Which has higher age of democracy, Canada or New Zealand?

New Zealand, at 142 years against 131 years in Canada as of 2018.

What is the difference in age of democracy between Canada and New Zealand?

11 years, with New Zealand ahead.

How many years of comparable data are there for Canada and New Zealand?

131 years are reported by both, from 1888 to 2018.

Where does this data come from?

Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Age of democracy. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Canada vs New Zealand: Age of democracy

Canada

131 years

in 2018

New Zealand

142 years

in 2018

Canada rank

5th

New Zealand rank

3rd

Age of democracy over time

Canada
New Zealand

How they compare

New Zealand currently reports 142 years against 131 years in Canada, a difference of 11 years.

That makes New Zealand's figure about 1.1 times Canada's.

Across all 131 years both countries report, New Zealand has been ahead every year.

Canada ranks 5th and New Zealand ranks 3rd of 110 countries.

New Zealand has averaged higher in every one of the 14 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Canada	New Zealand	Difference	Ahead
1880s	1.5 years	12.5 years	11 years	New Zealand
1890s	7.5 years	18.5 years	11 years	New Zealand
1900s	17.5 years	28.5 years	11 years	New Zealand
1910s	27.5 years	38.5 years	11 years	New Zealand
1920s	37.5 years	48.5 years	11 years	New Zealand
1930s	47.5 years	58.5 years	11 years	New Zealand
1940s	57.5 years	68.5 years	11 years	New Zealand
1950s	67.5 years	78.5 years	11 years	New Zealand
1960s	77.5 years	88.5 years	11 years	New Zealand
1970s	87.5 years	98.5 years	11 years	New Zealand
1980s	97.5 years	108.5 years	11 years	New Zealand
1990s	107.5 years	118.5 years	11 years	New Zealand
2000s	117.5 years	128.5 years	11 years	New Zealand
2010s	127 years	138 years	11 years	New Zealand

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher age of democracy, Canada or New Zealand?: New Zealand, at 142 years against 131 years in Canada as of 2018.
What is the difference in age of democracy between Canada and New Zealand?: 11 years, with New Zealand ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Canada and New Zealand?: 131 years are reported by both, from 1888 to 2018.
How do Canada and New Zealand rank globally for age of democracy?: Canada ranks 5th and New Zealand ranks 3rd of 110 countries.
Where does this data come from?: Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Age of democracy. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Canada vs New Zealand: Age of democracy. Statizoid, drawing on Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 30 August 2026, from https://social-development.statizoid.com/compare/age-of-democracy-polity/canada/new-zealand/

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<a href="https://social-development.statizoid.com/compare/age-of-democracy-polity/canada/new-zealand/">Canada vs New Zealand: Age of democracy</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator: Age of democracy
Unit: years
Source: Polity 5 (2020) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 110 places, 4,915 data points, 1801–2019
Last refreshed: 28 August 2026

Number of consecutive years in a democracy.