Deliberative Democracy Index in Estonia
Estonia: Deliberative Democracy Index was 0.758 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Deliberative Democracy Index in Estonia, 1900–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, deliberative democracy index in Estonia stood at 0.758.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 3.3% on the previous year and down 6.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, deliberative democracy index in Estonia peaked at 0.825 in 2016 and was at its lowest, 0.019, in 1900.
That places Estonia 15th out of 175 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Deliberative Democracy Index in Estonia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1900 | 0.019 | — |
| 1901 | 0.019 | +0.0% |
| 1902 | 0.019 | +0.0% |
| 1903 | 0.019 | +0.0% |
| 1904 | 0.019 | +0.0% |
| 1905 | 0.026 | +36.8% |
| 1906 | 0.055 | +111.5% |
| 1907 | 0.056 | +1.8% |
| 1908 | 0.054 | -3.6% |
| 1909 | 0.054 | +0.0% |
| 1910 | 0.054 | +0.0% |
| 1911 | 0.054 | +0.0% |
| 1912 | 0.054 | +0.0% |
| 1913 | 0.054 | +0.0% |
| 1914 | 0.054 | +0.0% |
| 1915 | 0.054 | +0.0% |
| 1916 | 0.054 | +0.0% |
| 1917 | 0.109 | +101.9% |
| 1918 | 0.199 | +82.6% |
| 1919 | 0.339 | +70.4% |
| 1920 | 0.437 | +28.9% |
| 1921 | 0.488 | +11.7% |
| 1922 | 0.503 | +3.1% |
| 1923 | 0.484 | -3.8% |
| 1924 | 0.474 | -2.1% |
| 1925 | 0.471 | -0.6% |
| 1926 | 0.507 | +7.6% |
| 1927 | 0.513 | +1.2% |
| 1928 | 0.517 | +0.8% |
| 1929 | 0.507 | -1.9% |
| 1930 | 0.505 | -0.4% |
| 1931 | 0.507 | +0.4% |
| 1932 | 0.486 | -4.1% |
| 1933 | 0.393 | -19.1% |
| 1934 | 0.173 | -56.0% |
| 1935 | 0.088 | -49.1% |
| 1936 | 0.089 | +1.1% |
| 1937 | 0.088 | -1.1% |
| 1938 | 0.143 | +62.5% |
| 1939 | 0.153 | +7.0% |
| 1940 | 0.022 | -85.6% |
| 1941 | 0.023 | +4.5% |
| 1942 | 0.023 | +0.0% |
| 1943 | 0.023 | +0.0% |
| 1944 | 0.023 | +0.0% |
| 1945 | 0.023 | +0.0% |
| 1946 | 0.025 | +8.7% |
| 1947 | 0.025 | +0.0% |
| 1948 | 0.025 | +0.0% |
| 1949 | 0.025 | +0.0% |
| 1950 | 0.025 | +0.0% |
| 1951 | 0.025 | +0.0% |
| 1952 | 0.025 | +0.0% |
| 1953 | 0.03 | +20.0% |
| 1954 | 0.081 | +170.0% |
| 1955 | 0.081 | +0.0% |
| 1956 | 0.094 | +16.0% |
| 1957 | 0.096 | +2.1% |
| 1958 | 0.096 | +0.0% |
| 1959 | 0.096 | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 0.096 | +0.0% |
| 1961 | 0.096 | +0.0% |
| 1962 | 0.095 | -1.0% |
| 1963 | 0.094 | -1.1% |
| 1964 | 0.093 | -1.1% |
| 1965 | 0.082 | -11.8% |
| 1966 | 0.082 | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 0.082 | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 0.073 | -11.0% |
| 1969 | 0.073 | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 0.074 | +1.4% |
| 1971 | 0.076 | +2.7% |
| 1972 | 0.076 | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 0.076 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 0.076 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 0.076 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 0.075 | -1.3% |
| 1977 | 0.076 | +1.3% |
| 1978 | 0.076 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 0.075 | -1.3% |
| 1980 | 0.075 | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 0.075 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 0.075 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 0.075 | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 0.075 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 0.106 | +41.3% |
| 1986 | 0.157 | +48.1% |
| 1987 | 0.186 | +18.5% |
| 1988 | 0.185 | -0.5% |
| 1989 | 0.215 | +16.2% |
| 1990 | 0.69 | +220.9% |
| 1991 | 0.55 | -20.3% |
| 1992 | 0.431 | -21.6% |
| 1993 | 0.751 | +74.2% |
| 1994 | 0.739 | -1.6% |
| 1995 | 0.741 | +0.3% |
| 1996 | 0.738 | -0.4% |
| 1997 | 0.738 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 0.738 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 0.759 | +2.8% |
| 2000 | 0.773 | +1.8% |
| 2001 | 0.773 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 0.764 | -1.2% |
| 2003 | 0.763 | -0.1% |
| 2004 | 0.766 | +0.4% |
| 2005 | 0.766 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 0.77 | +0.5% |
| 2007 | 0.779 | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 0.769 | -1.3% |
| 2009 | 0.772 | +0.4% |
| 2010 | 0.783 | +1.4% |
| 2011 | 0.786 | +0.4% |
| 2012 | 0.802 | +2.0% |
| 2013 | 0.791 | -1.4% |
| 2014 | 0.806 | +1.9% |
| 2015 | 0.81 | +0.5% |
| 2016 | 0.825 | +1.9% |
| 2017 | 0.824 | -0.1% |
| 2018 | 0.823 | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 0.773 | -6.1% |
| 2020 | 0.712 | -7.9% |
| 2021 | 0.802 | +12.6% |
| 2022 | 0.776 | -3.2% |
| 2023 | 0.766 | -1.3% |
| 2024 | 0.784 | +2.3% |
| 2025 | 0.758 | -3.3% |
Estonia compared with similar countries
- Estonia's 0.758 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.665, 1.1× the median. (55 countries reporting)
- Estonia's 0.758 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.61, 1.2× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Deliberative Democracy Index in Estonia 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | +220.9% | 0.215 | 0.69 |
| 1954 | +170.0% | 0.03 | 0.081 |
| 1906 | +111.5% | 0.026 | 0.055 |
| 1917 | +101.9% | 0.054 | 0.109 |
| 1940 | -85.6% | 0.153 | 0.022 |
| 1918 | +82.6% | 0.109 | 0.199 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 0.034 | 0.019 | 0.056 | 10 |
| 1910s | 0.1025 | 0.054 | 0.339 | 10 |
| 1920s | 0.4901 | 0.437 | 0.517 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.2625 | 0.088 | 0.507 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0.0237 | 0.022 | 0.025 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.0649 | 0.025 | 0.096 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.0866 | 0.073 | 0.096 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.0756 | 0.074 | 0.076 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.1224 | 0.075 | 0.215 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.6875 | 0.431 | 0.759 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.7695 | 0.763 | 0.779 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.8023 | 0.773 | 0.825 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.7663 | 0.712 | 0.802 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Estonia
More social development data for Estonia
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 41,299 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 86 (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 0.0001 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 86 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0302 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 deliberative democracy index in Estonia?
- Deliberative democracy index in Estonia was 0.758 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest deliberative democracy index recorded in Estonia?
- The highest recorded value was 0.825 in 2016.
- What is the lowest deliberative democracy index recorded in Estonia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.019 in 1900.
- How does Estonia rank for deliberative democracy index?
- Estonia ranks 15th out of 175 countries with data for 2025.
- Is deliberative democracy index rising or falling in Estonia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Estonia data come from?
- The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Deliberative Democracy Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 126 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Central estimate of the extent of suffrage, the freedom and fairness of elections, freedoms of association and expression, as well as the extent to which political elites justify their positions, justify them with the common good, acknowledge counterarguments, consult elites in policy changes, and society deliberates policy changes.