Younger people report higher rates of trust in others

In 2023, the estimated average rating of trust in others among people aged 16 and older in the EU stood at 5.8 (on a scale from 0 ‘do not trust at all’ to 10 ‘trust completely’).

At the national level, notable differences were observed among the population aged 16 years or over, with rating raging from 7.3 in Finland to 3.6 in Cyprus.

Among specific age groups, the highest levels of trust in others were most commonly reported by people aged 16 to 29 in the majority of EU countries. This trend was observed in 15 countries, with Romania recording the highest score (7.7). In 5 countries, however, individuals aged 65 and older reported higher trust compared with other age groups, particularly in Finland (7.5). Only 2 countries - Denmark (5.7) and Slovenia (4.7) - reported the highest trust ratings among those aged 30 to 64. In the remaining countries, different age groups reported the same average rating.

Source dataset: ilc_pw03

This news item marks the United Nation’s declaration of 2025 as the International Year of Peace and Trust.