Freedom Score in Kenya
Kenya: Freedom Score was 49 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Freedom Score in Kenya, 2002–2025
Source: Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, freedom score in Kenya stood at 49.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 3.9% on the previous year and down 3.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, freedom score in Kenya peaked at 66 in 2004 and was at its lowest, 48, in 2002.
That places Kenya 118th 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 Kenya, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 48 | — |
| 2003 | 65 | +35.4% |
| 2004 | 66 | +1.5% |
| 2005 | 66 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 64 | -3.0% |
| 2007 | 58 | -9.4% |
| 2008 | 54 | -6.9% |
| 2009 | 52 | -3.7% |
| 2010 | 56 | +7.7% |
| 2011 | 57 | +1.8% |
| 2012 | 55 | -3.5% |
| 2013 | 53 | -3.6% |
| 2014 | 51 | -3.8% |
| 2015 | 51 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 51 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 48 | -5.9% |
| 2018 | 48 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 48 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 48 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 48 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 52 | +8.3% |
| 2023 | 52 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 51 | -1.9% |
| 2025 | 49 | -3.9% |
Kenya compared with similar countries
- Kenya's 49 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 41, 1.2× the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Kenya's 49 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 35, 1.4× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Freedom Score in Kenya changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | +35.4% | 48 | 65 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 59.12 | 48 | 66 | 8 |
| 2010s | 51.8 | 48 | 57 | 10 |
| 2020s | 50 | 48 | 52 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Kenya
More social development data for Kenya
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 617,125 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 13,325 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 4 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 4 (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 13,325 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0107 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 Kenya?
- Freedom score in Kenya was 49 in 2025, according to Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest freedom score recorded in Kenya?
- The highest recorded value was 66 in 2004.
- What is the lowest freedom score recorded in Kenya?
- The lowest recorded value was 48 in 2002.
- How does Kenya rank for freedom score?
- Kenya ranks 118th out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
- Is freedom score rising or falling in Kenya?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Kenya 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.