Freedom Score in Afghanistan

Afghanistan: Freedom Score was 8 in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)
8
Change on year
up 33.3%
World rank
184th
of 197 countries
All-time high
35
in 2005
All-time low
6
in 2023
Years of data
24
2002–2025

Freedom Score in Afghanistan, 2002–2025

102030402002201320252002: 232003: 232004: 272005: 352006: 352007: 342008: 322009: 272010: 252011: 232012: 272013: 262014: 242015: 242016: 242017: 262018: 272019: 272020: 272021: 102022: 82023: 62024: 62025: 8

Source: Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for freedom score in Afghanistan is 8, measured in 2025.

The figure is up 33.3% on the previous year and down 66.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, freedom score in Afghanistan peaked at 35 in 2005 and was at its lowest, 6, in 2023.

That places Afghanistan 184th out of 197 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 29.5 23 35 8
2010s 25.3 23 27 10
2020s 10.83 6 27 6

Countries ranked near Afghanistan

  1. 181 China 9 compare
  2. 181 Cuba 9 compare
  3. 181 Saudi Arabia 9 compare
  4. 184 Somalia 8 compare
  5. 186 Belarus 7 compare
  6. 187 Azerbaijan 6 compare

See the full ranking of 197 places →

More social development data for Afghanistan

All data for Afghanistan →

Frequently asked questions

What is freedom score in Afghanistan?
Freedom score in Afghanistan was 8 in 2025, according to Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest freedom score recorded in Afghanistan?
The highest recorded value was 35 in 2005.
What is the lowest freedom score recorded in Afghanistan?
The lowest recorded value was 6 in 2023.
How does Afghanistan rank for freedom score?
Afghanistan ranks 184th out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
Is freedom score rising or falling in Afghanistan?
Over the last ten years it is down 66.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Afghanistan data come from?
The figures come from Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Freedom Score. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Freedom Score
Source
Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
197 places, 4,706 data points, 2002–2025
Last refreshed

Freedom House's total democracy score is a 0-to-100 aggregate that adds up a country's points on 25 indicators of political rights (max 40) and civil liberties (max 60), creating a single snapshot of the freedoms people actually enjoy.