Canada vs United States: Liberal democracy
Canada
2
in 2025
United States
2
in 2025
Canada rank
32nd
United States rank
32nd
Liberal democracy over time
- Canada
- United States
How they compare
Canada currently reports 2 against 2 in United States, a difference of 0.
Across all 185 years both countries report, United States has been ahead every year.
Canada ranks 32nd and United States ranks 32nd of 176 countries.
United States has averaged higher in every one of the 19 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Canada | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1840s | 0 | 1 | 1 | United States |
| 1850s | 0 | 1 | 1 | United States |
| 1860s | 0.3 | 1 | 0.7 | United States |
| 1870s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1880s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1890s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1900s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1910s | 1 | 1 | 0 | — |
| 1920s | 1.9 | 2 | 0.1 | United States |
| 1930s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1940s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1950s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1960s | 2 | 2.1 | 0.1 | United States |
| 1970s | 2.4 | 3 | 0.6 | United States |
| 1980s | 3 | 3 | 0 | — |
| 1990s | 3 | 3 | 0 | — |
| 2000s | 3 | 3 | 0 | — |
| 2010s | 3 | 3 | 0 | — |
| 2020s | 2.17 | 2.83 | 0.6667 | United States |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher liberal democracy, Canada or United States?
- Canada, at 2 against 2 in United States as of 2025.
- What is the difference in liberal democracy between Canada and United States?
- 0, with Canada ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Canada and United States?
- 185 years are reported by both, from 1841 to 2025.
- How do Canada and United States rank globally for liberal democracy?
- Canada ranks 32nd and United States ranks 32nd of 176 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Liberal democracy. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Identifies the political regime of a country by distinguishing between closed autocracies, electoral autocracies, electoral democracies, and liberal democracies.