( CNN ) -- New Zealand is perceived as the least corrupt nation on earth , and Somalia and North Korea are seen as the most corrupt , a German watchdog organization said in a report released this week . The United States ranked 24th least corrupt on a `` corruption perceptions index , '' the fifth-best in the Western Hemisphere . Canada ranked 10th , Barbados is 16th , the Bahamas is 21st and Chile is 22nd . Overall , the top spots are occupied mostly by European countries , with the exception of New Zealand , Singapore at No . 5 and Australia , which is tied for eighth with Switzerland . Other nations with top rankings are Denmark , Finland , Sweden , Norway and the Netherlands . In addition to Somalia and North Korea , which are tied for last at No . 182 , the bottom of the list includes Myanmar , Afghanistan , Uzbekistan , Turkmenistan , Sudan , Iraq , Haiti and Venezuela . The report was prepared by the independent , nonpartisan Transparency International organization , which says it drew its conclusions based `` on different assessments and business opinion surveys carried out by independent and reputable institutions . '' The information used to compile the index includes `` questions relating to the bribery of public officials , kickbacks in public procurement , embezzlement of public funds and questions that probe the strength and effectiveness of public-sector and anti-corruption efforts , '' Transparency International said . Perceptions are used , the organization said , because corruption is a hidden activity that is difficult to measure . `` Over time , '' the organization said in its report , `` perceptions have proved to be a reliable estimate of corruption . '' The rankings for other Western Hemisphere countries are : Uruguay ( 25 ) , Puerto Rico ( 39 ) , Costa Rica ( 50 ) , Cuba ( 61 ) , Brazil ( 73 ) , Colombia , El Salvador and Peru ( tied for 80 ) , Panama ( 86 ) , Argentina and Mexico ( tied for 100 ) , Bolivia ( 118 ) , Ecuador and Guatemala ( tied for 120 ) , the Dominican Republic and Honduras ( tied for 129 ) , Nicaragua ( 134 ) , Paraguay ( 154 ) , Venezuela ( 172 ) and Haiti ( 175 ) . The index uses a scale of 0-10 to measure perceived corruption , with zero representing highly corrupt and 10 being very clean . New Zealand , the highest-ranked nation , has a 9.5 score . Somalia and North Korea , the lowest-ranked , have 1.0 . The United States scored 7.1 , while Canada is 8.7 and Chile is 7.2 . Haiti , the lowest-ranked nation in the Western Hemisphere , scored 1.8 . Next-worst is Venezuela with 1.9 . In Eastern Europe and Central Asia , Turkey is ranked highest at 61 with 4.2 on the scale , and Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan are lowest , tied for 177 with a 1.6 index value . In the European Union and Western Europe , Denmark and Finland are best , tied for second with a 9.4 index value . Bulgaria is lowest at No . 86 with a 3.3 on the corruption scale . In the Middle East and North Africa , Qatar is best at No . 22 and a 7.2 index value . Iraq is lowest , ranked No . 175 with a 1.8 . In Sub-Saharan Africa , Botswana is ranked highest at No . 32 and a 6.1 index value . Transparency International , headquartered in Berlin , reports having 90 chapters worldwide . The organization says it works with partners in government , business and civil society to develop and implement effective measures to combat corruption . The complete report , released Thursday , can be seen at www.transparency.org .
Study looks at perceived corruption in countries . The United States ranks No . 24 on the least corrupt type of government . Index is based partly on business opinion polls .