What is key features of liberal democracy in Switzerland?

Key features of liberal democracy in Switzerland was 0.843 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

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

The highest recorded value was 0.862 in 2012.

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

The lowest recorded value was 0.176 in 1804.

How does Switzerland rank for key features of liberal democracy?

Switzerland ranks 4th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.

Is key features of liberal democracy rising or falling in Switzerland?

Over the last ten years it is down 1.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.

Where does this Switzerland 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 Switzerland

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

Switzerland: Key features of liberal democracy was 0.843 in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)

0.843

Change on year

unchanged

World rank

4th

of 176 countries

All-time high

0.862

in 2012

All-time low

0.176

in 1804

Years of data

228

1798–2025

Key features of liberal democracy in Switzerland, 1798–2025

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

Analysis

In 2025, key features of liberal democracy in Switzerland stood at 0.843.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, key features of liberal democracy in Switzerland peaked at 0.862 in 2012 and was at its lowest, 0.176, in 1804.

That places Switzerland 4th out of 176 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 228 years of available data.

Key features of liberal democracy in Switzerland, year by year

Annual values for Key features of liberal democracy in Switzerland, 1798 to 2025.
Year	Value	Change
1798	0.264	—
1799	0.264	+0.0%
1800	0.26	-1.5%
1801	0.249	-4.2%
1802	0.252	+1.2%
1803	0.187	-25.8%
1804	0.176	-5.9%
1805	0.176	+0.0%
1806	0.176	+0.0%
1807	0.176	+0.0%
1808	0.176	+0.0%
1809	0.176	+0.0%
1810	0.176	+0.0%
1811	0.176	+0.0%
1812	0.176	+0.0%
1813	0.176	+0.0%
1814	0.176	+0.0%
1815	0.176	+0.0%
1816	0.176	+0.0%
1817	0.176	+0.0%
1818	0.176	+0.0%
1819	0.176	+0.0%
1820	0.176	+0.0%
1821	0.176	+0.0%
1822	0.176	+0.0%
1823	0.176	+0.0%
1824	0.176	+0.0%
1825	0.176	+0.0%
1826	0.176	+0.0%
1827	0.176	+0.0%
1828	0.176	+0.0%
1829	0.176	+0.0%
1830	0.176	+0.0%
1831	0.188	+6.8%
1832	0.188	+0.0%
1833	0.188	+0.0%
1834	0.188	+0.0%
1835	0.188	+0.0%
1836	0.188	+0.0%
1837	0.188	+0.0%
1838	0.188	+0.0%
1839	0.188	+0.0%
1840	0.188	+0.0%
1841	0.188	+0.0%
1842	0.188	+0.0%
1843	0.188	+0.0%
1844	0.188	+0.0%
1845	0.188	+0.0%
1846	0.188	+0.0%
1847	0.188	+0.0%
1848	0.32	+70.2%
1849	0.466	+45.6%
1850	0.466	+0.0%
1851	0.466	+0.0%
1852	0.465	-0.2%
1853	0.465	+0.0%
1854	0.466	+0.2%
1855	0.467	+0.2%
1856	0.467	+0.0%
1857	0.467	+0.0%
1858	0.464	-0.6%
1859	0.464	+0.0%
1860	0.464	+0.0%
1861	0.465	+0.2%
1862	0.465	+0.0%
1863	0.465	+0.0%
1864	0.466	+0.2%
1865	0.466	+0.0%
1866	0.466	+0.0%
1867	0.466	+0.0%
1868	0.466	+0.0%
1869	0.466	+0.0%
1870	0.469	+0.6%
1871	0.469	+0.0%
1872	0.468	-0.2%
1873	0.467	-0.2%
1874	0.496	+6.2%
1875	0.528	+6.5%
1876	0.529	+0.2%
1877	0.529	+0.0%
1878	0.529	+0.0%
1879	0.528	-0.2%
1880	0.528	+0.0%
1881	0.528	+0.0%
1882	0.529	+0.2%
1883	0.529	+0.0%
1884	0.528	-0.2%
1885	0.528	+0.0%
1886	0.528	+0.0%
1887	0.527	-0.2%
1888	0.527	+0.0%
1889	0.527	+0.0%
1890	0.528	+0.2%
1891	0.529	+0.2%
1892	0.529	+0.0%
1893	0.529	+0.0%
1894	0.529	+0.0%
1895	0.529	+0.0%
1896	0.528	-0.2%
1897	0.526	-0.4%
1898	0.526	+0.0%
1899	0.526	+0.0%
1900	0.532	+1.1%
1901	0.532	+0.0%
1902	0.534	+0.4%
1903	0.541	+1.3%
1904	0.541	+0.0%
1905	0.545	+0.7%
1906	0.544	-0.2%
1907	0.544	+0.0%
1908	0.544	+0.0%
1909	0.543	-0.2%
1910	0.543	+0.0%
1911	0.543	+0.0%
1912	0.542	-0.2%
1913	0.542	+0.0%
1914	0.543	+0.2%
1915	0.542	-0.2%
1916	0.542	+0.0%
1917	0.544	+0.4%
1918	0.544	+0.0%
1919	0.545	+0.2%
1920	0.549	+0.7%
1921	0.549	+0.0%
1922	0.549	+0.0%
1923	0.549	+0.0%
1924	0.549	+0.0%
1925	0.55	+0.2%
1926	0.55	+0.0%
1927	0.55	+0.0%
1928	0.55	+0.0%
1929	0.55	+0.0%
1930	0.55	+0.0%
1931	0.55	+0.0%
1932	0.548	-0.4%
1933	0.55	+0.4%
1934	0.55	+0.0%
1935	0.551	+0.2%
1936	0.553	+0.4%
1937	0.553	+0.0%
1938	0.553	+0.0%
1939	0.55	-0.5%
1940	0.542	-1.5%
1941	0.542	+0.0%
1942	0.542	+0.0%
1943	0.542	+0.0%
1944	0.544	+0.4%
1945	0.551	+1.3%
1946	0.562	+2.0%
1947	0.562	+0.0%
1948	0.561	-0.2%
1949	0.561	+0.0%
1950	0.562	+0.2%
1951	0.562	+0.0%
1952	0.561	-0.2%
1953	0.561	+0.0%
1954	0.561	+0.0%
1955	0.561	+0.0%
1956	0.561	+0.0%
1957	0.561	+0.0%
1958	0.561	+0.0%
1959	0.562	+0.2%
1960	0.565	+0.5%
1961	0.565	+0.0%
1962	0.565	+0.0%
1963	0.565	+0.0%
1964	0.568	+0.5%
1965	0.568	+0.0%
1966	0.568	+0.0%
1967	0.569	+0.2%
1968	0.568	-0.2%
1969	0.568	+0.0%
1970	0.571	+0.5%
1971	0.574	+0.5%
1972	0.789	+37.5%
1973	0.789	+0.0%
1974	0.793	+0.5%
1975	0.798	+0.6%
1976	0.797	-0.1%
1977	0.802	+0.6%
1978	0.802	+0.0%
1979	0.803	+0.1%
1980	0.809	+0.7%
1981	0.812	+0.4%
1982	0.812	+0.0%
1983	0.813	+0.1%
1984	0.815	+0.2%
1985	0.815	+0.0%
1986	0.815	+0.0%
1987	0.814	-0.1%
1988	0.812	-0.2%
1989	0.817	+0.6%
1990	0.829	+1.5%
1991	0.832	+0.4%
1992	0.83	-0.2%
1993	0.834	+0.5%
1994	0.834	+0.0%
1995	0.835	+0.1%
1996	0.839	+0.5%
1997	0.839	+0.0%
1998	0.839	+0.0%
1999	0.838	-0.1%
2000	0.836	-0.2%
2001	0.836	+0.0%
2002	0.837	+0.1%
2003	0.841	+0.5%
2004	0.841	+0.0%
2005	0.841	+0.0%
2006	0.841	+0.0%
2007	0.842	+0.1%
2008	0.85	+1.0%
2009	0.85	+0.0%
2010	0.85	+0.0%
2011	0.852	+0.2%
2012	0.862	+1.2%
2013	0.861	-0.1%
2014	0.861	+0.0%
2015	0.858	-0.3%
2016	0.857	-0.1%
2017	0.86	+0.4%
2018	0.86	+0.0%
2019	0.86	+0.0%
2020	0.856	-0.5%
2021	0.851	-0.6%
2022	0.848	-0.4%
2023	0.838	-1.2%
2024	0.843	+0.6%
2025	0.843	+0.0%

Switzerland compared with similar countries

Switzerland's 0.843 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.689, 1.2× the median. (55 countries reporting)
Switzerland's 0.843 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.591, 1.4× the median. (48 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1790s	0.264	0.264	0.264	2
1800s	0.2004	0.176	0.26	10
1810s	0.176	0.176	0.176	10
1820s	0.176	0.176	0.176	10
1830s	0.1868	0.176	0.188	10
1840s	0.229	0.188	0.466	10
1850s	0.4657	0.464	0.467	10
1860s	0.4655	0.464	0.466	10
1870s	0.5012	0.467	0.529	10
1880s	0.5279	0.527	0.529	10
1890s	0.5279	0.526	0.529	10
1900s	0.54	0.532	0.545	10
1910s	0.543	0.542	0.545	10
1920s	0.5495	0.549	0.55	10
1930s	0.5508	0.548	0.553	10
1940s	0.5509	0.542	0.562	10
1950s	0.5613	0.561	0.562	10
1960s	0.5669	0.565	0.569	10
1970s	0.7518	0.571	0.803	10
1980s	0.8134	0.809	0.817	10
1990s	0.8349	0.829	0.839	10
2000s	0.8415	0.836	0.85	10
2010s	0.8581	0.85	0.862	10
2020s	0.8465	0.838	0.856	6

Countries ranked near Switzerland

1 Denmark 0.884 compare
2 Sweden 0.853 compare
3 Norway 0.847 compare
5 Estonia 0.837 compare
6 Ireland 0.822 compare
7 Costa Rica 0.809 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More social development data for Switzerland

Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 208,287 (2025)
Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 6 (2025)
Political Rights Rating 1 (2025)
Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 1 (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 6 (2025)
Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0229 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 Switzerland →

Frequently asked questions

What is key features of liberal democracy in Switzerland?: Key features of liberal democracy in Switzerland was 0.843 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest key features of liberal democracy recorded in Switzerland?: The highest recorded value was 0.862 in 2012.
What is the lowest key features of liberal democracy recorded in Switzerland?: The lowest recorded value was 0.176 in 1804.
How does Switzerland rank for key features of liberal democracy?: Switzerland ranks 4th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is key features of liberal democracy rising or falling in Switzerland?: Over the last ten years it is down 1.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Switzerland 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 Switzerland. 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/switzerland/

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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.