Most Corrupt Nations

Updated April 9, 2022 | Infoplease Staff

Where people trust their governments the least

According to the annual survey by the Berlin-based organization Transparency International, Somalia, North Korea, and Afghanistan are perceived to be the most corrupt, Denmark, Finland, and Sweden are perceived to be the world's least corrupt countries. For a list of the least corrupt nations, see the Least Corrupt Nations. The index defines corruption as the abuse of public office for private gain and measures the degree to which corruption is perceived to exist among a country's public officials and politicians. It is a composite index, drawing on 13 different expert and business surveys. The scores range from 100 (squeaky clean) to zero (highly corrupt). A score of 50 is the number Transparency International considers the borderline figure distinguishing countries that do and do not have a serious corruption problem. In the 2019 survey, two-thirds of countries scored below 50.