Wales are ranked 10th and will have an immediate chance to climb the rankings on Saturday at Donnybrook in the opening round of the Six Nations.
The global rankings have been created after obtaining and analysing every result from the first official women’s international matches dating back to 1987 and are based on the same criteria as the men’s rankings.
New Zealand have been ranked number one while France, who Wales host at the Gnoll on Sunday 28th February, are in second place while England (3rd) and Italy (8th) also sit inside the top ten while Scotland are in 13th position.
“It’s good to finally know where we are in comparison to other nations,” said Wales Women’s head coach Rhys Edwards. “We need to ensure that we now strive to improve the ranking and prepare ourselves well for World Cups and the Six Nations.
“New Zealand, England and France are the best teams in the world, and we are lucky that we get to play them regularly. We are closing the gaps on these teams and need to make sure that we are consistently competitive against them like we showed last year.”
World Rugby Chairman Bernard Lapasset, said: “World Rugby is committed to driving forward the competitiveness of the women’s game and the new rankings are yet another significant milestone.
“After the success of Women’s Rugby World Cup in 2014 and the excitement building up to the next edition in 2017 in Ireland, it’s vital for international teams to have a rankings focus that will drive exposure and interest as well as increasing the competition schedule, as it encourages member unions to play more test matches.
“It’s a positive step for one of the fastest growing team sports in the world, as it brings parity with the men’s game. Today’s announcement also comes as a timely boost ahead of what will be an exciting Women’s Six Nations Championship.”
