Age of liberal democracy in Japan
Japan: Age of liberal democracy was 74 years in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Age of liberal democracy in Japan, 1952–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
Japan recorded 74 years for age of liberal democracy in 2025. That is the highest value across all 74 years on record.
The figure is up 1.4% on the previous year and up 15.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of liberal democracy in Japan peaked at 74 years in 2025 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 1952.
That places Japan 15th out of 47 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Age of liberal democracy in Japan, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1952 | 1 years | — |
| 1953 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1954 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1955 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1956 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 1957 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 1958 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 1959 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 1960 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 1961 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 1962 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 1963 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 1964 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 1965 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 1966 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 1967 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 1968 | 17 years | +6.2% |
| 1969 | 18 years | +5.9% |
| 1970 | 19 years | +5.6% |
| 1971 | 20 years | +5.3% |
| 1972 | 21 years | +5.0% |
| 1973 | 22 years | +4.8% |
| 1974 | 23 years | +4.5% |
| 1975 | 24 years | +4.3% |
| 1976 | 25 years | +4.2% |
| 1977 | 26 years | +4.0% |
| 1978 | 27 years | +3.8% |
| 1979 | 28 years | +3.7% |
| 1980 | 29 years | +3.6% |
| 1981 | 30 years | +3.4% |
| 1982 | 31 years | +3.3% |
| 1983 | 32 years | +3.2% |
| 1984 | 33 years | +3.1% |
| 1985 | 34 years | +3.0% |
| 1986 | 35 years | +2.9% |
| 1987 | 36 years | +2.9% |
| 1988 | 37 years | +2.8% |
| 1989 | 38 years | +2.7% |
| 1990 | 39 years | +2.6% |
| 1991 | 40 years | +2.6% |
| 1992 | 41 years | +2.5% |
| 1993 | 42 years | +2.4% |
| 1994 | 43 years | +2.4% |
| 1995 | 44 years | +2.3% |
| 1996 | 45 years | +2.3% |
| 1997 | 46 years | +2.2% |
| 1998 | 47 years | +2.2% |
| 1999 | 48 years | +2.1% |
| 2000 | 49 years | +2.1% |
| 2001 | 50 years | +2.0% |
| 2002 | 51 years | +2.0% |
| 2003 | 52 years | +2.0% |
| 2004 | 53 years | +1.9% |
| 2005 | 54 years | +1.9% |
| 2006 | 55 years | +1.9% |
| 2007 | 56 years | +1.8% |
| 2008 | 57 years | +1.8% |
| 2009 | 58 years | +1.8% |
| 2010 | 59 years | +1.7% |
| 2011 | 60 years | +1.7% |
| 2012 | 61 years | +1.7% |
| 2013 | 62 years | +1.6% |
| 2014 | 63 years | +1.6% |
| 2015 | 64 years | +1.6% |
| 2016 | 65 years | +1.6% |
| 2017 | 66 years | +1.5% |
| 2018 | 67 years | +1.5% |
| 2019 | 68 years | +1.5% |
| 2020 | 69 years | +1.5% |
| 2021 | 70 years | +1.4% |
| 2022 | 71 years | +1.4% |
| 2023 | 72 years | +1.4% |
| 2024 | 73 years | +1.4% |
| 2025 | 74 years | +1.4% |
Japan compared with similar countries
- Japan's 74 years is above the median for high income countries, which is 45 years, 1.6× the median. (40 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Age of liberal democracy in Japan changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1953 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 1954 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
| 1955 | +33.3% | 3 years | 4 years |
| 1956 | +25.0% | 4 years | 5 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 4.5 years | 1 years | 8 years | 8 |
| 1960s | 13.5 years | 9 years | 18 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 23.5 years | 19 years | 28 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 33.5 years | 29 years | 38 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 43.5 years | 39 years | 48 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 53.5 years | 49 years | 58 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 63.5 years | 59 years | 68 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 71.5 years | 69 years | 74 years | 6 |
Countries ranked near Japan
More social development data for Japan
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 42,450 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 56 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 1 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 1 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 56 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0003 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is age of liberal democracy in Japan?
- Age of liberal democracy in Japan was 74 years in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of liberal democracy recorded in Japan?
- The highest recorded value was 74 years in 2025.
- What is the lowest age of liberal democracy recorded in Japan?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 1952.
- How does Japan rank for age of liberal democracy?
- Japan ranks 15th out of 47 countries with data for 2025.
- Is age of liberal democracy rising or falling in Japan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 15.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Japan data come from?
- The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Age of liberal democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of consecutive years in electoral democracy.