How Much Do Different Countries Trust Institutions?

In today’s world, factors such as polarization, misinformation, scandals, economic instability, and inequality have all contributed to a deterioration in people’s trust in institutions like government and media. But for some countries, trust is slowly returning.

During the pandemic, trust in politicians was particularly shaky, with 63% of respondents of an Ipsos survey finding politicians untrustworthy.

This infographic, via Visual Capitalist’s Kayla Zhu, shows the 2024 Edelman Trust Index scores of 28 countries and their change from 2023.

The Trust Index is meant to represent the average percent trust in NGOs, businesses, government, and media, based on a survey of over 32,000 respondents from 28 different countries conducted by Edelman Trust Institute.

Asian Countries are Becoming More Trusting

Globally, trust in institutions increased by one percentage point from 55 to 56 since last year. With an average Trust Index of 63, developing countries are far more trusting of institutions than developed countries, who have an average of 49.

Most of the Asian countries included in the survey saw increases to their Trust Index scores, including South Korea, India, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, and Japan. China and Indonesia were the only Asian nations whose populations became less trusting in 2024.

South Korea saw the biggest jump among all 28 countries surveyed, with their Trust Index increasing by 7 from 2023.

When comparing each country’s low income (bottom 25%) and high income (top 25%) earners’ Trust Index scores, Thailand had the greatest income-based trust inequality, with wealthy Thai citizens having a trust index of 82 while low income Thai citizens only having 55.

In general, the Edelman Trust Institute’s survey found that governments are seen as far less ethical and competent compared to businesses.