Costa Rica vs Samoa: Full democracy

Costa Rica
1
in 2025
Samoa
1
in 2025
Costa Rica rank
1st
Samoa rank
1st

Full democracy over time

  • Costa Rica
  • Samoa
00.20.40.60.81183819312025

How they compare

Costa Rica currently reports 1 against 1 in Samoa, a difference of 0.

The two have swapped places 2 times across 124 shared years of data; in 1902 it was Samoa ahead.

Costa Rica ranks 1st and Samoa ranks 1st of 197 countries.

Costa Rica has averaged higher in every one of the 13 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade Costa Rica Samoa Difference Ahead
1900s 0 0 0
1910s 0 0 0
1920s 0 0 0
1930s 0 0 0
1940s 0 0 0
1950s 0.1 0 0.1 Costa Rica
1960s 1 0 1 Costa Rica
1970s 1 0 1 Costa Rica
1980s 1 0 1 Costa Rica
1990s 1 1 0
2000s 1 1 0
2010s 1 1 0
2020s 1 1 0

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher full democracy, Costa Rica or Samoa?
Costa Rica, at 1 against 1 in Samoa as of 2025.
What is the difference in full democracy between Costa Rica and Samoa?
0, with Costa Rica ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Costa Rica and Samoa?
124 years are reported by both, from 1902 to 2025.
How do Costa Rica and Samoa rank globally for full democracy?
Costa Rica ranks 1st and Samoa ranks 1st of 197 countries.
Where does this data come from?
Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Full democracy. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Individual pages

About this data

Indicator
Full democracy
Source
Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
198 places, 32,485 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed

Identifies if a country is a full democracy using the extended Lexical Index of Electoral Democracy (LIED+).