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Political Corruption Index in United States

United States: Political Corruption Index was 0.06 in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)
0.06
Change on year
up 17.6%
World rank
155th
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.141
in 1869
All-time low
0.051
in 1980
Years of data
237
1789–2025

Political Corruption Index in United States, 1789–2025

00.050.10.15178919072025

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

Analysis

In 2025, political corruption index in United States stood at 0.06.

That represents a change of up 17.6% on the previous year and up 13.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, political corruption index in United States peaked at 0.141 in 1869 and was at its lowest, 0.051, in 1980.

That places United States 155th out of 176 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

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1780s 0.119 0.119 0.119 1
1790s 0.119 0.119 0.119 10
1800s 0.119 0.119 0.119 10
1810s 0.119 0.119 0.119 10
1820s 0.119 0.119 0.119 10
1830s 0.119 0.119 0.119 10
1840s 0.119 0.119 0.119 10
1850s 0.119 0.119 0.119 10
1860s 0.1212 0.119 0.141 10
1870s 0.141 0.141 0.141 10
1880s 0.141 0.141 0.141 10
1890s 0.141 0.141 0.141 10
1900s 0.115 0.115 0.115 10
1910s 0.0792 0.068 0.097 10
1920s 0.0765 0.066 0.093 10
1930s 0.065 0.065 0.065 10
1940s 0.0629 0.056 0.065 10
1950s 0.06 0.06 0.06 10
1960s 0.0579 0.054 0.063 10
1970s 0.0633 0.054 0.073 10
1980s 0.0718 0.051 0.078 10
1990s 0.055 0.055 0.055 10
2000s 0.0549 0.054 0.055 10
2010s 0.0678 0.053 0.1 10
2020s 0.0633 0.051 0.085 6

Countries ranked near United States

  1. 152 Chile 0.075 compare
  2. 153 Barbados 0.073 compare
  3. 154 Latvia 0.07 compare
  4. 156 France 0.056 compare
  5. 157 Uruguay 0.055 compare
  6. 158 Seychelles 0.054 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More social development data for United States

All data for United States →

Frequently asked questions

What is political corruption index in United States?
Political corruption index in United States was 0.06 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest political corruption index recorded in United States?
The highest recorded value was 0.141 in 1869.
What is the lowest political corruption index recorded in United States?
The lowest recorded value was 0.051 in 1980.
How does United States rank for political corruption index?
United States ranks 155th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is political corruption index rising or falling in United States?
Over the last ten years it is up 13.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this United States 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 — 237 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Political Corruption Index
Source
V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
176 places, 25,295 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed

Central estimate of the extent to which a country is affected by political corruption.