Freedom Score in India
India: Freedom Score was 62 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Freedom Score in India, 2002–2025
Source: Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for freedom score in India is 62, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 24 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.6% on the previous year and down 19.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, freedom score in India peaked at 78 in 2014 and was at its lowest, 62, in 2025.
That places India 100th out of 197 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.
Freedom Score in India, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 71 | — |
| 2003 | 74 | +4.2% |
| 2004 | 76 | +2.7% |
| 2005 | 76 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 76 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 76 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 76 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 76 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 76 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 77 | +1.3% |
| 2012 | 76 | -1.3% |
| 2013 | 77 | +1.3% |
| 2014 | 78 | +1.3% |
| 2015 | 77 | -1.3% |
| 2016 | 77 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 77 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 75 | -2.6% |
| 2019 | 71 | -5.3% |
| 2020 | 67 | -5.6% |
| 2021 | 66 | -1.5% |
| 2022 | 66 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 66 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 63 | -4.5% |
| 2025 | 62 | -1.6% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 62 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 41, 1.5× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- India's 62 is above the median for South Asia, which is 60.5, 1.0× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 75.12 | 71 | 76 | 8 |
| 2010s | 76.1 | 71 | 78 | 10 |
| 2020s | 65 | 62 | 67 | 6 |
Countries ranked near India
More social development data for India
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 238,643 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 42,610 (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 42,610 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0002 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 score in India?
- Freedom score in India was 62 in 2025, according to Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest freedom score recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 78 in 2014.
- What is the lowest freedom score recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 62 in 2025.
- How does India rank for freedom score?
- India ranks 100th out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
- Is freedom score rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is down 19.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this India 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
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.