Freedom of expression index in New Zealand
New Zealand: Freedom of expression index was 0.927 in 2025. β² Rising
Latest (2025)
0.927
Change on year
down 2.4%
World rank
16th
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.958
in 1985
All-time low
0.822
in 1940
Years of data
173
1853β2025
Freedom of expression index in New Zealand, 1853β2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
New Zealand recorded 0.927 for freedom of expression index in 2025.
The figure is down 2.4% on the previous year and down 1.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, freedom of expression index in New Zealand peaked at 0.958 in 1985 and was at its lowest, 0.822, in 1940.
New Zealand ranks 16th of 176 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 173 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1850s | 0.842 | 0.842 | 0.842 | 7 |
| 1860s | 0.842 | 0.842 | 0.842 | 10 |
| 1870s | 0.842 | 0.842 | 0.842 | 10 |
| 1880s | 0.842 | 0.842 | 0.842 | 10 |
| 1890s | 0.842 | 0.842 | 0.842 | 10 |
| 1900s | 0.8809 | 0.862 | 0.883 | 10 |
| 1910s | 0.848 | 0.825 | 0.883 | 10 |
| 1920s | 0.8785 | 0.873 | 0.88 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.8659 | 0.83 | 0.893 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0.8352 | 0.822 | 0.857 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.8602 | 0.824 | 0.87 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.8943 | 0.884 | 0.898 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.9325 | 0.925 | 0.941 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.9524 | 0.941 | 0.958 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.958 | 0.958 | 0.958 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.958 | 0.958 | 0.958 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.9474 | 0.939 | 0.956 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.9387 | 0.927 | 0.95 | 6 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
More social development data for New Zealand
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asy 2,148 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of ori 58 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh 1 (2025)
- Democracy lexical 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 58 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0004 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 freedom of expression index in New Zealand?
- Freedom of expression index in New Zealand was 0.927 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest freedom of expression index recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 0.958 in 1985.
- What is the lowest freedom of expression index recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.822 in 1940.
- How does New Zealand rank for freedom of expression index?
- New Zealand ranks 16th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
- Is freedom of expression index rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this New Zealand data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Freedom of expression index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV Β· JSON β 173 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).