146 Moldova 0.086 compare
148 Portugal 0.076 compare
149 France 0.068 compare
150 Bhutan 0.066 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More social development data for South Korea

Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 4,407 (2025)
Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 117 (2025)
Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 2 (2025)
Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per person (2025)
Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 117 (2025)
Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0001 units per person (2025)
Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)

All data for South Korea →

Frequently asked questions

What is executive corruption index in South Korea?: Executive corruption index in South Korea was 0.078 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest executive corruption index recorded in South Korea?: The highest recorded value was 0.735 in 1948.
What is the lowest executive corruption index recorded in South Korea?: The lowest recorded value was 0.037 in 2022.
How does South Korea rank for executive corruption index?: South Korea ranks 147th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is executive corruption index rising or falling in South Korea?: Over the last ten years it is down 79.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this South Korea data come from?: The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Executive Corruption Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Executive Corruption Index in South Korea. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://social-development.statizoid.com/stat/executive-corruption-index/korea-rep/

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About this data

Indicator: Executive Corruption Index
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 176 places, 25,488 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed: 18 September 2026

Data by V-Dem. Expert estimates of the extent to which high-ranking members of the executive, such as the head of government or cabinet ministers, engage in bribery and theft. The index ranges from 0 to 1 (highly corrupt).