Political Corruption Index in North Korea
North Korea: Political Corruption Index was 0.67 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
0.67
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
62nd
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.798
in 1947
All-time low
0.624
in 1960
Years of data
81
1945–2025
Political Corruption Index in North Korea, 1945–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for political corruption index in North Korea is 0.67, measured in 2025.
That represents a change of down 1.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, political corruption index in North Korea peaked at 0.798 in 1947 and was at its lowest, 0.624, in 1960.
That places North Korea 62nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 81 years of available data.
Political Corruption Index in North Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1945 | 0.634 | — |
| 1946 | 0.782 | +23.3% |
| 1947 | 0.798 | +2.0% |
| 1948 | 0.742 | -7.0% |
| 1949 | 0.638 | -14.0% |
| 1950 | 0.638 | +0.0% |
| 1951 | 0.638 | +0.0% |
| 1952 | 0.638 | +0.0% |
| 1953 | 0.638 | +0.0% |
| 1954 | 0.626 | -1.9% |
| 1955 | 0.626 | +0.0% |
| 1956 | 0.626 | +0.0% |
| 1957 | 0.626 | +0.0% |
| 1958 | 0.626 | +0.0% |
| 1959 | 0.626 | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 0.624 | -0.3% |
| 1961 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1962 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1971 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 0.624 | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 0.659 | +5.6% |
| 1989 | 0.659 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 0.664 | +0.8% |
| 1991 | 0.664 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 0.664 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 0.664 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 0.675 | +1.7% |
| 1995 | 0.717 | +6.2% |
| 1996 | 0.717 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 0.717 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 0.717 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 0.717 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 0.709 | -1.1% |
| 2001 | 0.709 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 0.709 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 0.709 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 0.709 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 0.709 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 0.709 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 0.711 | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 0.711 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 0.711 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 0.709 | -0.3% |
| 2011 | 0.707 | -0.3% |
| 2012 | 0.677 | -4.2% |
| 2013 | 0.677 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 0.677 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 0.677 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 0.677 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 0.677 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 0.677 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 0.659 | -2.7% |
| 2020 | 0.653 | -0.9% |
| 2021 | 0.653 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 0.653 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 0.67 | +2.6% |
| 2024 | 0.67 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 0.67 | +0.0% |
North Korea compared with similar countries
- North Korea's 0.67 is below the median for low income countries, which is 0.752, 89% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
- North Korea's 0.67 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.51, 1.3× the median. (22 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1940s | 0.7188 | 0.634 | 0.798 | 5 |
| 1950s | 0.6308 | 0.626 | 0.638 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.624 | 0.624 | 0.624 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.624 | 0.624 | 0.624 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.631 | 0.624 | 0.659 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.6916 | 0.664 | 0.717 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.7096 | 0.709 | 0.711 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.6814 | 0.659 | 0.709 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.6615 | 0.653 | 0.67 | 6 |
Countries ranked near North Korea
More social development data for North Korea
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 263 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 7 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 0 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 7 (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 263 (2025)
- Sovereign state gleditsch ward, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of -7.07 % change on previous year (2025)
- Human Rights Index vs. Electoral Democracy Index 0.024 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is political corruption index in North Korea?
- Political corruption index in North Korea was 0.67 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest political corruption index recorded in North Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 0.798 in 1947.
- What is the lowest political corruption index recorded in North Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.624 in 1960.
- How does North Korea rank for political corruption index?
- North Korea ranks 62nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
- Is political corruption index rising or falling in North Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this North Korea data come from?
- The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Political Corruption Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 81 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Central estimate of the extent to which a country is affected by political corruption.