Which country trusts institutions the most? You’d be surprised.

Trust has always made the world go round. Perceptions of honesty and reliability underpin how countries interact, how we choose our leaders, and where we get information about the world. And all these factors deeply influence how we feel about the future.

In an increasingly complex and interconnected world, trust is perhaps even more important – but harder to build. An outbreak in China can create a global pandemic. Disruptions in supply chains are felt from Atlanta to Amsterdam. And massive migration blurs national borders. The trends would seem to call on the world to draw together to find answers collectively. But disruptions often lead to the opposite – fear, mistrust, and isolation.

During this time of rapid technological and societal change worldwide, we have become less trusting. Political movements seek to wrest control from elites, and media have fractured from a handful of closely controlled voices to a kaleidoscope of opinions. That can drive positive change, but it has also given momentum to populist resentment and made truth a battleground.

As part of our Rebuilding Trust project, we take a look at several key snapshots of global trust.

Institutional trust is reviving 

From corporations to governments, institutions shape our lives, but are often hard to get a grasp on. Surveys show that, in general, we trust institutions that we see as efficient and ethical – in short, that are running the way they should.

SOURCE:

Integrated Values Surveys, Edelman Trust Barometer

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Jacob Turcotte/Staff

Trust in institutions hit its lowest ebb in 2017, but has rebounded somewhat since. In its 2024 trust survey, the Edelman Trust Barometer found that business, government, nongovernmental organizations, and the media were all trusted by at least half of respondents globally. Business remains the most trusted institution, seen as competent and ethical. Trust grew in nearly every sector of business, including food, education, energy, manufacturing, health care, and technology. The lone exception was social media, which is still distrusted by 49% of people. 

Governments gain trust

Some of this rebound appears connected to the world moving beyond the Great Recession and the pandemic. The 2010s saw trust in government reach its lowest point as wages stagnated, financial crises rocked the European Union, and corruption roiled developing nations. State-run economies such as in China and the United Arab Emirates were able to preserve government trust during this period. Trust in government remained less than 50% until 2021 but has grown in the wake of the pandemic. With a score of 79%, China ranks first in institutional trust among 28 nations in Edelman’s survey.

The trust divide

Yet new dynamics have emerged in the form of new divisions. The 15-point gap in trust between high- and low-income groups in 2023 was tied for an all-time high. Likewise, a similar divide between well-informed and uninformed groups has formed. In many places, the majority of a wealthier, better-read group feels trusting, while the majority of others do not. On a national level, developing countries are more trusting than developed countries. Among the least-trusting countries surveyed in 2024 were the United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, Germany, and the United States. 

Trust moves local 

A key trend is the growing tendency to trust people we know as much as (or more than) experts and officials we don’t. In 2024, Edelman found that 74% of respondents trusted “someone like me” to tell the truth about new technologies and innovations, the same number who trusted scientists. Less than half of respondents expected journalists and government officials to tell the truth. In business, people’s employers were seen as more trustworthy than other business leaders. Support for multinational companies based in China, the U.S., and Germany fell significantly in the past year.