Age of liberal democracy in Sweden
Sweden: Age of liberal democracy was 104 years in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2025)
104 years
Change on year
up 1.0%
World rank
5th
of 47 countries
All-time high
104 years
in 2025
All-time low
1 years
in 1922
Years of data
104
1922–2025
Age of liberal democracy in Sweden, 1922–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for age of liberal democracy in Sweden is 104 years, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 104 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.0% on the previous year and up 10.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of liberal democracy in Sweden peaked at 104 years in 2025 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 1922.
Sweden ranks 5th of 47 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Age of liberal democracy in Sweden, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1922 | 1 years | — |
| 1923 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1924 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1925 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1926 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 1927 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 1928 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 1929 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 1930 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 1931 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 1932 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 1933 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 1934 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 1935 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 1936 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 1937 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 1938 | 17 years | +6.2% |
| 1939 | 18 years | +5.9% |
| 1940 | 19 years | +5.6% |
| 1941 | 20 years | +5.3% |
| 1942 | 21 years | +5.0% |
| 1943 | 22 years | +4.8% |
| 1944 | 23 years | +4.5% |
| 1945 | 24 years | +4.3% |
| 1946 | 25 years | +4.2% |
| 1947 | 26 years | +4.0% |
| 1948 | 27 years | +3.8% |
| 1949 | 28 years | +3.7% |
| 1950 | 29 years | +3.6% |
| 1951 | 30 years | +3.4% |
| 1952 | 31 years | +3.3% |
| 1953 | 32 years | +3.2% |
| 1954 | 33 years | +3.1% |
| 1955 | 34 years | +3.0% |
| 1956 | 35 years | +2.9% |
| 1957 | 36 years | +2.9% |
| 1958 | 37 years | +2.8% |
| 1959 | 38 years | +2.7% |
| 1960 | 39 years | +2.6% |
| 1961 | 40 years | +2.6% |
| 1962 | 41 years | +2.5% |
| 1963 | 42 years | +2.4% |
| 1964 | 43 years | +2.4% |
| 1965 | 44 years | +2.3% |
| 1966 | 45 years | +2.3% |
| 1967 | 46 years | +2.2% |
| 1968 | 47 years | +2.2% |
| 1969 | 48 years | +2.1% |
| 1970 | 49 years | +2.1% |
| 1971 | 50 years | +2.0% |
| 1972 | 51 years | +2.0% |
| 1973 | 52 years | +2.0% |
| 1974 | 53 years | +1.9% |
| 1975 | 54 years | +1.9% |
| 1976 | 55 years | +1.9% |
| 1977 | 56 years | +1.8% |
| 1978 | 57 years | +1.8% |
| 1979 | 58 years | +1.8% |
| 1980 | 59 years | +1.7% |
| 1981 | 60 years | +1.7% |
| 1982 | 61 years | +1.7% |
| 1983 | 62 years | +1.6% |
| 1984 | 63 years | +1.6% |
| 1985 | 64 years | +1.6% |
| 1986 | 65 years | +1.6% |
| 1987 | 66 years | +1.5% |
| 1988 | 67 years | +1.5% |
| 1989 | 68 years | +1.5% |
| 1990 | 69 years | +1.5% |
| 1991 | 70 years | +1.4% |
| 1992 | 71 years | +1.4% |
| 1993 | 72 years | +1.4% |
| 1994 | 73 years | +1.4% |
| 1995 | 74 years | +1.4% |
| 1996 | 75 years | +1.4% |
| 1997 | 76 years | +1.3% |
| 1998 | 77 years | +1.3% |
| 1999 | 78 years | +1.3% |
| 2000 | 79 years | +1.3% |
| 2001 | 80 years | +1.3% |
| 2002 | 81 years | +1.2% |
| 2003 | 82 years | +1.2% |
| 2004 | 83 years | +1.2% |
| 2005 | 84 years | +1.2% |
| 2006 | 85 years | +1.2% |
| 2007 | 86 years | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 87 years | +1.2% |
| 2009 | 88 years | +1.1% |
| 2010 | 89 years | +1.1% |
| 2011 | 90 years | +1.1% |
| 2012 | 91 years | +1.1% |
| 2013 | 92 years | +1.1% |
| 2014 | 93 years | +1.1% |
| 2015 | 94 years | +1.1% |
| 2016 | 95 years | +1.1% |
| 2017 | 96 years | +1.1% |
| 2018 | 97 years | +1.0% |
| 2019 | 98 years | +1.0% |
| 2020 | 99 years | +1.0% |
| 2021 | 100 years | +1.0% |
| 2022 | 101 years | +1.0% |
| 2023 | 102 years | +1.0% |
| 2024 | 103 years | +1.0% |
| 2025 | 104 years | +1.0% |
Sweden compared with similar countries
- Sweden's 104 years is above the median for high income countries, which is 45 years, 2.3× the median. (40 countries reporting)
- Sweden's 104 years is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 51 years, 2.0× the median. (28 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Age of liberal democracy in Sweden 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1923 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 1924 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
| 1925 | +33.3% | 3 years | 4 years |
| 1926 | +25.0% | 4 years | 5 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920s | 4.5 years | 1 years | 8 years | 8 |
| 1930s | 13.5 years | 9 years | 18 years | 10 |
| 1940s | 23.5 years | 19 years | 28 years | 10 |
| 1950s | 33.5 years | 29 years | 38 years | 10 |
| 1960s | 43.5 years | 39 years | 48 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 53.5 years | 49 years | 58 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 63.5 years | 59 years | 68 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 73.5 years | 69 years | 78 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 83.5 years | 79 years | 88 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 93.5 years | 89 years | 98 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 101.5 years | 99 years | 104 years | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sweden
- 2 New Zealand 113 years compare
- 3 Australia 108 years compare
- 4 United Kingdom 105 years compare
- 6 Ireland 102 years compare
- 7 Iceland 82 years compare
- 8 Belgium 80 years compare
- 8 Denmark 80 years compare
- 8 Luxembourg 80 years compare
- 8 Netherlands 80 years compare
- 8 Norway 80 years compare
More social development data for Sweden
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 144,116 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 128 (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 128 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0136 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 Sweden?
- Age of liberal democracy in Sweden was 104 years in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of liberal democracy recorded in Sweden?
- The highest recorded value was 104 years in 2025.
- What is the lowest age of liberal democracy recorded in Sweden?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 1922.
- How does Sweden rank for age of liberal democracy?
- Sweden ranks 5th out of 47 countries with data for 2025.
- Is age of liberal democracy rising or falling in Sweden?
- Over the last ten years it is up 10.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Sweden 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 — 104 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of consecutive years in electoral democracy.