Freedom Score in South Korea
South Korea: Freedom Score was 83 in 2025. ▬ Flat
Freedom Score in South Korea, 2002–2025
Source: Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for freedom score in South Korea is 83, measured in 2025.
The figure is up 2.5% on the previous year and unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, freedom score in South Korea peaked at 87 in 2006 and was at its lowest, 81, in 2024.
South Korea ranks 58th of 197 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
Freedom Score in South Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 83 | — |
| 2003 | 82 | -1.2% |
| 2004 | 85 | +3.7% |
| 2005 | 85 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 87 | +2.4% |
| 2007 | 86 | -1.1% |
| 2008 | 86 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 86 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 86 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 86 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 86 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 85 | -1.2% |
| 2014 | 84 | -1.2% |
| 2015 | 83 | -1.2% |
| 2016 | 82 | -1.2% |
| 2017 | 84 | +2.4% |
| 2018 | 83 | -1.2% |
| 2019 | 83 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 83 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 83 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 83 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 83 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 81 | -2.4% |
| 2025 | 83 | +2.5% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 83 is below the median for high income countries, which is 90, 92% of the median. (66 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 83 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 73, 1.1× the median. (31 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 85 | 82 | 87 | 8 |
| 2010s | 84.2 | 82 | 86 | 10 |
| 2020s | 82.67 | 81 | 83 | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
- 55 Mongolia 84 compare
- 55 Samoa 84 compare
- 55 Sao Tome and Principe 84 compare
- 58 Antigua and Barbuda 83 compare
- 58 Romania 83 compare
- 58 Trinidad and Tobago 83 compare
More social development data for South Korea
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 4,407 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 117 (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 117 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0001 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 South Korea?
- Freedom score in South Korea was 83 in 2025, according to Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest freedom score recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 87 in 2006.
- What is the lowest freedom score recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 81 in 2024.
- How does South Korea rank for freedom score?
- South Korea ranks 58th out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
- Is freedom score rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this South Korea 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.