Which country in Asia has the best control of corruption?

Singapore has the best control of corruption in Asia: an estimate of +1.97 (2025). Next come Bhutan (an estimate of +1.47) and Japan (an estimate of +1.45).

Which country in Asia has the worst control of corruption?

Yemen, with an estimate of −1.68 (2025).

What is the typical control of corruption of a country in Asia?

The median of the 48 countries in Asia is an estimate of −0.36: half are above it, half below. The median, not the average, because a few countries at the top would drag an average far above almost everyone.

Where do the figures come from?

How well public power is kept from being used for private gain, petty or grand, as the World Bank’s Worldwide Governance Indicators estimate it from surveys and experts: about −2.5 (most corrupt) to +2.5 (least). Source: World Bank, 2025. Only independent states are ranked; territories are listed separately. A country’s continent follows Natural Earth; the handful of island states it files under the open ocean are placed by their UN subregion.

Countries in Asia by control of corruption

How well public power is kept from being used for private gain, petty or grand, as the World Bank’s Worldwide Governance Indicators estimate it from surveys and experts: about −2.5 (most corrupt) to +2.5 (least). 48 countries in Asia, highest first. World Bank, 2025

See it on the map

Map: Control of corruption — Asia — **−1.5−0.75−0.25+0.25+0.75+1.5**No data

Highest

+1.97

Singapore

Median country

−0.36

half above, half below

Lowest

−1.68

Yemen

Countries in Asia by control of corruption, World Bank, 2025
#	Country	Estimate	Region
1	Singapore	+1.97	South-Eastern Asia
2	Bhutan	+1.47	Southern Asia
3	Japan	+1.45	Eastern Asia
4	Taiwan	+1.18	Eastern Asia
5	United Arab Emirates	+1.15	Western Asia
6	Brunei	+0.99	South-Eastern Asia
7	Israel	+0.96	Western Asia
8	South Korea	+0.92	Eastern Asia
9	Qatar	+0.88	Western Asia
10	Saudi Arabia	+0.81	Western Asia
11	Malaysia	+0.56	South-Eastern Asia
12	Cyprus	+0.54	Western Asia
13	Oman	+0.50	Western Asia
14	Jordan	+0.30	Western Asia
=15	Bahrain	+0.28	Western Asia
=15	Kuwait	+0.28	Western Asia
17	Armenia	+0.11	Western Asia
18	China	+0.07	Eastern Asia
19	Vietnam	−0.11	South-Eastern Asia
20	Georgia	−0.14	Western Asia
21	Kazakhstan	−0.26	Central Asia
=22	India	−0.28	Southern Asia
=22	Sri Lanka	−0.28	Southern Asia
24	Maldives	−0.33	Southern Asia
25	Timor-Leste	−0.39	South-Eastern Asia
26	Mongolia	−0.45	Eastern Asia
27	Thailand	−0.50	South-Eastern Asia
28	Indonesia	−0.51	South-Eastern Asia
29	Turkey	−0.53	Western Asia
30	Philippines	−0.57	South-Eastern Asia
31	Uzbekistan	−0.69	Central Asia
32	Nepal	−0.77	Southern Asia
33	Azerbaijan	−0.78	Western Asia
34	Bangladesh	−0.98	Southern Asia
35	Laos	−0.99	South-Eastern Asia
36	Pakistan	−1.07	Southern Asia
37	Kyrgyzstan	−1.10	Central Asia
38	Iran	−1.14	Southern Asia
39	Lebanon	−1.22	Western Asia
=40	Iraq	−1.25	Western Asia
=40	Tajikistan	−1.25	Central Asia
42	Cambodia	−1.26	South-Eastern Asia
=43	Afghanistan	−1.31	Southern Asia
=43	Myanmar	−1.31	South-Eastern Asia
=43	Turkmenistan	−1.31	Central Asia
46	North Korea	−1.55	Eastern Asia
47	Syria	−1.62	Western Asia
48	Yemen	−1.68	Western Asia

Territories and other places

Not ranked: dependencies of the states above, places whose status is disputed. Highest first.

Place	Estimate	Status
Hong Kong	+1.64	Territory of China
Macao	+0.57	Territory of China
Palestine	−0.58	Status disputed

Questions

Which country in Asia has the best control of corruption?: Singapore has the best control of corruption in Asia: an estimate of +1.97 (2025). Next come Bhutan (an estimate of +1.47) and Japan (an estimate of +1.45).
Which country in Asia has the worst control of corruption?: Yemen, with an estimate of −1.68 (2025).
What is the typical control of corruption of a country in Asia?: The median of the 48 countries in Asia is an estimate of −0.36: half are above it, half below. The median, not the average, because a few countries at the top would drag an average far above almost everyone.
Where do the figures come from?: How well public power is kept from being used for private gain, petty or grand, as the World Bank’s Worldwide Governance Indicators estimate it from surveys and experts: about −2.5 (most corrupt) to +2.5 (least). Source: World Bank, 2025. Only independent states are ranked; territories are listed separately. A country’s continent follows Natural Earth; the handful of island states it files under the open ocean are placed by their UN subregion.

Source: World Bank (CC BY 4.0). Figures more than 5 years older than the newest are left out rather than shown beside current ones. Countries sharing a value share a rank. All sources.