Freedom Score in Ethiopia

Ethiopia: Freedom Score was 18 in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)
18
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
162nd
of 197 countries
All-time high
36
in 2005
All-time low
12
in 2016
Years of data
24
2002–2025

Freedom Score in Ethiopia, 2002–2025

1015202530352002201320252002: 322003: 322004: 332005: 362006: 342007: 332008: 332009: 312010: 212011: 192012: 182013: 182014: 182015: 152016: 122017: 122018: 192019: 242020: 222021: 232022: 212023: 202024: 182025: 18

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

Analysis

The most recent figure for freedom score in Ethiopia is 18, measured in 2025.

That represents a change of up 20.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, freedom score in Ethiopia peaked at 36 in 2005 and was at its lowest, 12, in 2016.

Ethiopia ranks 162nd of 197 countries on this measure, 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 33 31 36 8
2010s 17.6 12 24 10
2020s 20.33 18 23 6

Countries ranked near Ethiopia

  1. 160 Burkina Faso 20 compare
  2. 160 Vietnam 20 compare
  3. 162 Democratic Republic of Congo 18 compare
  4. 162 Egypt 18 compare
  5. 162 United Arab Emirates 18 compare

See the full ranking of 197 places →

More social development data for Ethiopia

All data for Ethiopia →

Frequently asked questions

What is freedom score in Ethiopia?
Freedom score in Ethiopia was 18 in 2025, according to Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest freedom score recorded in Ethiopia?
The highest recorded value was 36 in 2005.
What is the lowest freedom score recorded in Ethiopia?
The lowest recorded value was 12 in 2016.
How does Ethiopia rank for freedom score?
Ethiopia ranks 162nd out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
Is freedom score rising or falling in Ethiopia?
Over the last ten years it is up 20.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Ethiopia 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.