Freedom Score in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Freedom Score was 9 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Freedom Score in Saudi Arabia, 2002–2025
Source: Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for freedom score in Saudi Arabia is 9, measured in 2025.
That represents a change of down 10.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, freedom score in Saudi Arabia peaked at 13 in 2006 and was at its lowest, 7, in 2003.
Saudi Arabia ranks 181st 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.
Freedom Score in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 9 | — |
| 2003 | 7 | -22.2% |
| 2004 | 8 | +14.3% |
| 2005 | 12 | +50.0% |
| 2006 | 13 | +8.3% |
| 2007 | 13 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 12 | -7.7% |
| 2009 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 10 | -16.7% |
| 2012 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 7 | -30.0% |
| 2018 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 8 | +14.3% |
| 2023 | 8 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 9 | +12.5% |
| 2025 | 9 | +0.0% |
Saudi Arabia compared with similar countries
- Saudi Arabia's 9 is below the median for high income countries, which is 90, 10% of the median. (66 countries reporting)
- Saudi Arabia's 9 is below the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 24.5, 37% of the median. (22 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 10.75 | 7 | 13 | 8 |
| 2010s | 9.3 | 7 | 12 | 10 |
| 2020s | 8 | 7 | 9 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
More social development data for Saudi Arabia
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 448 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 2,368 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 7 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 0 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 7 (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 2,368 (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 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is freedom score in Saudi Arabia?
- Freedom score in Saudi Arabia was 9 in 2025, according to Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest freedom score recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 13 in 2006.
- What is the lowest freedom score recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 7 in 2003.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for freedom score?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 181st out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
- Is freedom score rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 10.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia 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 freedom score captures the extent of free and fair elections, political pluralism and participation, a functioning government, freedom of expression and association, the rule of law, and personal autonomy. Higher scores indicate more freedom.