Freedom Score in United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: Freedom Score was 18 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Freedom Score in United Arab Emirates, 2002–2025
Source: Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, freedom score in United Arab Emirates stood at 18.
The figure is down 10.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, freedom score in United Arab Emirates peaked at 29 in 2002 and was at its lowest, 17, in 2017.
That places United Arab Emirates 162nd out of 197 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.
Freedom Score in United Arab Emirates, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 29 | — |
| 2003 | 23 | -20.7% |
| 2004 | 22 | -4.3% |
| 2005 | 22 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 25 | +13.6% |
| 2007 | 26 | +4.0% |
| 2008 | 28 | +7.7% |
| 2009 | 27 | -3.6% |
| 2010 | 27 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 24 | -11.1% |
| 2012 | 22 | -8.3% |
| 2013 | 21 | -4.5% |
| 2014 | 21 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 20 | -4.8% |
| 2016 | 20 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 17 | -15.0% |
| 2018 | 17 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 17 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 17 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 17 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 18 | +5.9% |
| 2023 | 18 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 18 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 18 | +0.0% |
United Arab Emirates compared with similar countries
- United Arab Emirates's 18 is below the median for high income countries, which is 90, 20% of the median. (66 countries reporting)
- United Arab Emirates's 18 is below the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 24.5, 73% of the median. (22 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 25.25 | 22 | 29 | 8 |
| 2010s | 20.6 | 17 | 27 | 10 |
| 2020s | 17.67 | 17 | 18 | 6 |
Countries ranked near United Arab Emirates
- 160 Burkina Faso 20 compare
- 160 Vietnam 20 compare
- 162 Democratic Republic of Congo 18 compare
- 162 Egypt 18 compare
- 162 Ethiopia 18 compare
More social development data for United Arab Emirates
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 1,377 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 252 (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 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 252 (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 (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is freedom score in United Arab Emirates?
- Freedom score in United Arab Emirates was 18 in 2025, according to Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest freedom score recorded in United Arab Emirates?
- The highest recorded value was 29 in 2002.
- What is the lowest freedom score recorded in United Arab Emirates?
- The lowest recorded value was 17 in 2017.
- How does United Arab Emirates rank for freedom score?
- United Arab Emirates ranks 162nd out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
- Is freedom score rising or falling in United Arab Emirates?
- Over the last ten years it is down 10.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United Arab Emirates 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.