Freedom of expression index in Turkey
Turkey: Freedom of expression index was 0.179 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2025)
0.179
Change on year
down 2.2%
World rank
147th
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.749
in 2004
All-time low
0.027
in 1890
Years of data
237
1789–2025
Freedom of expression index in Turkey, 1789–2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, freedom of expression index in Turkey stood at 0.179.
That represents a change of down 2.2% on the previous year and down 49.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, freedom of expression index in Turkey peaked at 0.749 in 2004 and was at its lowest, 0.027, in 1890.
Turkey ranks 147th of 176 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
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 | 0.2043 | 0.117 | 0.373 | 10 |
| 1920s | 0.1728 | 0.115 | 0.286 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.115 | 0.115 | 0.115 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0.1531 | 0.124 | 0.196 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.4394 | 0.358 | 0.524 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.5957 | 0.291 | 0.725 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.6766 | 0.581 | 0.719 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.4017 | 0.171 | 0.526 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.6123 | 0.594 | 0.651 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.6994 | 0.623 | 0.749 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.3563 | 0.18 | 0.547 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.183 | 0.177 | 0.19 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Turkey
More social development data for Turkey
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asy 2.39 million (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of ori 149,405 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh 5 (2025)
- Democracy lexical 0 (2025)
- Human rights index vs electoral democracy index 0.402 (2025)
- Liberal democracy index 0.11 (2025)
- Electoral democracy index 0.293 (2025)
- Freedom of association index 0.565 (2025)
- Participatory democracy index 0.165 (2025)
- Varieties democracy vdem 0.293 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is freedom of expression index in Turkey?
- Freedom of expression index in Turkey was 0.179 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest freedom of expression index recorded in Turkey?
- The highest recorded value was 0.749 in 2004.
- What is the lowest freedom of expression index recorded in Turkey?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.027 in 1890.
- How does Turkey rank for freedom of expression index?
- Turkey ranks 147th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
- Is freedom of expression index rising or falling in Turkey?
- Over the last ten years it is down 49.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Turkey 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 · JSON — 237 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).