What is key features of liberal democracy in South Korea?

Key features of liberal democracy in South Korea was 0.739 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

What is the highest key features of liberal democracy recorded in South Korea?

The highest recorded value was 0.794 in 2018.

What is the lowest key features of liberal democracy recorded in South Korea?

The lowest recorded value was 0.014 in 1849.

How does South Korea rank for key features of liberal democracy?

South Korea ranks 22nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025.

Is key features of liberal democracy rising or falling in South Korea?

Over the last ten years it is up 23.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.

Where does this South Korea data come from?

The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Key features of liberal democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Key features of liberal democracy in South Korea

Name: Key features of liberal democracy in South Korea
Creator: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

South Korea: Key features of liberal democracy was 0.739 in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)

0.739

Change on year

up 17.9%

World rank

22nd

of 176 countries

All-time high

0.794

in 2018

All-time low

0.014

in 1849

Years of data

237

1789–2025

Key features of liberal democracy in South Korea, 1789–2025

Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

In 2025, key features of liberal democracy in South Korea stood at 0.739.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 17.9% on the previous year and up 23.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, key features of liberal democracy in South Korea peaked at 0.794 in 2018 and was at its lowest, 0.014, in 1849.

That places South Korea 22nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Key features of liberal democracy in South Korea, year by year

Annual values for Key features of liberal democracy in South Korea, 1789 to 2025.
Year	Value	Change
1789	0.016	—
1790	0.016	+0.0%
1791	0.016	+0.0%
1792	0.016	+0.0%
1793	0.016	+0.0%
1794	0.016	+0.0%
1795	0.016	+0.0%
1796	0.016	+0.0%
1797	0.016	+0.0%
1798	0.016	+0.0%
1799	0.016	+0.0%
1800	0.015	-6.3%
1801	0.015	+0.0%
1802	0.015	+0.0%
1803	0.016	+6.7%
1804	0.015	-6.3%
1805	0.015	+0.0%
1806	0.015	+0.0%
1807	0.015	+0.0%
1808	0.015	+0.0%
1809	0.015	+0.0%
1810	0.015	+0.0%
1811	0.015	+0.0%
1812	0.015	+0.0%
1813	0.015	+0.0%
1814	0.015	+0.0%
1815	0.015	+0.0%
1816	0.015	+0.0%
1817	0.015	+0.0%
1818	0.015	+0.0%
1819	0.015	+0.0%
1820	0.015	+0.0%
1821	0.015	+0.0%
1822	0.015	+0.0%
1823	0.015	+0.0%
1824	0.015	+0.0%
1825	0.015	+0.0%
1826	0.015	+0.0%
1827	0.015	+0.0%
1828	0.015	+0.0%
1829	0.015	+0.0%
1830	0.015	+0.0%
1831	0.015	+0.0%
1832	0.015	+0.0%
1833	0.015	+0.0%
1834	0.015	+0.0%
1835	0.015	+0.0%
1836	0.015	+0.0%
1837	0.015	+0.0%
1838	0.015	+0.0%
1839	0.015	+0.0%
1840	0.015	+0.0%
1841	0.015	+0.0%
1842	0.015	+0.0%
1843	0.015	+0.0%
1844	0.015	+0.0%
1845	0.015	+0.0%
1846	0.015	+0.0%
1847	0.015	+0.0%
1848	0.015	+0.0%
1849	0.014	-6.7%
1850	0.014	+0.0%
1851	0.014	+0.0%
1852	0.014	+0.0%
1853	0.014	+0.0%
1854	0.014	+0.0%
1855	0.014	+0.0%
1856	0.014	+0.0%
1857	0.014	+0.0%
1858	0.014	+0.0%
1859	0.014	+0.0%
1860	0.014	+0.0%
1861	0.014	+0.0%
1862	0.014	+0.0%
1863	0.014	+0.0%
1864	0.016	+14.3%
1865	0.016	+0.0%
1866	0.016	+0.0%
1867	0.016	+0.0%
1868	0.016	+0.0%
1869	0.016	+0.0%
1870	0.016	+0.0%
1871	0.016	+0.0%
1872	0.016	+0.0%
1873	0.016	+0.0%
1874	0.015	-6.3%
1875	0.015	+0.0%
1876	0.015	+0.0%
1877	0.015	+0.0%
1878	0.015	+0.0%
1879	0.015	+0.0%
1880	0.015	+0.0%
1881	0.015	+0.0%
1882	0.016	+6.7%
1883	0.016	+0.0%
1884	0.016	+0.0%
1885	0.017	+6.3%
1886	0.017	+0.0%
1887	0.017	+0.0%
1888	0.017	+0.0%
1889	0.017	+0.0%
1890	0.017	+0.0%
1891	0.017	+0.0%
1892	0.017	+0.0%
1893	0.017	+0.0%
1894	0.019	+11.8%
1895	0.025	+31.6%
1896	0.029	+16.0%
1897	0.034	+17.2%
1898	0.034	+0.0%
1899	0.034	+0.0%
1900	0.033	-2.9%
1901	0.033	+0.0%
1902	0.033	+0.0%
1903	0.033	+0.0%
1904	0.033	+0.0%
1905	0.032	-3.0%
1906	0.032	+0.0%
1907	0.032	+0.0%
1908	0.032	+0.0%
1909	0.032	+0.0%
1910	0.021	-34.4%
1911	0.021	+0.0%
1912	0.021	+0.0%
1913	0.021	+0.0%
1914	0.021	+0.0%
1915	0.021	+0.0%
1916	0.021	+0.0%
1917	0.021	+0.0%
1918	0.021	+0.0%
1919	0.021	+0.0%
1920	0.021	+0.0%
1921	0.021	+0.0%
1922	0.021	+0.0%
1923	0.021	+0.0%
1924	0.021	+0.0%
1925	0.021	+0.0%
1926	0.021	+0.0%
1927	0.021	+0.0%
1928	0.021	+0.0%
1929	0.021	+0.0%
1930	0.021	+0.0%
1931	0.021	+0.0%
1932	0.021	+0.0%
1933	0.021	+0.0%
1934	0.021	+0.0%
1935	0.021	+0.0%
1936	0.021	+0.0%
1937	0.021	+0.0%
1938	0.02	-4.8%
1939	0.019	-5.0%
1940	0.019	+0.0%
1941	0.017	-10.5%
1942	0.017	+0.0%
1943	0.017	+0.0%
1944	0.017	+0.0%
1945	0.031	+82.4%
1946	0.063	+103.2%
1947	0.062	-1.6%
1948	0.103	+66.1%
1949	0.154	+49.5%
1950	0.146	-5.2%
1951	0.142	-2.7%
1952	0.142	+0.0%
1953	0.148	+4.2%
1954	0.146	-1.4%
1955	0.147	+0.7%
1956	0.146	-0.7%
1957	0.146	+0.0%
1958	0.146	+0.0%
1959	0.146	+0.0%
1960	0.223	+52.7%
1961	0.122	-45.3%
1962	0.103	-15.6%
1963	0.108	+4.9%
1964	0.136	+25.9%
1965	0.135	-0.7%
1966	0.135	+0.0%
1967	0.135	+0.0%
1968	0.135	+0.0%
1969	0.135	+0.0%
1970	0.135	+0.0%
1971	0.135	+0.0%
1972	0.106	-21.5%
1973	0.098	-7.5%
1974	0.099	+1.0%
1975	0.099	+0.0%
1976	0.098	-1.0%
1977	0.098	+0.0%
1978	0.098	+0.0%
1979	0.099	+1.0%
1980	0.103	+4.0%
1981	0.105	+1.9%
1982	0.116	+10.5%
1983	0.119	+2.6%
1984	0.123	+3.4%
1985	0.143	+16.3%
1986	0.148	+3.5%
1987	0.219	+48.0%
1988	0.469	+114.2%
1989	0.498	+6.2%
1990	0.5	+0.4%
1991	0.5	+0.0%
1992	0.512	+2.4%
1993	0.607	+18.6%
1994	0.612	+0.8%
1995	0.612	+0.0%
1996	0.618	+1.0%
1997	0.638	+3.2%
1998	0.729	+14.3%
1999	0.736	+1.0%
2000	0.753	+2.3%
2001	0.757	+0.5%
2002	0.761	+0.5%
2003	0.761	+0.0%
2004	0.761	+0.0%
2005	0.762	+0.1%
2006	0.762	+0.0%
2007	0.759	-0.4%
2008	0.661	-12.9%
2009	0.662	+0.2%
2010	0.665	+0.5%
2011	0.665	+0.0%
2012	0.658	-1.1%
2013	0.609	-7.4%
2014	0.6	-1.5%
2015	0.599	-0.2%
2016	0.62	+3.5%
2017	0.791	+27.6%
2018	0.794	+0.4%
2019	0.777	-2.1%
2020	0.782	+0.6%
2021	0.775	-0.9%
2022	0.718	-7.4%
2023	0.62	-13.6%
2024	0.627	+1.1%
2025	0.739	+17.9%

South Korea compared with similar countries

South Korea's 0.739 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.689, 1.1× the median. (55 countries reporting)
South Korea's 0.739 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.3575, 2.1× the median. (22 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1780s	0.016	0.016	0.016	1
1790s	0.016	0.016	0.016	10
1800s	0.0151	0.015	0.016	10
1810s	0.015	0.015	0.015	10
1820s	0.015	0.015	0.015	10
1830s	0.015	0.015	0.015	10
1840s	0.0149	0.014	0.015	10
1850s	0.014	0.014	0.014	10
1860s	0.0152	0.014	0.016	10
1870s	0.0154	0.015	0.016	10
1880s	0.0163	0.015	0.017	10
1890s	0.0243	0.017	0.034	10
1900s	0.0325	0.032	0.033	10
1910s	0.021	0.021	0.021	10
1920s	0.021	0.021	0.021	10
1930s	0.0207	0.019	0.021	10
1940s	0.05	0.017	0.154	10
1950s	0.1455	0.142	0.148	10
1960s	0.1367	0.103	0.223	10
1970s	0.1065	0.098	0.135	10
1980s	0.2043	0.103	0.498	10
1990s	0.6064	0.5	0.736	10
2000s	0.7399	0.661	0.762	10
2010s	0.6778	0.599	0.794	10
2020s	0.7102	0.62	0.782	6

Countries ranked near South Korea

19 Austria 0.757 compare
20 Latvia 0.751 compare
21 Spain 0.741 compare
23 Canada 0.736 compare
24 Japan 0.734 compare
25 Iceland 0.72 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

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)

All data for South Korea →

Frequently asked questions

What is key features of liberal democracy in South Korea?: Key features of liberal democracy in South Korea was 0.739 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest key features of liberal democracy recorded in South Korea?: The highest recorded value was 0.794 in 2018.
What is the lowest key features of liberal democracy recorded in South Korea?: The lowest recorded value was 0.014 in 1849.
How does South Korea rank for key features of liberal democracy?: South Korea ranks 22nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is key features of liberal democracy rising or falling in South Korea?: Over the last ten years it is up 23.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this South Korea data come from?: The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Key features of liberal democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Key features of liberal democracy in South Korea. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 08 October 2026, from https://social-development.statizoid.com/stat/key-features-of-liberal-democracy/korea-rep/

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About this data

Indicator: Key features of liberal democracy
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 176 places, 28,671 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed: 18 September 2026

Central estimate of the extent of suffrage, the freedom and fairness of elections, freedoms of association and expression, individual and minority rights, equality before the law, and executive constraints.