The global RTI Rating measures the strength of the legal framework for the right to access information held by public authorities (the right to information or RTI) based on 61 discrete indicators – each of which looks at a particular feature of a strong legal regime for RTI – divided into seven main categories – namely Right of Access, Scope, Requesting Procedure, Exceptions & Refusals, Appeals, Sanctions & Protections, and Promotional Measures.

The performance of countries shows a significant spread with several countries scoring 126 or more points out of a possible total of 150, or around 85%, and several also scoring below 50 points, or 33%. However, most countries fall in between these extremes, with a roughly equal number of countries in each of the score ranges of 51-75, 76-100 and 101-125.