Freedom of Expression Index in North Macedonia
North Macedonia: Freedom of Expression Index was 0.664 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2025)
0.664
Change on year
up 0.9%
World rank
98th
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.802
in 2003
All-time low
0.027
in 1890
Years of data
237
1789–2025
Freedom of Expression Index in North Macedonia, 1789–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for freedom of expression index in North Macedonia is 0.664, measured in 2025.
The figure is up 0.9% on the previous year and up 23.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, freedom of expression index in North Macedonia peaked at 0.802 in 2003 and was at its lowest, 0.027, in 1890.
That places North Macedonia 98th out of 176 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Freedom of Expression Index in North Macedonia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1789 | 0.08 | — |
| 1790 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1791 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1792 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1793 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1794 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1795 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1796 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1797 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1798 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1799 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1800 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1801 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1802 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1803 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1804 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1805 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1806 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1807 | 0.08 | +0.0% |
| 1808 | 0.075 | -6.3% |
| 1809 | 0.069 | -8.0% |
| 1810 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1811 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1812 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1813 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1814 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1815 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1816 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1817 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1818 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1819 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1820 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1821 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1822 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1823 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1824 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1825 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1826 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1827 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1828 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1829 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1830 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1831 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1832 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1833 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1834 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1835 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1836 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1837 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1838 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1839 | 0.075 | +8.7% |
| 1840 | 0.071 | -5.3% |
| 1841 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1842 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1843 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1844 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1845 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1846 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1847 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1848 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1849 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1850 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1851 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1852 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1853 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1854 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1855 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1856 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1857 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1858 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1859 | 0.071 | +0.0% |
| 1860 | 0.167 | +135.2% |
| 1861 | 0.2 | +19.8% |
| 1862 | 0.2 | +0.0% |
| 1863 | 0.2 | +0.0% |
| 1864 | 0.2 | +0.0% |
| 1865 | 0.2 | +0.0% |
| 1866 | 0.2 | +0.0% |
| 1867 | 0.217 | +8.5% |
| 1868 | 0.217 | +0.0% |
| 1869 | 0.217 | +0.0% |
| 1870 | 0.217 | +0.0% |
| 1871 | 0.217 | +0.0% |
| 1872 | 0.217 | +0.0% |
| 1873 | 0.217 | +0.0% |
| 1874 | 0.217 | +0.0% |
| 1875 | 0.217 | +0.0% |
| 1876 | 0.217 | +0.0% |
| 1877 | 0.071 | -67.3% |
| 1878 | 0.044 | -38.0% |
| 1879 | 0.044 | +0.0% |
| 1880 | 0.044 | +0.0% |
| 1881 | 0.044 | +0.0% |
| 1882 | 0.044 | +0.0% |
| 1883 | 0.044 | +0.0% |
| 1884 | 0.044 | +0.0% |
| 1885 | 0.044 | +0.0% |
| 1886 | 0.044 | +0.0% |
| 1887 | 0.044 | +0.0% |
| 1888 | 0.044 | +0.0% |
| 1889 | 0.044 | +0.0% |
| 1890 | 0.027 | -38.6% |
| 1891 | 0.027 | +0.0% |
| 1892 | 0.027 | +0.0% |
| 1893 | 0.027 | +0.0% |
| 1894 | 0.027 | +0.0% |
| 1895 | 0.027 | +0.0% |
| 1896 | 0.027 | +0.0% |
| 1897 | 0.027 | +0.0% |
| 1898 | 0.027 | +0.0% |
| 1899 | 0.027 | +0.0% |
| 1900 | 0.032 | +18.5% |
| 1901 | 0.032 | +0.0% |
| 1902 | 0.032 | +0.0% |
| 1903 | 0.032 | +0.0% |
| 1904 | 0.032 | +0.0% |
| 1905 | 0.032 | +0.0% |
| 1906 | 0.032 | +0.0% |
| 1907 | 0.032 | +0.0% |
| 1908 | 0.099 | +209.4% |
| 1909 | 0.379 | +282.8% |
| 1910 | 0.373 | -1.6% |
| 1911 | 0.35 | -6.2% |
| 1912 | 0.279 | -20.3% |
| 1913 | 0.145 | -48.0% |
| 1914 | 0.347 | +139.3% |
| 1915 | 0.272 | -21.6% |
| 1916 | 0.264 | -2.9% |
| 1917 | 0.264 | +0.0% |
| 1918 | 0.267 | +1.1% |
| 1919 | 0.359 | +34.5% |
| 1920 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1921 | 0.359 | +0.0% |
| 1922 | 0.356 | -0.8% |
| 1923 | 0.356 | +0.0% |
| 1924 | 0.356 | +0.0% |
| 1925 | 0.356 | +0.0% |
| 1926 | 0.356 | +0.0% |
| 1927 | 0.349 | -2.0% |
| 1928 | 0.324 | -7.2% |
| 1929 | 0.24 | -25.9% |
| 1930 | 0.228 | -5.0% |
| 1931 | 0.235 | +3.1% |
| 1932 | 0.286 | +21.7% |
| 1933 | 0.292 | +2.1% |
| 1934 | 0.292 | +0.0% |
| 1935 | 0.292 | +0.0% |
| 1936 | 0.292 | +0.0% |
| 1937 | 0.292 | +0.0% |
| 1938 | 0.292 | +0.0% |
| 1939 | 0.292 | +0.0% |
| 1940 | 0.231 | -20.9% |
| 1941 | 0.065 | -71.9% |
| 1942 | 0.034 | -47.7% |
| 1943 | 0.034 | +0.0% |
| 1944 | 0.034 | +0.0% |
| 1945 | 0.048 | +41.2% |
| 1946 | 0.054 | +12.5% |
| 1947 | 0.054 | +0.0% |
| 1948 | 0.054 | +0.0% |
| 1949 | 0.054 | +0.0% |
| 1950 | 0.061 | +13.0% |
| 1951 | 0.061 | +0.0% |
| 1952 | 0.061 | +0.0% |
| 1953 | 0.065 | +6.6% |
| 1954 | 0.069 | +6.2% |
| 1955 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1956 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1957 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1958 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1959 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1961 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1962 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 0.069 | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 0.073 | +5.8% |
| 1968 | 0.072 | -1.4% |
| 1969 | 0.072 | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 0.072 | +0.0% |
| 1971 | 0.072 | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 0.075 | +4.2% |
| 1973 | 0.075 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 0.075 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 0.075 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 0.075 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 0.075 | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 0.075 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 0.075 | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 0.075 | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 0.124 | +65.3% |
| 1982 | 0.124 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 0.124 | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 0.124 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 0.124 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 0.124 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 0.135 | +8.9% |
| 1988 | 0.138 | +2.2% |
| 1989 | 0.138 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 0.305 | +121.0% |
| 1991 | 0.596 | +95.4% |
| 1992 | 0.596 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 0.611 | +2.5% |
| 1994 | 0.631 | +3.3% |
| 1995 | 0.653 | +3.5% |
| 1996 | 0.692 | +6.0% |
| 1997 | 0.719 | +3.9% |
| 1998 | 0.719 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 0.719 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 0.7 | -2.6% |
| 2001 | 0.674 | -3.7% |
| 2002 | 0.77 | +14.2% |
| 2003 | 0.802 | +4.2% |
| 2004 | 0.791 | -1.4% |
| 2005 | 0.775 | -2.0% |
| 2006 | 0.751 | -3.1% |
| 2007 | 0.746 | -0.7% |
| 2008 | 0.726 | -2.7% |
| 2009 | 0.69 | -5.0% |
| 2010 | 0.686 | -0.6% |
| 2011 | 0.59 | -14.0% |
| 2012 | 0.542 | -8.1% |
| 2013 | 0.527 | -2.8% |
| 2014 | 0.541 | +2.7% |
| 2015 | 0.536 | -0.9% |
| 2016 | 0.564 | +5.2% |
| 2017 | 0.687 | +21.8% |
| 2018 | 0.726 | +5.7% |
| 2019 | 0.729 | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 0.74 | +1.5% |
| 2021 | 0.739 | -0.1% |
| 2022 | 0.731 | -1.1% |
| 2023 | 0.732 | +0.1% |
| 2024 | 0.658 | -10.1% |
| 2025 | 0.664 | +0.9% |
North Macedonia compared with similar countries
- North Macedonia's 0.664 is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.6745, 98% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
- North Macedonia's 0.664 is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.7935, 84% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1780s | 0.08 | 0.08 | 0.08 | 1 |
| 1790s | 0.08 | 0.08 | 0.08 | 10 |
| 1800s | 0.0784 | 0.069 | 0.08 | 10 |
| 1810s | 0.069 | 0.069 | 0.069 | 10 |
| 1820s | 0.069 | 0.069 | 0.069 | 10 |
| 1830s | 0.0696 | 0.069 | 0.075 | 10 |
| 1840s | 0.071 | 0.071 | 0.071 | 10 |
| 1850s | 0.071 | 0.071 | 0.071 | 10 |
| 1860s | 0.2018 | 0.167 | 0.217 | 10 |
| 1870s | 0.1678 | 0.044 | 0.217 | 10 |
| 1880s | 0.044 | 0.044 | 0.044 | 10 |
| 1890s | 0.027 | 0.027 | 0.027 | 10 |
| 1900s | 0.0734 | 0.032 | 0.379 | 10 |
| 1910s | 0.292 | 0.145 | 0.373 | 10 |
| 1920s | 0.3411 | 0.24 | 0.359 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.2793 | 0.228 | 0.292 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0.0662 | 0.034 | 0.231 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.0662 | 0.061 | 0.069 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.07 | 0.069 | 0.073 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.0744 | 0.072 | 0.075 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.123 | 0.075 | 0.138 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.6241 | 0.305 | 0.719 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.7425 | 0.674 | 0.802 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.6128 | 0.527 | 0.729 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.7107 | 0.658 | 0.74 | 6 |
Countries ranked near North Macedonia
- 95 Benin 0.676 compare
- 95 Philippines 0.676 compare
- 97 Albania 0.673 compare
- 99 Bosnia and Herzegovina 0.653 compare
- 100 Moldova 0.652 compare
- 101 Madagascar 0.635 compare
More social development data for North Macedonia
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 20,822 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 1,886 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 3 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 3 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.001 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 1,886 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0114 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 North Macedonia?
- Freedom of expression index in North Macedonia was 0.664 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest freedom of expression index recorded in North Macedonia?
- The highest recorded value was 0.802 in 2003.
- What is the lowest freedom of expression index recorded in North Macedonia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.027 in 1890.
- How does North Macedonia rank for freedom of expression index?
- North Macedonia ranks 98th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
- Is freedom of expression index rising or falling in North Macedonia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 23.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this North Macedonia 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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About this data
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.