Top 100 Countries by Government Effectiveness, Latest World Bank Ranking
Government effectiveness is one of the six Worldwide Governance Indicators published by the World Bank. It is designed to capture how well public institutions function in practice, including the quality of public services, the credibility of policy implementation, the quality of the civil service, and the state’s capacity to deliver.
The latest comparable year in the current revised WGI series is 2024, so the ranking is based on 2024 values. The table below shows the top 100 countries by the latest government effectiveness score, while the rest of the article explains what that score measures, where annual movement is strongest, and how small year-to-year changes should be read.
Top 10 countries by government effectiveness
The top of the ranking is dominated by countries that combine capable public administration, policy continuity, strong implementation quality, and relatively high institutional trust. These are not necessarily countries with identical political systems. What they share is the ability to make the state work predictably across time.
Singapore
Singapore leads the table with the highest latest score in the dataset and remains the clearest example of consistent administrative capacity.
Japan
Japan remains near the very top thanks to stable institutions, delivery capacity, and a strong long-run administrative framework.
Luxembourg
Luxembourg stays firmly in the top tier, even though its latest annual movement is weaker than some peers.
Denmark
Denmark remains one of the strongest institutional performers in the world, with very high government effectiveness despite a mild annual decline.
New Zealand
New Zealand combines a very high level with one of the stronger positive annual changes inside the top 10.
Norway
Norway remains in the upper cluster, with strong public-service quality and a stable administrative profile.
Switzerland
Switzerland stays near the very top, though its latest change is weaker than the level alone would suggest.
Finland
Finland remains a high-capacity state with a consistently strong administrative profile in the revised WGI series.
Australia
Australia stays in the global top 10 thanks to strong implementation capacity and durable institutional quality.
Sweden
Sweden closes the top 10 with a strong level and a healthy positive annual move in the latest revised series.
Short reading: the upper tier is not defined by one policy model. It is defined by states that can deliver, adjust, and maintain implementation quality over time.
Full Top 100 ranking
The table below lists the latest Top 100 countries by government effectiveness. Use search, filters, sorting, and the view switch to compare countries by latest score, region, or annual change.
| Rank | Country | Score | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Singapore | 95.67 | +0.34 |
| 2 | Japan | 91.94 | +1.94 |
| 3 | Luxembourg | 91.00 | -2.06 |
| 4 | Denmark | 88.53 | -0.84 |
| 5 | New Zealand | 87.30 | +2.37 |
| 6 | Norway | 87.18 | +1.09 |
| 7 | Switzerland | 87.12 | -3.90 |
| 8 | Finland | 86.67 | +0.57 |
| 9 | Australia | 86.52 | +0.53 |
| 10 | Sweden | 85.85 | +1.59 |
| 11 | Netherlands | 85.42 | +0.36 |
| 12 | Canada | 84.91 | +0.48 |
| 13 | Germany | 84.37 | +0.11 |
| 14 | Iceland | 84.00 | +1.25 |
| 15 | United Kingdom | 83.88 | -0.19 |
| 16 | Austria | 83.45 | +0.08 |
| 17 | Estonia | 83.21 | +1.01 |
| 18 | Ireland | 82.97 | +0.62 |
| 19 | Belgium | 82.54 | -0.07 |
| 20 | France | 82.11 | -0.54 |
| 21 | United States | 81.75 | -0.48 |
| 22 | Slovenia | 80.84 | +0.89 |
| 23 | Spain | 80.45 | +0.22 |
| 24 | Republic of Korea | 79.98 | +0.94 |
| 25 | Portugal | 79.52 | +0.13 |
| 26 | Malta | 79.08 | +0.67 |
| 27 | Czech Republic | 78.73 | +0.40 |
| 28 | Israel | 78.22 | -0.76 |
| 29 | Cyprus | 77.84 | +0.55 |
| 30 | United Arab Emirates | 77.40 | +1.10 |
| 31 | Lithuania | 76.93 | +0.88 |
| 32 | Latvia | 76.41 | +0.92 |
| 33 | Poland | 75.98 | +0.31 |
| 34 | Italy | 75.56 | +0.09 |
| 35 | Mauritius | 75.10 | +1.18 |
| 36 | Qatar | 74.72 | +0.86 |
| 37 | Saudi Arabia | 74.11 | +1.74 |
| 38 | Hungary | 73.88 | -0.21 |
| 39 | Croatia | 73.44 | +0.58 |
| 40 | Slovakia | 72.97 | +0.47 |
| 41 | Romania | 72.55 | +0.79 |
| 42 | Greece | 72.10 | +0.63 |
| 43 | Oman | 71.68 | +0.70 |
| 44 | Bahrain | 71.34 | +0.51 |
| 45 | Chile | 70.92 | -0.28 |
| 46 | Uruguay | 70.47 | +0.42 |
| 47 | Namibia | 70.03 | +0.84 |
| 48 | Botswana | 69.65 | +0.95 |
| 49 | Malaysia | 69.20 | +0.74 |
| 50 | Costa Rica | 68.84 | +0.39 |
| 51 | Bulgaria | 68.40 | +0.18 |
| 52 | Montenegro | 68.02 | +0.56 |
| 53 | North Macedonia | 67.61 | +0.60 |
| 54 | Georgia | 67.28 | +0.46 |
| 55 | Armenia | 66.90 | +0.71 |
| 56 | Serbia | 66.43 | +0.33 |
| 57 | Kazakhstan | 66.05 | +1.02 |
| 58 | Türkiye | 65.62 | +0.44 |
| 59 | India | 65.10 | +1.26 |
| 60 | Thailand | 64.73 | +0.57 |
| 61 | Indonesia | 64.31 | +0.82 |
| 62 | Viet Nam | 63.98 | +1.11 |
| 63 | Morocco | 63.52 | +0.73 |
| 64 | Tunisia | 63.07 | -0.44 |
| 65 | Uzbekistan | 62.71 | +1.47 |
| 66 | Philippines | 62.20 | +0.39 |
| 67 | Jordan | 61.88 | +0.21 |
| 68 | Albania | 61.44 | +0.62 |
| 69 | Republic of Moldova | 61.07 | +0.70 |
| 70 | Brazil | 60.73 | +0.18 |
| 71 | Peru | 60.32 | -0.36 |
| 72 | Colombia | 59.98 | +0.05 |
| 73 | Mexico | 59.44 | -0.28 |
| 74 | Argentina | 59.10 | +0.47 |
| 75 | Dominican Republic | 58.72 | +0.64 |
| 76 | Jamaica | 58.28 | +0.58 |
| 77 | Barbados | 57.95 | +0.35 |
| 78 | El Salvador | 57.61 | +0.76 |
| 79 | South Africa | 57.22 | +0.12 |
| 80 | Senegal | 56.81 | +0.83 |
| 81 | Seychelles | 56.44 | +0.54 |
| 82 | Cabo Verde | 56.00 | +0.61 |
| 83 | Ghana | 55.72 | +0.09 |
| 84 | Rwanda | 55.31 | +0.67 |
| 85 | Kenya | 54.90 | +0.40 |
| 86 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 54.54 | +0.31 |
| 87 | Ukraine | 54.08 | +0.74 |
| 88 | Azerbaijan | 53.72 | +0.20 |
| 89 | Pakistan | 53.28 | +0.62 |
| 90 | Sri Lanka | 52.90 | +0.55 |
| 91 | Bangladesh | 52.43 | +0.28 |
| 92 | Nepal | 52.01 | +0.30 |
| 93 | Mongolia | 51.67 | +0.41 |
| 94 | Brunei Darussalam | 51.30 | +0.16 |
| 95 | Egypt | 50.88 | +0.26 |
| 96 | Kuwait | 50.43 | +0.21 |
| 97 | Lebanon | 49.90 | -0.57 |
| 98 | Iran | 49.42 | +0.35 |
| 99 | Cambodia | 48.98 | +0.64 |
| 100 | Lao PDR | 48.53 | +0.46 |
Latest score shown as a 0–100 value from the current revised WGI series. YoY change is displayed in score points inside the same revised dataset.
Where annual movement is strongest
The biggest annual movers are not always the highest-scoring countries. That is normal. Annual change helps show where state capacity is improving or slipping, but level still matters more than one year of movement. A country can improve quickly and still remain well below the top tier, while a high-capacity state can dip slightly and still remain institutionally strong.
Positive and negative annual changes are shown separately for readability. They should be read together with the latest score, not on their own.
Methodology
The Worldwide Governance Indicators are published by the World Bank and cover six governance dimensions. Government effectiveness is one of them. It is designed to capture perceptions of public-service quality, the quality of the civil service, the quality of policy formulation and implementation, and the credibility of the government’s commitment to those policies.
The current WGI revision recalculates the historical series back to 1996 and publishes both the familiar estimate and an absolute 0–100 score. Here, the absolute score is used because it is easier to compare across countries. The latest comparable year in the revised series is 2024, which is why this page uses 2024 values even though the page itself is updated later.
The ranking is useful for broad comparison, but it should not be treated as a full institutional audit. The WGI are composite indicators built from many underlying sources, so the best way to read them is as a comparative lens rather than a stand-alone diagnosis of state quality.
Main takeaway: a strong latest score tells you more about institutional quality than a small one-year move does.
What this means for the reader
For migrants, this ranking is a shorthand for how reliably the state tends to function. Higher-scoring countries are more likely to offer administrative predictability, stronger public services, and a more stable operating environment for daily life.
For investors and companies, government effectiveness is useful because it often overlaps with execution risk. States that score well tend to implement policy more predictably, administer systems more consistently, and create fewer administrative surprises.
For analysts and students, the ranking works best when read comparatively. It is not saying that one country is simply “good” and another is “bad.” It shows relative distance in state capacity inside one consistent cross-country framework.
FAQ
What does government effectiveness actually measure?
It measures perceived quality of public services, the civil service, policy implementation, and the credibility of the state’s policy commitment. It is one of the six Worldwide Governance Indicators.
Why are 2024 values used on a page updated in 2026?
Because 2024 is the latest comparable year in the current WGI revision. That is why 2024 is used here.
Does a high score mean the country is well-governed in every respect?
No. A high score means the country performs strongly on this specific governance dimension. It does not replace deeper country analysis and should not be treated as a full institutional audit.
Why use the 0–100 score instead of the old estimate?
The absolute 0–100 score is easier for general readers to compare across countries. It does not replace the estimate, but it is much more readable on a ranking page.
Should annual improvement be read as more important than the latest level?
No. Annual change is useful context, but a strong latest level usually tells you more about institutional quality than one year of movement does.
Sources
- World Bank — Worldwide Governance Indicators main page. Overview of the dataset, current update, revision notes, and documentation.
https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators - World Bank — WGI documentation. Methodological notes, revisions, coverage, and the logic behind the indicators.
https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators/documentation - World Bank DataBank — Government Effectiveness series. Reference access point for the underlying indicator series and country comparisons.
https://databank.worldbank.org/source/worldwide-governance-indicators
The ranking uses the latest comparable year available in the current revised WGI series and presents the absolute 0–100 score for easier cross-country comparison.
