Costa Rica vs New Zealand: Liberal democracy
Costa Rica
3
in 2025
New Zealand
3
in 2025
Costa Rica rank
1st
New Zealand rank
1st
Liberal democracy over time
- Costa Rica
- New Zealand
How they compare
Costa Rica currently reports 3 against 3 in New Zealand, a difference of 0.
Across all 165 years both countries report, New Zealand has been ahead every year.
Costa Rica ranks 1st and New Zealand ranks 1st of 176 countries.
New Zealand has averaged higher in every one of the 19 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Costa Rica | New Zealand | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1840s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1850s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1860s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1870s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1880s | 0.3333 | 2 | 1.67 | New Zealand |
| 1890s | 0.1 | 2 | 1.9 | New Zealand |
| 1900s | 1 | 2 | 1 | New Zealand |
| 1910s | 0.8 | 2.7 | 1.9 | New Zealand |
| 1920s | 1 | 3 | 2 | New Zealand |
| 1930s | 1 | 3 | 2 | New Zealand |
| 1940s | 0.8 | 3 | 2.2 | New Zealand |
| 1950s | 2 | 3 | 1 | New Zealand |
| 1960s | 2 | 3 | 1 | New Zealand |
| 1970s | 2 | 3 | 1 | New Zealand |
| 1980s | 2.1 | 3 | 0.9 | New Zealand |
| 1990s | 3 | 3 | 0 | — |
| 2000s | 3 | 3 | 0 | — |
| 2010s | 3 | 3 | 0 | — |
| 2020s | 3 | 3 | 0 | — |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher liberal democracy, Costa Rica or New Zealand?
- Costa Rica, at 3 against 3 in New Zealand as of 2025.
- What is the difference in liberal democracy between Costa Rica and New Zealand?
- 0, with Costa Rica ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Costa Rica and New Zealand?
- 165 years are reported by both, from 1841 to 2025.
- How do Costa Rica and New Zealand rank globally for liberal democracy?
- Costa Rica ranks 1st and New Zealand ranks 1st 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.