Hong Kong remained 24th among 143 countries and regions in the World Justice Project’s 2026 Rule of Law Index, the same position as last year. It ranked sixth in East Asia and the Pacific. Hong Kong’s overall score fell 1.1% to 0.71 on the index’s scale of zero to one.
The index’s Basic Rights ranking fell from 67th to 69th, with a score of 0.55. Six of its eight components declined.
The score for effective protection of the right to life and personal security dropped from 0.59 to 0.55. The freedom-of-expression score fell from 0.43 to 0.41, marking a seventh consecutive annual decline. The score for freedom of assembly and association was unchanged.
Hong Kong’s ranking for constraints on government powers did not change. Within that factor, however, the score for judicial constraints on government power fell for a sixth consecutive year, while the score for checks by non-governmental organisations fell for a third. The legislative-constraints score was unchanged this year.
The Order and Security ranking rose to seventh worldwide, a recent high, although its score was unchanged from last year. The Department of Justice said the Criminal Justice ranking had fallen slightly, civil justice was unchanged, and Open Government and Regulatory Enforcement were almost unchanged.
The government said scores in most areas were similar to the previous year and that Hong Kong remained in the global top ten for both Order and Security and Integrity. It attributed the improved security ranking to national security laws, saying they had better protected safety and supported a strong business and investment environment.