Which has higher liberal democracy index, Belgium or France?

France, at 0.8 against 0.794 in Belgium as of 2025.

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

237 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.

Belgium vs France: Liberal Democracy Index

Belgium

0.794

in 2025

France

0.8

in 2025

Belgium rank

10th

France rank

9th

Liberal Democracy Index over time

Belgium
France

How they compare

France currently reports 0.8 against 0.794 in Belgium, a difference of 0.006.

The two have swapped places 18 times across 237 shared years of data; in 1789 it was France ahead.

Belgium ranks 10th and France ranks 9th of 176 countries.

Across the 25 decades both report, Belgium averaged higher in 12 and France in 12.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Belgium	France	Difference	Ahead
1780s	0.101	0.219	0.118	France
1790s	0.1489	0.2049	0.056	France
1800s	0.1028	0.1028	0	—
1810s	0.1267	0.1349	0.0082	France
1820s	0.158	0.162	0.004	France
1830s	0.2775	0.195	0.0825	Belgium
1840s	0.3277	0.2282	0.0995	Belgium
1850s	0.3345	0.1754	0.1591	Belgium
1860s	0.3348	0.1649	0.1699	Belgium
1870s	0.3401	0.3718	0.0317	France
1880s	0.3472	0.4481	0.1009	France
1890s	0.3985	0.4477	0.0492	France
1900s	0.4426	0.4608	0.0182	France
1910s	0.2864	0.441	0.1546	France
1920s	0.4375	0.4635	0.026	France
1930s	0.4443	0.4576	0.0133	France
1940s	0.3131	0.2644	0.0487	Belgium
1950s	0.6442	0.6242	0.02	Belgium
1960s	0.7585	0.6629	0.0956	Belgium
1970s	0.7706	0.7638	0.0068	Belgium
1980s	0.7813	0.7914	0.0101	France
1990s	0.8084	0.8002	0.0082	Belgium
2000s	0.8199	0.8044	0.0155	Belgium
2010s	0.8364	0.8133	0.0231	Belgium
2020s	0.817	0.7987	0.0183	Belgium

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher liberal democracy index, Belgium or France?: France, at 0.8 against 0.794 in Belgium as of 2025.
What is the difference in liberal democracy index between Belgium and France?: 0.006, with France ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Belgium and France?: 237 years are reported by both, from 1789 to 2025.
How do Belgium and France rank globally for liberal democracy index?: Belgium ranks 10th 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.