Freedom of Expression Index in South Africa
South Africa: Freedom of Expression Index was 0.837 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
0.837
Change on year
up 0.2%
World rank
51st
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.883
in 2013
All-time low
0.248
in 1980
Years of data
126
1900–2025
Freedom of Expression Index in South Africa, 1900–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, freedom of expression index in South Africa stood at 0.837.
That represents a change of up 0.2% on the previous year and down 4.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, freedom of expression index in South Africa peaked at 0.883 in 2013 and was at its lowest, 0.248, in 1980.
South Africa ranks 51st of 176 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 126 years of available data.
Freedom of Expression Index in South Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1900 | 0.417 | — |
| 1901 | 0.417 | +0.0% |
| 1902 | 0.417 | +0.0% |
| 1903 | 0.417 | +0.0% |
| 1904 | 0.417 | +0.0% |
| 1905 | 0.417 | +0.0% |
| 1906 | 0.417 | +0.0% |
| 1907 | 0.417 | +0.0% |
| 1908 | 0.417 | +0.0% |
| 1909 | 0.417 | +0.0% |
| 1910 | 0.416 | -0.2% |
| 1911 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1912 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1913 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1914 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1915 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1916 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1917 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1918 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1919 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1920 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1921 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1922 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1923 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1924 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1925 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1926 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1927 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1928 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1929 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1930 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1931 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1932 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1933 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1934 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1935 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1936 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1937 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1938 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1939 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1940 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1941 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1942 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1943 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1944 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1945 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1946 | 0.416 | +0.0% |
| 1947 | 0.385 | -7.5% |
| 1948 | 0.332 | -13.8% |
| 1949 | 0.321 | -3.3% |
| 1950 | 0.337 | +5.0% |
| 1951 | 0.337 | +0.0% |
| 1952 | 0.337 | +0.0% |
| 1953 | 0.337 | +0.0% |
| 1954 | 0.337 | +0.0% |
| 1955 | 0.337 | +0.0% |
| 1956 | 0.337 | +0.0% |
| 1957 | 0.337 | +0.0% |
| 1958 | 0.337 | +0.0% |
| 1959 | 0.337 | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 0.33 | -2.1% |
| 1961 | 0.319 | -3.3% |
| 1962 | 0.311 | -2.5% |
| 1963 | 0.311 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 0.283 | -9.0% |
| 1965 | 0.283 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 0.283 | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 0.283 | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 0.283 | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 0.283 | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 0.283 | +0.0% |
| 1971 | 0.283 | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 0.283 | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 0.283 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 0.274 | -3.2% |
| 1975 | 0.274 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 0.274 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 0.255 | -6.9% |
| 1978 | 0.255 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 0.255 | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 0.248 | -2.7% |
| 1981 | 0.248 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 0.248 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 0.248 | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 0.248 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 0.248 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 0.248 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 0.248 | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 0.248 | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 0.275 | +10.9% |
| 1990 | 0.398 | +44.7% |
| 1991 | 0.432 | +8.5% |
| 1992 | 0.432 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 0.47 | +8.8% |
| 1994 | 0.825 | +75.5% |
| 1995 | 0.858 | +4.0% |
| 1996 | 0.858 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 0.858 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 0.858 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 0.866 | +0.9% |
| 2000 | 0.879 | +1.5% |
| 2001 | 0.879 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 0.879 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 0.879 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 0.865 | -1.6% |
| 2005 | 0.877 | +1.4% |
| 2006 | 0.881 | +0.5% |
| 2007 | 0.881 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 0.87 | -1.2% |
| 2009 | 0.871 | +0.1% |
| 2010 | 0.88 | +1.0% |
| 2011 | 0.879 | -0.1% |
| 2012 | 0.879 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 0.883 | +0.5% |
| 2014 | 0.877 | -0.7% |
| 2015 | 0.877 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 0.874 | -0.3% |
| 2017 | 0.843 | -3.5% |
| 2018 | 0.862 | +2.3% |
| 2019 | 0.859 | -0.3% |
| 2020 | 0.862 | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 0.868 | +0.7% |
| 2022 | 0.848 | -2.3% |
| 2023 | 0.833 | -1.8% |
| 2024 | 0.835 | +0.2% |
| 2025 | 0.837 | +0.2% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 0.837 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.6745, 1.2× the median. (48 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 0.837 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.616, 1.4× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 0.417 | 0.417 | 0.417 | 10 |
| 1910s | 0.416 | 0.416 | 0.416 | 10 |
| 1920s | 0.416 | 0.416 | 0.416 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.416 | 0.416 | 0.416 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0.395 | 0.321 | 0.416 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.337 | 0.337 | 0.337 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.2969 | 0.283 | 0.33 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.2719 | 0.255 | 0.283 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.2507 | 0.248 | 0.275 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.6855 | 0.398 | 0.866 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.8761 | 0.865 | 0.881 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.8713 | 0.843 | 0.883 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.8472 | 0.833 | 0.868 | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
- 49 East Timor 0.838 compare
- 49 Taiwan 0.838 compare
- 52 Liberia 0.836 compare
- 53 United Kingdom 0.833 compare
- 54 Malta 0.829 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 freedom of expression index in South Africa?
- Freedom of expression index in South Africa was 0.837 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest freedom of expression index recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 0.883 in 2013.
- What is the lowest freedom of expression index recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.248 in 1980.
- How does South Africa rank for freedom of expression index?
- South Africa ranks 51st out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
- Is freedom of expression index rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa 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.
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 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.