Which has higher varieties of democracy, Belgium or Ireland?

Belgium, at 0.889 against 0.887 in Ireland as of 2025.

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

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 Varieties of democracy. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Belgium vs Ireland: Varieties of democracy

Belgium

0.889

in 2025

Ireland

0.887

in 2025

Belgium rank

3rd

Ireland rank

5th

Varieties of democracy over time

Belgium
Ireland

How they compare

Belgium currently reports 0.889 against 0.887 in Ireland, a difference of 0.002.

The two have swapped places 21 times across 237 shared years of data; in 1789 it was Ireland ahead.

Belgium ranks 3rd and Ireland ranks 5th of 176 countries.

Across the 25 decades both report, Belgium averaged higher in 10 and Ireland in 15.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Belgium	Ireland	Difference	Ahead
1780s	0.047	0.243	0.196	Ireland
1790s	0.1336	0.2719	0.1383	Ireland
1800s	0.118	0.2722	0.1542	Ireland
1810s	0.0998	0.2697	0.1699	Ireland
1820s	0.098	0.2722	0.1742	Ireland
1830s	0.2588	0.2981	0.0393	Ireland
1840s	0.3257	0.3125	0.0132	Belgium
1850s	0.3381	0.3163	0.0218	Belgium
1860s	0.3391	0.3272	0.0119	Belgium
1870s	0.3483	0.355	0.0067	Ireland
1880s	0.3603	0.4083	0.048	Ireland
1890s	0.4394	0.4577	0.0183	Ireland
1900s	0.5079	0.4764	0.0315	Belgium
1910s	0.3235	0.4504	0.1269	Ireland
1920s	0.4933	0.6338	0.1405	Ireland
1930s	0.504	0.7494	0.2454	Ireland
1940s	0.3255	0.754	0.4285	Ireland
1950s	0.7286	0.7766	0.048	Ireland
1960s	0.8422	0.8039	0.0383	Belgium
1970s	0.8511	0.8219	0.0292	Belgium
1980s	0.8595	0.8336	0.0259	Belgium
1990s	0.8787	0.871	0.0077	Belgium
2000s	0.8863	0.8864	0.0001	Ireland
2010s	0.9007	0.8924	0.0083	Belgium
2020s	0.894	0.8928	0.0012	Belgium

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher varieties of democracy, Belgium or Ireland?: Belgium, at 0.889 against 0.887 in Ireland as of 2025.
What is the difference in varieties of democracy between Belgium and Ireland?: 0.002, with Belgium ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Belgium and Ireland?: 237 years are reported by both, from 1789 to 2025.
How do Belgium and Ireland rank globally for varieties of democracy?: Belgium ranks 3rd and Ireland ranks 5th of 176 countries.
Where does this data come from?: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Varieties of democracy. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Individual pages

About this data

Indicator: Varieties of democracy
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 176 places, 29,649 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

Central estimate of the extent to which political leaders are elected under comprehensive suffrage in free and fair elections, and freedoms of association and expression are guaranteed.