Democracy Index in South Africa
South Africa: Democracy Index was 9 in 2018. ▲ Rising
Latest (2018)
9
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
33rd
of 168 countries
All-time high
9
in 1994
All-time low
4
in 1910
Years of data
109
1910–2018
Democracy Index in South Africa, 1910–2018
Source: Polity 5 (2020); Population based on various sources (2023) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2018, democracy index in South Africa stood at 9. That is the highest value across all 109 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, democracy index in South Africa peaked at 9 in 1994 and was at its lowest, 4, in 1910.
South Africa ranks 33rd of 168 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 109 years of available data.
Democracy Index in South Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1910 | 4 | — |
| 1911 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1912 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1913 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1914 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1915 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1916 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1917 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1918 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1919 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1920 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1921 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1922 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1923 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1924 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1925 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1926 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1927 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1928 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1929 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1930 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1931 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1932 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1933 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1934 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1935 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1936 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1937 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1938 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1939 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1940 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1941 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1942 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1943 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1944 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1945 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1946 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1947 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1948 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1949 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1950 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1951 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1952 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1953 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1954 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1955 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1956 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1957 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1958 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1959 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1961 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1962 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1971 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 5 | +25.0% |
| 1991 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 6 | +20.0% |
| 1993 | 8 | +33.3% |
| 1994 | 9 | +12.5% |
| 1995 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 9 | +0.0% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 9 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 7, 1.3× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 9 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 4.5, 2.0× the median. (46 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1910s | 4 | 4 | 4 | 10 |
| 1920s | 4 | 4 | 4 | 10 |
| 1930s | 4 | 4 | 4 | 10 |
| 1940s | 4 | 4 | 4 | 10 |
| 1950s | 4 | 4 | 4 | 10 |
| 1960s | 4 | 4 | 4 | 10 |
| 1970s | 4 | 4 | 4 | 10 |
| 1980s | 4 | 4 | 4 | 10 |
| 1990s | 7.8 | 5 | 9 | 10 |
| 2000s | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 |
| 2010s | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
- 33 Albania 9 compare
- 33 Argentina 9 compare
- 33 Bulgaria 9 compare
- 33 Croatia 9 compare
- 33 Czechia 9 compare
- 33 Estonia 9 compare
- 33 India 9 compare
- 33 Indonesia 9 compare
- 33 Jamaica 9 compare
- 33 Kenya 9 compare
- 33 Moldova 9 compare
- 33 Montenegro 9 compare
- 33 North Macedonia 9 compare
- 33 Panama 9 compare
- 33 Paraguay 9 compare
- 33 Peru 9 compare
- 33 Romania 9 compare
- 33 Trinidad and Tobago 9 compare
More social development data for South Africa
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 55,177 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 1,319 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 2 (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 1,319 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0009 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 democracy index in South Africa?
- Democracy index in South Africa was 9 in 2018, according to Polity 5 (2020); Population based on various sources (2023) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest democracy index recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 9 in 1994.
- What is the lowest democracy index recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 4 in 1910.
- How does South Africa rank for democracy index?
- South Africa ranks 33rd out of 168 countries with data for 2018.
- Is democracy index rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Polity 5 (2020); Population based on various sources (2023) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Democracy Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 109 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
It combines information on the extent to which open, multi-party, and competitive elections choose a chief executive who faces comprehensive institutional constraints, and political participation is competitive. It ranges from -10 to 10 (fully democratic).