What is liberal democracy index in Canada?

Liberal democracy index in Canada was 0.736 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

What is the highest liberal democracy index recorded in Canada?

The highest recorded value was 0.769 in 2017.

What is the lowest liberal democracy index recorded in Canada?

The lowest recorded value was 0.281 in 1861.

How does Canada rank for liberal democracy index?

Canada ranks 23rd out of 176 countries with data for 2025.

Is liberal democracy index rising or falling in Canada?

Over the last ten years it is up 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.

Where does this Canada data come from?

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

Liberal Democracy Index in Canada

Name: Liberal Democracy Index in Canada
Creator: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

Canada: Liberal Democracy Index was 0.736 in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)

0.736

Change on year

down 1.1%

World rank

23rd

of 176 countries

All-time high

0.769

in 2017

All-time low

0.281

in 1861

Years of data

185

1841–2025

Liberal Democracy Index in Canada, 1841–2025

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

Analysis

In 2025, liberal democracy index in Canada stood at 0.736.

That represents a change of down 1.1% on the previous year and up 0.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, liberal democracy index in Canada peaked at 0.769 in 2017 and was at its lowest, 0.281, in 1861.

Canada ranks 23rd of 176 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 185 years of available data.

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1840s	0.2846	0.283	0.286	9
1850s	0.283	0.282	0.284	10
1860s	0.2946	0.281	0.335	10
1870s	0.3561	0.335	0.385	10
1880s	0.3871	0.385	0.392	10
1890s	0.4025	0.392	0.412	10
1900s	0.4134	0.407	0.417	10
1910s	0.4055	0.381	0.417	10
1920s	0.5346	0.401	0.562	10
1930s	0.5565	0.541	0.581	10
1940s	0.5771	0.548	0.628	10
1950s	0.6599	0.654	0.666	10
1960s	0.724	0.688	0.734	10
1970s	0.7422	0.735	0.75	10
1980s	0.7524	0.746	0.757	10
1990s	0.7571	0.75	0.765	10
2000s	0.7524	0.746	0.759	10
2010s	0.7509	0.735	0.769	10
2020s	0.7435	0.736	0.749	6

Countries ranked near Canada

20 Latvia 0.751 compare
21 Spain 0.741 compare
22 South Korea 0.739 compare
24 Japan 0.734 compare
25 Iceland 0.72 compare
26 Portugal 0.717 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More social development data for Canada

Political Rights Rating 1 (2025)
Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asy 416,028 (2025)
Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of ori 360 (2025)
Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
Liberal democracy 2 (2025)
Electoral democracy 2 (2025)
Human Rights Index 0.897 (2025)
Participatory Democracy Index 0.589 (2025)
Key features of human rights 0.897 (2025)
Key features of electoral democracy 0.84 (2025)

All data for Canada →

Frequently asked questions

What is liberal democracy index in Canada?: Liberal democracy index in Canada was 0.736 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest liberal democracy index recorded in Canada?: The highest recorded value was 0.769 in 2017.
What is the lowest liberal democracy index recorded in Canada?: The lowest recorded value was 0.281 in 1861.
How does Canada rank for liberal democracy index?: Canada ranks 23rd out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is liberal democracy index rising or falling in Canada?: Over the last ten years it is up 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Canada data come from?: The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Liberal Democracy Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 185 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator: Liberal Democracy Index
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: 07 August 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.