Citizen satisfaction with democracy in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Citizen satisfaction with democracy was 0.228 in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Citizen satisfaction with democracy in United Kingdom, 1973–2020
Source: Claassen (2022) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for citizen satisfaction with democracy in United Kingdom is 0.228, measured in 2020.
That represents a change of up 92.1% on the previous year and up 29.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, citizen satisfaction with democracy in United Kingdom peaked at 0.459 in 2016 and was at its lowest, -0.3934, in 1973.
United Kingdom ranks 50th of 131 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Citizen satisfaction with democracy in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1973 | -0.3934 | — |
| 1974 | -0.2978 | -24.3% |
| 1975 | -0.207 | -30.5% |
| 1976 | -0.1119 | -45.9% |
| 1977 | 0.0326 | -129.2% |
| 1978 | 0.0179 | -45.0% |
| 1979 | -0.0804 | -548.0% |
| 1980 | -0.1137 | +41.4% |
| 1981 | -0.0823 | -27.6% |
| 1982 | 0.1108 | -234.6% |
| 1983 | 0.1951 | +76.1% |
| 1984 | 0.1633 | -16.3% |
| 1985 | 0.0328 | -79.9% |
| 1986 | 0.0087 | -73.4% |
| 1987 | 0.098 | +1022.6% |
| 1988 | 0.106 | +8.1% |
| 1989 | 0.055 | -48.1% |
| 1990 | -0.0304 | -155.2% |
| 1991 | 0.0357 | -217.7% |
| 1992 | -0.0925 | -358.9% |
| 1993 | -0.1784 | +92.8% |
| 1994 | -0.168 | -5.8% |
| 1995 | -0.0952 | -43.3% |
| 1996 | 0.145 | -252.3% |
| 1997 | 0.3802 | +162.1% |
| 1998 | 0.3662 | -3.7% |
| 1999 | 0.3271 | -10.7% |
| 2000 | 0.3318 | +1.4% |
| 2001 | 0.3421 | +3.1% |
| 2002 | 0.2798 | -18.2% |
| 2003 | 0.2804 | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 0.2876 | +2.6% |
| 2005 | 0.3317 | +15.3% |
| 2006 | 0.2232 | -32.7% |
| 2007 | 0.206 | -7.7% |
| 2008 | 0.0507 | -75.4% |
| 2009 | 0.0781 | +54.1% |
| 2010 | 0.176 | +125.4% |
| 2011 | 0.2791 | +58.5% |
| 2012 | 0.364 | +30.4% |
| 2013 | 0.2896 | -20.4% |
| 2014 | 0.3512 | +21.3% |
| 2015 | 0.3256 | -7.3% |
| 2016 | 0.459 | +40.9% |
| 2017 | 0.4218 | -8.1% |
| 2018 | 0.3226 | -23.5% |
| 2019 | 0.1187 | -63.2% |
| 2020 | 0.228 | +92.1% |
United Kingdom compared with similar countries
- United Kingdom's 0.228 is below the median for high income countries, which is 0.303, 75% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- United Kingdom's 0.228 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is -0.0062. (46 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Citizen satisfaction with democracy in United Kingdom 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | +1022.6% | 0.0087 | 0.098 |
| 1979 | -548.0% | 0.0179 | -0.0804 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | -0.1486 | -0.3934 | 0.0326 | 7 |
| 1980s | 0.0574 | -0.1137 | 0.1951 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.069 | -0.1784 | 0.3802 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.2411 | 0.0507 | 0.3421 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.3107 | 0.1187 | 0.459 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.228 | 0.228 | 0.228 | 1 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
More social development data for United Kingdom
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 581,072 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 517 (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 517 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0084 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 citizen satisfaction with democracy in United Kingdom?
- Citizen satisfaction with democracy in United Kingdom was 0.228 in 2020, according to Claassen (2022) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest citizen satisfaction with democracy recorded in United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 0.459 in 2016.
- What is the lowest citizen satisfaction with democracy recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was -0.3934 in 1973.
- How does United Kingdom rank for citizen satisfaction with democracy?
- United Kingdom ranks 50th out of 131 countries with data for 2020.
- Is citizen satisfaction with democracy rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is up 29.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
- The figures come from Claassen (2022) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Citizen satisfaction with democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 48 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Central estimate of the average extent to which citizens are satisfied with democracy in their own country. It combines responses across more than one thousand nationally-representative surveys on how citizens' satisfaction with democracy.