What is freedom of expression index in Latvia?

Freedom of expression index in Latvia was 0.932 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

What is the highest freedom of expression index recorded in Latvia?

The highest recorded value was 0.953 in 2019.

What is the lowest freedom of expression index recorded in Latvia?

The lowest recorded value was 0.012 in 1940.

How does Latvia rank for freedom of expression index?

Latvia ranks 14th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.

Is freedom of expression index rising or falling in Latvia?

Over the last ten years it is down 1.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.

Where does this Latvia data come from?

The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Freedom of Expression Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Freedom of Expression Index in Latvia

Name: Freedom of Expression Index in Latvia
Creator: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

Latvia: Freedom of Expression Index was 0.932 in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)

0.932

Change on year

unchanged

World rank

14th

of 176 countries

All-time high

0.953

in 2019

All-time low

0.012

in 1940

Years of data

237

1789–2025

Freedom of Expression Index in Latvia, 1789–2025

Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for freedom of expression index in Latvia is 0.932, measured in 2025.

The figure is down 1.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, freedom of expression index in Latvia peaked at 0.953 in 2019 and was at its lowest, 0.012, in 1940.

Latvia ranks 14th of 176 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Freedom of Expression Index in Latvia, year by year

Annual values for Freedom of Expression Index in Latvia, 1789 to 2025.
Year	Value	Change
1789	0.164	—
1790	0.087	-47.0%
1791	0.087	+0.0%
1792	0.087	+0.0%
1793	0.087	+0.0%
1794	0.087	+0.0%
1795	0.087	+0.0%
1796	0.087	+0.0%
1797	0.087	+0.0%
1798	0.087	+0.0%
1799	0.087	+0.0%
1800	0.087	+0.0%
1801	0.087	+0.0%
1802	0.087	+0.0%
1803	0.087	+0.0%
1804	0.087	+0.0%
1805	0.087	+0.0%
1806	0.087	+0.0%
1807	0.087	+0.0%
1808	0.087	+0.0%
1809	0.087	+0.0%
1810	0.087	+0.0%
1811	0.087	+0.0%
1812	0.087	+0.0%
1813	0.087	+0.0%
1814	0.087	+0.0%
1815	0.087	+0.0%
1816	0.087	+0.0%
1817	0.087	+0.0%
1818	0.087	+0.0%
1819	0.087	+0.0%
1820	0.087	+0.0%
1821	0.087	+0.0%
1822	0.087	+0.0%
1823	0.087	+0.0%
1824	0.087	+0.0%
1825	0.087	+0.0%
1826	0.074	-14.9%
1827	0.074	+0.0%
1828	0.074	+0.0%
1829	0.074	+0.0%
1830	0.074	+0.0%
1831	0.074	+0.0%
1832	0.074	+0.0%
1833	0.074	+0.0%
1834	0.074	+0.0%
1835	0.074	+0.0%
1836	0.074	+0.0%
1837	0.074	+0.0%
1838	0.074	+0.0%
1839	0.074	+0.0%
1840	0.074	+0.0%
1841	0.074	+0.0%
1842	0.074	+0.0%
1843	0.074	+0.0%
1844	0.074	+0.0%
1845	0.074	+0.0%
1846	0.074	+0.0%
1847	0.074	+0.0%
1848	0.059	-20.3%
1849	0.059	+0.0%
1850	0.059	+0.0%
1851	0.059	+0.0%
1852	0.059	+0.0%
1853	0.059	+0.0%
1854	0.059	+0.0%
1855	0.143	+142.4%
1856	0.168	+17.5%
1857	0.168	+0.0%
1858	0.168	+0.0%
1859	0.168	+0.0%
1860	0.168	+0.0%
1861	0.168	+0.0%
1862	0.168	+0.0%
1863	0.168	+0.0%
1864	0.168	+0.0%
1865	0.194	+15.5%
1866	0.194	+0.0%
1867	0.194	+0.0%
1868	0.194	+0.0%
1869	0.194	+0.0%
1870	0.194	+0.0%
1871	0.194	+0.0%
1872	0.194	+0.0%
1873	0.167	-13.9%
1874	0.167	+0.0%
1875	0.167	+0.0%
1876	0.167	+0.0%
1877	0.167	+0.0%
1878	0.167	+0.0%
1879	0.167	+0.0%
1880	0.167	+0.0%
1881	0.171	+2.4%
1882	0.19	+11.1%
1883	0.19	+0.0%
1884	0.19	+0.0%
1885	0.19	+0.0%
1886	0.19	+0.0%
1887	0.19	+0.0%
1888	0.19	+0.0%
1889	0.19	+0.0%
1890	0.19	+0.0%
1891	0.19	+0.0%
1892	0.19	+0.0%
1893	0.19	+0.0%
1894	0.19	+0.0%
1895	0.19	+0.0%
1896	0.19	+0.0%
1897	0.19	+0.0%
1898	0.19	+0.0%
1899	0.19	+0.0%
1900	0.201	+5.8%
1901	0.199	-1.0%
1902	0.199	+0.0%
1903	0.199	+0.0%
1904	0.199	+0.0%
1905	0.238	+19.6%
1906	0.242	+1.7%
1907	0.239	-1.2%
1908	0.236	-1.3%
1909	0.235	-0.4%
1910	0.231	-1.7%
1911	0.231	+0.0%
1912	0.236	+2.2%
1913	0.236	+0.0%
1914	0.229	-3.0%
1915	0.221	-3.5%
1916	0.219	-0.9%
1917	0.146	-33.3%
1918	0.045	-69.2%
1919	0.031	-31.1%
1920	0.836	+2596.8%
1921	0.833	-0.4%
1922	0.84	+0.8%
1923	0.84	+0.0%
1924	0.84	+0.0%
1925	0.84	+0.0%
1926	0.84	+0.0%
1927	0.84	+0.0%
1928	0.84	+0.0%
1929	0.84	+0.0%
1930	0.84	+0.0%
1931	0.84	+0.0%
1932	0.84	+0.0%
1933	0.84	+0.0%
1934	0.496	-41.0%
1935	0.401	-19.2%
1936	0.393	-2.0%
1937	0.397	+1.0%
1938	0.399	+0.5%
1939	0.399	+0.0%
1940	0.012	-97.0%
1941	0.012	+0.0%
1942	0.012	+0.0%
1943	0.012	+0.0%
1944	0.012	+0.0%
1945	0.014	+16.7%
1946	0.015	+7.1%
1947	0.014	-6.7%
1948	0.012	-14.3%
1949	0.012	+0.0%
1950	0.012	+0.0%
1951	0.012	+0.0%
1952	0.012	+0.0%
1953	0.016	+33.3%
1954	0.023	+43.7%
1955	0.025	+8.7%
1956	0.024	-4.0%
1957	0.029	+20.8%
1958	0.029	+0.0%
1959	0.03	+3.4%
1960	0.028	-6.7%
1961	0.028	+0.0%
1962	0.029	+3.6%
1963	0.029	+0.0%
1964	0.029	+0.0%
1965	0.027	-6.9%
1966	0.027	+0.0%
1967	0.027	+0.0%
1968	0.027	+0.0%
1969	0.025	-7.4%
1970	0.025	+0.0%
1971	0.026	+4.0%
1972	0.025	-3.8%
1973	0.025	+0.0%
1974	0.024	-4.0%
1975	0.026	+8.3%
1976	0.026	+0.0%
1977	0.025	-3.8%
1978	0.025	+0.0%
1979	0.025	+0.0%
1980	0.025	+0.0%
1981	0.025	+0.0%
1982	0.025	+0.0%
1983	0.025	+0.0%
1984	0.025	+0.0%
1985	0.038	+52.0%
1986	0.087	+128.9%
1987	0.286	+228.7%
1988	0.291	+1.7%
1989	0.369	+26.8%
1990	0.901	+144.2%
1991	0.926	+2.8%
1992	0.932	+0.6%
1993	0.936	+0.4%
1994	0.938	+0.2%
1995	0.935	-0.3%
1996	0.938	+0.3%
1997	0.938	+0.0%
1998	0.935	-0.3%
1999	0.939	+0.4%
2000	0.939	+0.0%
2001	0.939	+0.0%
2002	0.935	-0.4%
2003	0.938	+0.3%
2004	0.938	+0.0%
2005	0.938	+0.0%
2006	0.935	-0.3%
2007	0.939	+0.4%
2008	0.937	-0.2%
2009	0.94	+0.3%
2010	0.939	-0.1%
2011	0.94	+0.1%
2012	0.939	-0.1%
2013	0.946	+0.7%
2014	0.949	+0.3%
2015	0.949	+0.0%
2016	0.944	-0.5%
2017	0.932	-1.3%
2018	0.943	+1.2%
2019	0.953	+1.1%
2020	0.942	-1.2%
2021	0.951	+1.0%
2022	0.938	-1.4%
2023	0.94	+0.2%
2024	0.932	-0.9%
2025	0.932	+0.0%

Latvia compared with similar countries

Latvia's 0.932 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.874, 1.1× the median. (55 countries reporting)
Latvia's 0.932 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.7935, 1.2× the median. (48 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1780s	0.164	0.164	0.164	1
1790s	0.087	0.087	0.087	10
1800s	0.087	0.087	0.087	10
1810s	0.087	0.087	0.087	10
1820s	0.0818	0.074	0.087	10
1830s	0.074	0.074	0.074	10
1840s	0.071	0.059	0.074	10
1850s	0.111	0.059	0.168	10
1860s	0.181	0.168	0.194	10
1870s	0.1751	0.167	0.194	10
1880s	0.1858	0.167	0.19	10
1890s	0.19	0.19	0.19	10
1900s	0.2187	0.199	0.242	10
1910s	0.1825	0.031	0.236	10
1920s	0.8389	0.833	0.84	10
1930s	0.5845	0.393	0.84	10
1940s	0.0127	0.012	0.015	10
1950s	0.0212	0.012	0.03	10
1960s	0.0276	0.025	0.029	10
1970s	0.0252	0.024	0.026	10
1980s	0.1196	0.025	0.369	10
1990s	0.9318	0.901	0.939	10
2000s	0.9378	0.935	0.94	10
2010s	0.9434	0.932	0.953	10
2020s	0.9392	0.932	0.951	6

Countries ranked near Latvia

12 Canada 0.933 compare
12 South Korea 0.933 compare
15 Uruguay 0.931 compare
16 New Zealand 0.927 compare
17 Chile 0.926 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More social development data for Latvia

Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 32,454 (2025)
Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 189 (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 189 (2025)
Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0176 units per person (2025)
Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)

All data for Latvia →

Frequently asked questions

What is freedom of expression index in Latvia?: Freedom of expression index in Latvia was 0.932 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest freedom of expression index recorded in Latvia?: The highest recorded value was 0.953 in 2019.
What is the lowest freedom of expression index recorded in Latvia?: The lowest recorded value was 0.012 in 1940.
How does Latvia rank for freedom of expression index?: Latvia ranks 14th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is freedom of expression index rising or falling in Latvia?: Over the last ten years it is down 1.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Latvia data come from?: The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Freedom of Expression Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Freedom of Expression Index in Latvia. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 07 November 2026, from https://social-development.statizoid.com/stat/freedom-of-expression-index/latvia/

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About this data

Indicator: Freedom of Expression Index
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 176 places, 30,035 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed: 30 October 2026

Central estimate of the extent to which people can discuss political matters at home and in the public sphere, the press, and media are free and can present different political perspectives, and the freedom of academic and cultural expression.