Mapped: The World’s Most and Least Democratic Countries

How Democratic Are Countries Around the World?

After eight consecutive years of decline, global democracy scores edged upward in 2025, but the modest improvement masks significant changes across individual countries.

The Economist Intelligence Unit’s Democracy Index evaluates 167 countries and territories based on elections, government functioning, political participation, political culture, and civil liberties. The latest results reveal where democratic institutions are strengthening and where they remain under pressure.

Which Countries Are the Most Democratic?

The following table ranks countries by their 2025 Democracy Index scores, according to the EIU.

Rank	Country	Score (2025)	EIU category
1	Norway	9.81	Full democracy
2	New Zealand	9.62	Full democracy
3	Denmark	9.42	Full democracy
4	Iceland	9.38	Full democracy
5	Finland	9.37	Full democracy
6	Sweden	9.35	Full democracy
7	Ireland	9.33	Full democracy
8	Switzerland	9.32	Full democracy
9	Canada	9.08	Full democracy
10	Luxembourg	9.08	Full democracy
11	Netherlands	8.93	Full democracy
12	Uruguay	8.92	Full democracy
13	Australia	8.85	Full democracy
14	Japan	8.85	Full democracy
15	Taiwan	8.78	Full democracy
16	Germany	8.73	Full democracy
17	Austria	8.42	Full democracy
18	United Kingdom	8.34	Full democracy
19	Costa Rica	8.29	Full democracy
20	Portugal	8.28	Full democracy
21	Mauritius	8.23	Full democracy
22	Spain	8.20	Full democracy
23	Czechia	8.15	Full democracy
24	Estonia	8.07	Full democracy
25	Greece	8.07	Full democracy
26	France	8.05	Full democracy
27	Chile	7.97	Flawed democracy
28	Malta	7.93	Flawed democracy
29	Slovenia	7.82	Flawed democracy
30	Israel	7.80	Flawed democracy
31	Belgium	7.77	Flawed democracy
32	South Korea	7.75	Flawed democracy
33	Latvia	7.73	Flawed democracy
34	Poland	7.65	Flawed democracy
35	United States	7.65	Flawed democracy
36	Botswana	7.63	Flawed democracy
37	Cape Verde	7.58	Flawed democracy
38	Italy	7.58	Flawed democracy
39	Lithuania	7.55	Flawed democracy
40	Cyprus	7.45	Flawed democracy
41	South Africa	7.16	Flawed democracy
42	Malaysia	7.11	Flawed democracy
43	Trinidad and Tobago	7.09	Flawed democracy
44	Panama	7.04	Flawed democracy
45	Suriname	7.03	Flawed democracy
46	Timor-Leste	6.97	Flawed democracy
47	India	6.96	Flawed democracy
48	Slovakia	6.94	Flawed democracy
49	Argentina	6.89	Flawed democracy
50	Brazil	6.76	Flawed democracy
51	Dominican Republic	6.75	Flawed democracy
52	Jamaica	6.74	Flawed democracy
53	Montenegro	6.73	Flawed democracy
54	Thailand	6.59	Flawed democracy
55	Hungary	6.58	Flawed democracy
56	Sri Lanka	6.57	Flawed democracy
57	Croatia	6.50	Flawed democracy
58	Mongolia	6.50	Flawed democracy
59	Namibia	6.48	Flawed democracy
60	Indonesia	6.37	Flawed democracy
61	Bulgaria	6.34	Flawed democracy
62	Philippines	6.31	Flawed democracy
63	Serbia	6.30	Flawed democracy
64	North Macedonia	6.28	Flawed democracy
65	Ghana	6.24	Flawed democracy
66	Lesotho	6.23	Flawed democracy
67	Albania	6.20	Flawed democracy
68	Singapore	6.18	Flawed democracy
69	Romania	6.11	Flawed democracy
70	Malawi	6.10	Flawed democracy
71	Guyana	6.09	Flawed democracy
72	Senegal	6.05	Flawed democracy
73	Colombia	6.04	Flawed democracy
74	Paraguay	6.04	Flawed democracy
75	Papua New Guinea	5.90	Hybrid regime
76	Peru	5.88	Hybrid regime
77	Moldova	5.86	Hybrid regime
78	Zambia	5.82	Hybrid regime
79	Bhutan	5.65	Hybrid regime
80	Liberia	5.57	Hybrid regime
81	Mexico	5.40	Hybrid regime
82	Fiji	5.39	Hybrid regime
83	Bolivia	5.38	Hybrid regime
84	Armenia	5.35	Hybrid regime
85	Bosnia and Herzegovina	5.23	Hybrid regime
86	Ecuador	5.20	Hybrid regime
87	Tanzania	5.13	Hybrid regime
88	Madagascar	5.06	Hybrid regime
89	Kenya	5.05	Hybrid regime
90	Hong Kong	5.03	Hybrid regime
91	Morocco	4.97	Hybrid regime
92	Honduras	4.87	Hybrid regime
93	Ukraine	4.79	Hybrid regime
94	Guatemala	4.65	Hybrid regime
95	Tunisia	4.65	Hybrid regime
96	El Salvador	4.57	Hybrid regime
97	Gambia	4.47	Hybrid regime
98	Sierra Leone	4.44	Hybrid regime
99	Georgia	4.36	Hybrid regime
100	Uganda	4.31	Hybrid regime
101	Bangladesh	4.27	Hybrid regime
102	Benin	4.26	Hybrid regime
103	Turkey	4.26	Hybrid regime
104	Ivory Coast	4.24	Hybrid regime
105	Nigeria	4.10	Hybrid regime
106	Nepal	4.01	Hybrid regime
107	Angola	3.94	Authoritarian
108	Mauritania	3.84	Authoritarian
109	Lebanon	3.81	Authoritarian
110	Algeria	3.55	Authoritarian
111	Gabon	3.49	Authoritarian
112	Palestine	3.44	Authoritarian
113	Mozambique	3.38	Authoritarian
114	Rwanda	3.34	Authoritarian
115	Jordan	3.28	Authoritarian
116	Kyrgyzstan	3.27	Authoritarian
117	United Arab Emirates	3.18	Authoritarian
118	Qatar	3.17	Authoritarian
119	Ethiopia	3.13	Authoritarian
120	Iraq	3.13	Authoritarian
121	Oman	3.05	Authoritarian
122	Zimbabwe	2.98	Authoritarian
123	Kazakhstan	2.91	Authoritarian
124	Togo	2.88	Authoritarian
125	Comoros	2.81	Authoritarian
126	Haiti	2.81	Authoritarian
127	Azerbaijan	2.80	Authoritarian
128	Egypt	2.79	Authoritarian
129	Republic of the Congo	2.79	Authoritarian
130	Kuwait	2.78	Authoritarian
131	Cambodia	2.70	Authoritarian
132	Djibouti	2.70	Authoritarian
133	Vietnam	2.62	Authoritarian
134	Eswatini	2.60	Authoritarian
135	Cuba	2.58	Authoritarian
136	Cameroon	2.56	Authoritarian
137	Burkina Faso	2.55	Authoritarian
138	Bahrain	2.45	Authoritarian
139	Pakistan	2.44	Authoritarian
140	Mali	2.40	Authoritarian
141	Libya	2.31	Authoritarian
142	China	2.24	Authoritarian
143	Guinea	2.15	Authoritarian
144	Burundi	2.13	Authoritarian
145	Venezuela	2.13	Authoritarian
146	Uzbekistan	2.10	Authoritarian
147	Saudi Arabia	2.08	Authoritarian
148	Russia	2.03	Authoritarian
149	Belarus	1.99	Authoritarian
150	Eritrea	1.97	Authoritarian
151	Nicaragua	1.97	Authoritarian
152	Iran	1.96	Authoritarian
153	Niger	1.95	Authoritarian
154	Yemen	1.95	Authoritarian
155	Tajikistan	1.94	Authoritarian
156	DR Congo	1.92	Authoritarian
157	Equatorial Guinea	1.92	Authoritarian
158	Chad	1.76	Authoritarian
159	Laos	1.71	Authoritarian
160	Turkmenistan	1.54	Authoritarian
161	Sudan	1.46	Authoritarian
162	Guinea-Bissau	1.37	Authoritarian
163	Syria	1.37	Authoritarian
164	Central African Republic	1.18	Authoritarian
165	North Korea	1.08	Authoritarian
166	Myanmar	0.96	Authoritarian
167	Afghanistan	0.25	Authoritarian

Nordic countries dominate the top of the rankings, with Norway, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, and Iceland all placing among the world’s six highest-scoring democracies. New Zealand ranks second globally, while Canada and Luxembourg round out the top 10.

At the other end of the spectrum, Afghanistan scores just 0.25 out of 10. Overall, only 15.6% of countries and territories qualify as full democracies, compared with 36.5% classified as authoritarian.

The global average edged upward from 5.17 to 5.19. However, Freedom House recorded its 20th consecutive year of declining global freedom, highlighting continued threats to civil liberties.

Which Countries Experienced the Biggest Democratic Declines?

The table below shows the 10 largest score decreases between 2024 and 2025.

Rank	Country	Score 2024	Score 2025	Change (index points)
1	Guinea-Bissau	2.03	1.37	-0.66
2	Nepal	4.60	4.01	-0.59
3	Pakistan	2.84	2.44	-0.40
4	Georgia	4.70	4.36	-0.34
5	India	7.29	6.96	-0.33
6	Philippines	6.63	6.31	-0.32
7	Colombia	6.35	6.04	-0.31
8	Niger	2.26	1.95	-0.31
9	Madagascar	5.33	5.06	-0.27
10	Slovakia	7.21	6.94	-0.27

Guinea-Bissau recorded the steepest decline (-0.66), followed by Nepal (-0.59) and Pakistan (-0.40). India also fell by 0.33 points, bringing its score below 7.0, while the Philippines and Colombia registered notable declines.

Guinea-Bissau’s sharp deterioration followed a November 2025 military coup that disrupted elections and undermined civilian rule. Nepal’s political upheaval and Pakistan’s continuing military influence also exposed institutional weaknesses, while restrictions on political opposition and civil liberties contributed to broader democratic backsliding.

Where Did Democracy Improve the Most?

The following table highlights the 10 largest improvements recorded by the EIU.

Rank	Country	Score 2024	Score 2025	Change (index points)
1	Gabon	2.18	3.49	+1.31
2	Bolivia	4.26	5.38	+1.12
3	Canada	8.69	9.08	+0.39
4	Argentina	6.51	6.89	+0.38
5	Sri Lanka	6.19	6.57	+0.38
6	Japan	8.48	8.85	+0.37
7	Iraq	2.80	3.13	+0.33
8	Thailand	6.27	6.59	+0.32
9	Brazil	6.49	6.76	+0.27
10	Lebanon	3.56	3.81	+0.25

Gabon recorded the largest gain (+1.31), followed by Bolivia (+1.12). Canada also improved by 0.39 points, climbing into the global top 10. Nevertheless, Gabon remains classified as authoritarian despite its substantial improvement.

Gabon’s gains followed its April 2025 presidential election, which marked a transition away from direct military rule, although significant democratic constraints remain. Bolivia’s improvement reflected competitive elections and a peaceful transfer of power, demonstrating how political transitions can strengthen democratic institutions even after prolonged instability.

Why Is American Democracy Declining?

The United States dropped six places to 34th globally, with its Democracy Index score falling from 7.85 to 7.65, its lowest level since the index began in 2006, according to Pew Research Center.

The decline puts the U.S. well behind neighboring Canada, which scored 9.08. The two countries now sit in different categories: Canada is classified as a full democracy, while the U.S. remains a flawed democracy.

The deterioration reflects concerns about executive power, weakened institutional checks, and civil liberties. The V-Dem Institute also identifies significant democratic backsliding in America, raising questions about Washington’s ability to champion democratic institutions internationally.

Learn More on the Voronoi App

For another perspective on democratic institutions, explore Satisfaction with Democracy Declined in High-Income Nations on Voronoi.

• Source: https://www.visualcapitalist.com/mapped-state-of-democracy-around-the-world/