Trust in the EU is at its highest since the financial crisis of 2008, going from 31% in 2013 to 52% in the spring of 2025, according to the standard Eurobarometer survey. The type of territory where people live – cities, towns and suburbs, or rural areas – influences the level of trust in EU, national and local institutions, a new study by the Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) shows.
In 2024, 65% of rural residents across the EU showed higher trust in local and regional authorities compared to citizens in cities (64%) and those in towns and suburbs (61%). Looking at EU countries separately, more than half of rural residents tend to trust local and regional authorities more in almost every country.
Trust in the EU is higher in cities
Regarding citizens’ trust in the EU, data show a growing divide between cities and rural areas, with 60% of city residents trusting the EU compared to 52% in towns and suburbs and 48% in rural areas in spring 2024. In comparison, the gap between cities and rural areas was only 2 percentage points in 2019.
Trust in the EU can vary significantly among rural residents of different EU countries, ranging from 45% or less in (ranked in increasing order) France, Slovenia, Austria, Spain and Germany, to more than 65% in Finland, Sweden, Bulgaria, Denmark and Portugal – reaching 75% in Lithuania. The gap between cities and rural areas is widest (more than 15 percent point) in Germany, Ireland, Poland, and Romania.
Across EU territories, trust in regional and local authorities has increased steadily, surpassing 60% in rural areas, cities, and towns and suburbs. National governments display the opposite trend: in all types of territory, residents tend to trust the EU more than their national governments.
Factors influencing lower trust
Overall, factors like financial difficulties, lower education levels, older age, and precarious jobs could be associated with less trust in the EU. However, the analysis shows that rurality is connected to lower trust in the EU beyond socio-economic and demographic factors, and it could be connected to a feeling of being left behind as territories.
These findings echo the results of public consultations carried out in 2021 in the context of the long-term vision for the EU’s rural areas, revealing that 40% of rural residents feel left behind, with this share reaching 60% for those in remote rural areas.
Place-based policies could increase trust in the EU
The fact that rural residents continue to place their trust in local authorities, but are less inclined to trust national governments or the EU, highlights the importance of having decisions taken closer to them. Place-based policies promoting economic development, employment, and education could also improve trust in the EU in rural areas and strengthen territorial cohesion.
Background
The JRC working paper ‘Trust in EU rural areas’ was published as part of the Rural Observatory’s activities. The observatory provides detailed statistics and analyses on EU rural areas and is a key tool of the long-term vision for the EU’s rural areas up to 2040.
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