Democracy Index

Last updated September 19, 2025

Democracy Index
Liberal Democracy Index
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Democracy Index 2024Question Mark
1DenmarkDenmark0.92
2EstoniaEstonia0.9
2IrelandIreland0.9
4SwitzerlandSwitzerland0.89
4BelgiumBelgium0.89
6SwedenSweden0.88
6NorwayNorway0.88
8FranceFrance0.87
8Czech RepublicCzech Republic0.87
8LuxembourgLuxembourg0.87
11New ZealandNew Zealand0.86
11Costa RicaCosta Rica0.86
11AustraliaAustralia0.86
14UruguayUruguay0.85
14FinlandFinland0.85
16CanadaCanada0.84
16LatviaLatvia0.84
16ChileChile0.84
16IcelandIceland0.84
16AustriaAustria0.84
16United StatesUnited States0.84
16GermanyGermany0.84
23PortugalPortugal0.83
23SpainSpain0.83
23United KingdomUnited Kingdom0.83
26JapanJapan0.82
26NetherlandsNetherlands0.82
28VanuatuVanuatu0.8
28JamaicaJamaica0.8
28ItalyItaly0.8
28BrazilBrazil0.8
28TaiwanTaiwan0.8
28LithuaniaLithuania0.8
34BarbadosBarbados0.79
35MaltaMalta0.78
36CyprusCyprus0.77
36SurinameSuriname0.77
38Trinidad and TobagoTrinidad and Tobago0.76
38Cape VerdeCape Verde0.76
40GreeceGreece0.75
40SlovakiaSlovakia0.75
42SeychellesSeychelles0.74
43PanamaPanama0.73
43South KoreaSouth Korea0.73
43South AfricaSouth Africa0.73
43Timor LesteTimor Leste0.73
43PolandPoland0.73
48CroatiaCroatia0.72
48SloveniaSlovenia0.72
48IsraelIsrael0.72
51ArgentinaArgentina0.71
52Dominican RepublicDominican Republic0.7
52ColombiaColombia0.7
54GhanaGhana0.67
54NepalNepal0.67
54Sao Tome and PrincipeSao Tome and Principe0.67
57LesothoLesotho0.66
57Solomon IslandsSolomon Islands0.66
57Sri LankaSri Lanka0.66
60EcuadorEcuador0.65
60BulgariaBulgaria0.65
62RomaniaRomania0.63
62GambiaGambia0.63
62MoldovaMoldova0.63
62PeruPeru0.63
66SenegalSenegal0.62
66MontenegroMontenegro0.62
66ArmeniaArmenia0.62
66NamibiaNamibia0.62
70LiberiaLiberia0.61
71GuatemalaGuatemala0.6
72BotswanaBotswana0.59
73ParaguayParaguay0.58
73MalawiMalawi0.58
73BoliviaBolivia0.58
76BhutanBhutan0.56
76MaldivesMaldives0.56
76North MacedoniaNorth Macedonia0.56
79KenyaKenya0.55
80HondurasHonduras0.54
81FijiFiji0.52
81MalaysiaMalaysia0.52
83ZambiaZambia0.51
83AlbaniaAlbania0.51
83Bosnia and HerzegovinaBosnia and Herzegovina0.51
86BeninBenin0.5
86NigeriaNigeria0.5
86MexicoMexico0.5
86MongoliaMongolia0.5
90GuyanaGuyana0.49
90MauritiusMauritius0.49
92IndonesiaIndonesia0.48
92GeorgiaGeorgia0.48
94Papua New GuineaPapua New Guinea0.46
95Sierra LeoneSierra Leone0.44
95PhilippinesPhilippines0.44
95HungaryHungary0.44
98TunisiaTunisia0.43
98Ivory CoastIvory Coast0.43
100TanzaniaTanzania0.42
100MadagascarMadagascar0.42
102SingaporeSingapore0.41
103IndiaIndia0.4
104ThailandThailand0.39
104UkraineUkraine0.39
106TogoTogo0.36
107IraqIraq0.35
107LebanonLebanon0.35
109El SalvadorEl Salvador0.34
109AngolaAngola0.34
111KyrgyzstanKyrgyzstan0.33
111DR CongoDR Congo0.33
111MauritaniaMauritania0.33
114SerbiaSerbia0.32
115PakistanPakistan0.31
116Central African RepublicCentral African Republic0.3
116MozambiqueMozambique0.3
118KuwaitKuwait0.29
118CameroonCameroon0.29
118TurkeyTurkey0.29
121ComorosComoros0.28
121Guinea BissauGuinea Bissau0.28
123UgandaUganda0.27
123ZimbabweZimbabwe0.27
123KazakhstanKazakhstan0.27
123JordanJordan0.27
127MoroccoMorocco0.26
127AlgeriaAlgeria0.26
127EthiopiaEthiopia0.26
130Republic of the CongoRepublic of the Congo0.25
130DjiboutiDjibouti0.25
132NigerNiger0.24
133GabonGabon0.23
134UzbekistanUzbekistan0.22
134HaitiHaiti0.22
136MaliMali0.2
136LibyaLibya0.2
136BangladeshBangladesh0.2
136VenezuelaVenezuela0.2
136RwandaRwanda0.2
136ChadChad0.2
142EgyptEgypt0.19
142CambodiaCambodia0.19
144Equatorial GuineaEquatorial Guinea0.18
144CubaCuba0.18
146RussiaRussia0.17
146OmanOman0.17
146TajikistanTajikistan0.17
146VietnamVietnam0.17
146AzerbaijanAzerbaijan0.17
146SomaliaSomalia0.17
146IranIran0.17
146Hong KongHong Kong0.17
146BurundiBurundi0.17
155South SudanSouth Sudan0.16
155BelarusBelarus0.16
155Burkina FasoBurkina Faso0.16
155GuineaGuinea0.16
159NicaraguaNicaragua0.15
159TurkmenistanTurkmenistan0.15
161SudanSudan0.14
161SyriaSyria0.14
163LaosLaos0.13
163EswatiniEswatini0.13
163YemenYemen0.13
166BahrainBahrain0.12
167United Arab EmiratesUnited Arab Emirates0.1
167PalestinePalestine0.1
169QatarQatar0.09
170MyanmarMyanmar0.08
170AfghanistanAfghanistan0.08
170North KoreaNorth Korea0.08
173EritreaEritrea0.07
173ChinaChina0.07
175Saudi ArabiaSaudi Arabia0.01

Democracies Around the Globe

Every year, the Association for Development and Advancement of the Democracy Award puts forth a comprehensive global ranking of liberal democracies, the Democracy Index. This index measures not only the quality of democracy as a political entity but also integrates other social dimensions such as gender, economy, knowledge, health, and environmental performance to present a richer, more dynamic view of global democratic systems. The data reveals patterns, variations, and intriguing findings in the state of global democracies.

  • Norway leads the pack with a Democracy Index score of 9.8, closely followed by New Zealand and Finland, both performing extraordinarily well in political and non-political dimensions.
  • Despite being the birthplace of modern democracy, the United States ranks 26th with a score of 7.9.
  • Taiwan, despite the political instability around its international recognition, managed a high score of 9 and thus ranks 8th, demonstrating that domestic democratic structures can thrive amidst international challenges.
  • Across the globe, regions with tumultuous political environments and conflicts, such as Afghanistan, North Korea, and Myanmar, sit at the bottom of the Democracy Index, demonstrating that peace and stability are crucial for a functioning democracy.

Region ↕Democracy Index 2024↕Liberal Democracy Index 2024↕
Denmark0.920.88
Estonia0.90.85
Ireland0.90.83
Switzerland0.890.85
Belgium0.890.8
Sweden0.880.84
Norway0.880.84
France0.870.8
Czech Republic0.870.82
Luxembourg0.870.78
New Zealand0.860.81
Costa Rica0.860.8
Australia0.860.81
Uruguay0.850.77
Finland0.850.8
Canada0.840.74
Latvia0.840.76
Chile0.840.79
Iceland0.840.76
Austria0.840.76
United States0.840.75
Germany0.840.79
Portugal0.830.75
Spain0.830.74
United Kingdom0.830.75
Japan0.820.73
Netherlands0.820.76
Vanuatu0.80.69
Jamaica0.80.68
Italy0.80.7
Brazil0.80.71
Taiwan0.80.7
Lithuania0.80.73
Barbados0.790.67
Malta0.780.64
Cyprus0.770.65
Suriname0.770.64
Trinidad and Tobago0.760.63
Cape Verde0.760.65
Greece0.750.58
Slovakia0.750.58
Seychelles0.740.66
Panama0.730.58
South Korea0.730.63
South Africa0.730.65
Timor Leste0.730.55
Poland0.730.62
Croatia0.720.62
Slovenia0.720.62
Israel0.720.62
Argentina0.710.55
Dominican Republic0.70.45
Colombia0.70.56
Ghana0.670.57
Nepal0.670.52
Sao Tome and Principe0.670.56
Lesotho0.660.52
Solomon Islands0.660.52
Sri Lanka0.660.49
Ecuador0.650.45
Bulgaria0.650.51
Romania0.630.44
Gambia0.630.51
Moldova0.630.52
Peru0.630.49
Senegal0.620.46
Montenegro0.620.48
Armenia0.620.41
Namibia0.620.52
Liberia0.610.4
Guatemala0.60.47
Botswana0.590.48
Paraguay0.580.39
Malawi0.580.48
Bolivia0.580.31
Bhutan0.560.45
Maldives0.560.42
North Macedonia0.560.37
Kenya0.550.43
Honduras0.540.38
Fiji0.520.41
Malaysia0.520.36
Zambia0.510.39
Albania0.510.4
Bosnia and Herzegovina0.510.34
Benin0.50.33
Nigeria0.50.32
Mexico0.50.25
Mongolia0.50.39
Guyana0.490.32
Mauritius0.490.37
Indonesia0.480.33
Georgia0.480.33
Papua New Guinea0.460.38
Sierra Leone0.440.35
Philippines0.440.31
Hungary0.440.32
Tunisia0.430.26
Ivory Coast0.430.25
Tanzania0.420.37
Madagascar0.420.22
Singapore0.410.34
India0.40.29
Thailand0.390.29
Ukraine0.390.23
Togo0.360.17
Iraq0.350.23
Lebanon0.350.21
El Salvador0.340.09
Angola0.340.16
Kyrgyzstan0.330.18
DR Congo0.330.13
Mauritania0.330.14
Serbia0.320.22
Pakistan0.310.2
Central African Republic0.30.1
Mozambique0.30.17
Kuwait0.290.27
Cameroon0.290.14
Turkey0.290.12
Comoros0.280.11
Guinea Bissau0.280.15
Uganda0.270.2
Zimbabwe0.270.16
Kazakhstan0.270.13
Jordan0.270.27
Morocco0.260.25
Algeria0.260.12
Ethiopia0.260.1
Republic of the Congo0.250.12
Djibouti0.250.12
Niger0.240.18
Gabon0.230.16
Uzbekistan0.220.08
Haiti0.220.08
Mali0.20.15
Libya0.20.11
Bangladesh0.20.07
Venezuela0.20.05
Rwanda0.20.09
Chad0.20.05
Egypt0.190.13
Cambodia0.190.06
Equatorial Guinea0.180.05
Cuba0.180.06
Russia0.170.06
Oman0.170.14
Tajikistan0.170.05
Vietnam0.170.12
Azerbaijan0.170.05
Somalia0.170.13
Iran0.170.09
Hong Kong0.170.13
Burundi0.170.07
South Sudan0.160.07
Belarus0.160.04
Burkina Faso0.160.13
Guinea0.160.07
Nicaragua0.150.02
Turkmenistan0.150.03
Sudan0.140.04
Syria0.140.05
Laos0.130.1
Eswatini0.130.1
Yemen0.130.05
Bahrain0.120.05
United Arab Emirates0.10.08
Palestine0.10.05
Qatar0.090.08
Myanmar0.080.02
Afghanistan0.080.02
North Korea0.080.01
Eritrea0.070.01
China0.070.04
Saudi Arabia0.010.05

Top 10 Most Democratic Countries

Norway leads the way with an exemplary Democracy Index score of 9.8. Renowned for its well-organized social system and effective government, Norway serves as a beacon of democratic ideals on a global scale. Taking the second spot, we have New Zealand with an impressive score of 9.4. This score reflects the nation's strong adherence to democratic principles, which is ingrained in its political landscape and continues to be nurtured by each successive administration. Following closely, we have Finland scoring a 9.3 on the Democracy Index. Equally notable is Sweden, which matches Finland's score. These countries demonstrate a powerful commitment to implementing democratic principles and showcase the success of the social-democratic model. Coming in the fifth position is Iceland, with a score of 9.2 on the Democracy Index. Despite its smaller size and population, Iceland is a stalwart example of integrated and established democracy. Making the sixth position is Denmark with an earnest score of 9.1. Ireland and Taiwan, on the other hand, tie for the seventh position with an impressive 9. The cases of Ireland and Taiwan are particularly intriguing, as they navigate a highly democratic domestic structure in different geopolitical situations. Finally, the list rounds off with Australia and Canada, scoring 8.9 each. Top 10 Most Democratic Countries:

  1. Norway - 9.8
  2. New Zealand - 9.4
  3. Finland - 9.3
  4. Sweden - 9.3
  5. Iceland - 9.2
  6. Denmark - 9.1
  7. Ireland - 9
  8. Taiwan - 9
  9. Australia - 8.9
  10. Canada - 8.9

Sources & Notes

Last updated
February 26, 2025
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