Which has higher liberal democracy index, Australia or France?

France, at 0.8 against 0.793 in Australia as of 2025.

How many years of comparable data are there for Australia and France?

235 years are reported by both, from 1789 to 2025.

Where does this data come from?

V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Liberal Democracy Index. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Australia vs France: Liberal Democracy Index

Australia

0.793

in 2025

France

0.8

in 2025

Australia rank

12th

France rank

9th

Liberal Democracy Index over time

Australia
France

How they compare

France currently reports 0.8 against 0.793 in Australia, a difference of 0.007.

The two have swapped places 8 times across 235 shared years of data; in 1789 it was France ahead.

Australia ranks 12th and France ranks 9th of 176 countries.

Across the 25 decades both report, Australia averaged higher in 19 and France in 6.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Australia	France	Difference	Ahead
1780s	0.087	0.219	0.132	France
1790s	0.0865	0.2049	0.1184	France
1800s	0.087	0.1028	0.0158	France
1810s	0.09	0.1349	0.0449	France
1820s	0.1546	0.1619	0.0073	France
1830s	0.199	0.195	0.004	Australia
1840s	0.2596	0.2282	0.0314	Australia
1850s	0.3549	0.1754	0.1795	Australia
1860s	0.5086	0.1649	0.3437	Australia
1870s	0.5085	0.3718	0.1367	Australia
1880s	0.5085	0.4481	0.0604	Australia
1890s	0.5067	0.4477	0.059	Australia
1900s	0.6856	0.4613	0.2242	Australia
1910s	0.6788	0.441	0.2378	Australia
1920s	0.7198	0.4635	0.2563	Australia
1930s	0.7189	0.4576	0.2613	Australia
1940s	0.7072	0.2644	0.4428	Australia
1950s	0.7639	0.6242	0.1397	Australia
1960s	0.7835	0.6629	0.1206	Australia
1970s	0.8122	0.7638	0.0484	Australia
1980s	0.8395	0.7914	0.0481	Australia
1990s	0.8471	0.8002	0.0469	Australia
2000s	0.8418	0.8044	0.0374	Australia
2010s	0.8289	0.8133	0.0156	Australia
2020s	0.7923	0.7987	0.0063	France

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher liberal democracy index, Australia or France?: France, at 0.8 against 0.793 in Australia as of 2025.
What is the difference in liberal democracy index between Australia and France?: 0.007, with France ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Australia and France?: 235 years are reported by both, from 1789 to 2025.
How do Australia and France rank globally for liberal democracy index?: Australia ranks 12th and France ranks 9th of 176 countries.
Where does this data come from?: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Liberal Democracy Index. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Individual pages

About this data

Indicator: Liberal Democracy Index
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 176 places, 28,671 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

Central estimate of the extent of suffrage, the freedom and fairness of elections, freedoms of association and expression, individual and minority rights, equality before the law, and executive constraints.