Which has higher varieties of democracy, Japan or South Korea?

Japan, at 0.819 against 0.819 in South Korea as of 2025.

How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and South Korea?

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.

Japan vs South Korea: Varieties of democracy

Japan

0.819

in 2025

South Korea

0.819

in 2025

Japan rank

24th

South Korea rank

24th

Varieties of democracy over time

Japan
South Korea

How they compare

Japan currently reports 0.819 against 0.819 in South Korea, a difference of 0.

The two have swapped places 3 times across 237 shared years of data; in 1789 it was Japan ahead.

Japan ranks 24th and South Korea ranks 24th of 176 countries.

Japan has averaged higher in every one of the 25 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Japan	South Korea	Difference	Ahead
1780s	0.025	0.015	0.01	Japan
1790s	0.027	0.015	0.012	Japan
1800s	0.027	0.015	0.012	Japan
1810s	0.027	0.015	0.012	Japan
1820s	0.027	0.015	0.012	Japan
1830s	0.027	0.015	0.012	Japan
1840s	0.027	0.015	0.012	Japan
1850s	0.029	0.015	0.014	Japan
1860s	0.0315	0.015	0.0165	Japan
1870s	0.083	0.015	0.068	Japan
1880s	0.083	0.0168	0.0662	Japan
1890s	0.155	0.0249	0.1301	Japan
1900s	0.173	0.0214	0.1516	Japan
1910s	0.177	0.0123	0.1647	Japan
1920s	0.1964	0.014	0.1824	Japan
1930s	0.1909	0.014	0.1769	Japan
1940s	0.2313	0.0708	0.1605	Japan
1950s	0.7018	0.2568	0.445	Japan
1960s	0.8305	0.2536	0.5769	Japan
1970s	0.8352	0.2246	0.6106	Japan
1980s	0.8355	0.3359	0.4996	Japan
1990s	0.8369	0.7225	0.1144	Japan
2000s	0.8429	0.8184	0.0245	Japan
2010s	0.8299	0.7672	0.0627	Japan
2020s	0.8242	0.7948	0.0293	Japan

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher varieties of democracy, Japan or South Korea?: Japan, at 0.819 against 0.819 in South Korea as of 2025.
What is the difference in varieties of democracy between Japan and South Korea?: 0, with Japan ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and South Korea?: 237 years are reported by both, from 1789 to 2025.
How do Japan and South Korea rank globally for varieties of democracy?: Japan ranks 24th and South Korea ranks 24th 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.