Statizoid

Liberal Democracy Index in El Salvador

El Salvador: Liberal Democracy Index was 0.09 in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
0.09
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
149th
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.465
in 2014
All-time low
0.038
in 1932
Years of data
147
1838–2025

Liberal Democracy Index in El Salvador, 1838–2025

00.10.20.30.40.5183819312025

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

Analysis

El Salvador recorded 0.09 for liberal democracy index in 2025.

That represents a change of down 80.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, liberal democracy index in El Salvador peaked at 0.465 in 2014 and was at its lowest, 0.038, in 1932.

That places El Salvador 149th out of 176 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.

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

Liberal Democracy Index in El Salvador, year by year

Year Value Change
1838 0.053 —
1839 0.053 +0.0%
1840 0.058 +9.4%
1841 0.064 +10.3%
1845 0.065 +1.6%
1846 0.065 +0.0%
1848 0.065 +0.0%
1849 0.065 +0.0%
1851 0.065 +0.0%
1852 0.065 +0.0%
1858 0.066 +1.5%
1859 0.066 +0.0%
1863 0.057 -13.6%
1864 0.057 +0.0%
1865 0.057 +0.0%
1866 0.057 +0.0%
1867 0.066 +15.8%
1868 0.066 +0.0%
1869 0.066 +0.0%
1871 0.059 -10.6%
1876 0.059 +0.0%
1885 0.061 +3.4%
1890 0.063 +3.3%
1891 0.063 +0.0%
1903 0.075 +19.0%
1904 0.075 +0.0%
1905 0.076 +1.3%
1906 0.074 -2.6%
1907 0.075 +1.4%
1908 0.075 +0.0%
1909 0.075 +0.0%
1910 0.075 +0.0%
1911 0.076 +1.3%
1912 0.076 +0.0%
1913 0.076 +0.0%
1914 0.076 +0.0%
1915 0.078 +2.6%
1916 0.078 +0.0%
1917 0.078 +0.0%
1918 0.078 +0.0%
1919 0.076 -2.6%
1920 0.076 +0.0%
1921 0.076 +0.0%
1922 0.076 +0.0%
1923 0.076 +0.0%
1924 0.076 +0.0%
1925 0.076 +0.0%
1926 0.076 +0.0%
1927 0.079 +3.9%
1928 0.079 +0.0%
1929 0.079 +0.0%
1930 0.081 +2.5%
1931 0.067 -17.3%
1932 0.038 -43.3%
1933 0.045 +18.4%
1934 0.045 +0.0%
1935 0.045 +0.0%
1936 0.045 +0.0%
1937 0.045 +0.0%
1938 0.045 +0.0%
1939 0.045 +0.0%
1940 0.051 +13.3%
1941 0.051 +0.0%
1942 0.051 +0.0%
1943 0.051 +0.0%
1944 0.05 -2.0%
1945 0.06 +20.0%
1946 0.063 +5.0%
1947 0.063 +0.0%
1948 0.062 -1.6%
1949 0.054 -12.9%
1950 0.06 +11.1%
1951 0.069 +15.0%
1952 0.068 -1.4%
1953 0.068 +0.0%
1954 0.068 +0.0%
1955 0.067 -1.5%
1956 0.067 +0.0%
1957 0.067 +0.0%
1958 0.067 +0.0%
1959 0.067 +0.0%
1960 0.066 -1.5%
1961 0.052 -21.2%
1962 0.062 +19.2%
1963 0.068 +9.7%
1964 0.068 +0.0%
1965 0.068 +0.0%
1966 0.068 +0.0%
1967 0.068 +0.0%
1968 0.067 -1.5%
1969 0.066 -1.5%
1970 0.065 -1.5%
1971 0.065 +0.0%
1972 0.06 -7.7%
1973 0.056 -6.7%
1974 0.055 -1.8%
1975 0.055 +0.0%
1976 0.055 +0.0%
1977 0.055 +0.0%
1978 0.054 -1.8%
1979 0.052 -3.7%
1980 0.042 -19.2%
1981 0.042 +0.0%
1982 0.046 +9.5%
1983 0.048 +4.3%
1984 0.052 +8.3%
1985 0.069 +32.7%
1986 0.08 +15.9%
1987 0.081 +1.3%
1988 0.081 +0.0%
1989 0.08 -1.2%
1990 0.085 +6.3%
1991 0.089 +4.7%
1992 0.141 +58.4%
1993 0.207 +46.8%
1994 0.258 +24.6%
1995 0.274 +6.2%
1996 0.28 +2.2%
1997 0.282 +0.7%
1998 0.289 +2.5%
1999 0.297 +2.8%
2000 0.315 +6.1%
2001 0.326 +3.5%
2002 0.331 +1.5%
2003 0.332 +0.3%
2004 0.336 +1.2%
2005 0.338 +0.6%
2006 0.348 +3.0%
2007 0.351 +0.9%
2008 0.357 +1.7%
2009 0.399 +11.8%
2010 0.422 +5.8%
2011 0.425 +0.7%
2012 0.429 +0.9%
2013 0.437 +1.9%
2014 0.465 +6.4%
2015 0.462 -0.6%
2016 0.461 -0.2%
2017 0.465 +0.9%
2018 0.428 -8.0%
2019 0.393 -8.2%
2020 0.316 -19.6%
2021 0.156 -50.6%
2022 0.118 -24.4%
2023 0.106 -10.2%
2024 0.09 -15.1%
2025 0.09 +0.0%

El Salvador compared with similar countries

  • El Salvador's 0.09 is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.347, 26% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
  • El Salvador's 0.09 is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 0.506, 18% of the median. (25 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Liberal Democracy Index in El Salvador changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
1992 +58.4% 0.089 0.141
2021 -50.6% 0.316 0.156
1993 +46.8% 0.141 0.207
1932 -43.3% 0.067 0.038
1985 +32.7% 0.052 0.069

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1830s 0.053 0.053 0.053 2
1840s 0.0637 0.058 0.065 6
1850s 0.0655 0.065 0.066 4
1860s 0.0609 0.057 0.066 7
1870s 0.059 0.059 0.059 2
1880s 0.061 0.061 0.061 1
1890s 0.063 0.063 0.063 2
1900s 0.075 0.074 0.076 7
1910s 0.0767 0.075 0.078 10
1920s 0.0769 0.076 0.079 10
1930s 0.0501 0.038 0.081 10
1940s 0.0556 0.05 0.063 10
1950s 0.0668 0.06 0.069 10
1960s 0.0653 0.052 0.068 10
1970s 0.0572 0.052 0.065 10
1980s 0.0621 0.042 0.081 10
1990s 0.2202 0.085 0.297 10
2000s 0.3433 0.315 0.399 10
2010s 0.4387 0.393 0.465 10
2020s 0.146 0.09 0.316 6

Countries ranked near El Salvador

  1. 146 Guinea 0.095 compare
  2. 146 Guinea-Bissau 0.095 compare
  3. 148 Qatar 0.091 compare
  4. 149 Rwanda 0.09 compare
  5. 151 Uzbekistan 0.079 compare
  6. 152 United Arab Emirates 0.077 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More social development data for El Salvador

All data for El Salvador →

Frequently asked questions

What is liberal democracy index in El Salvador?
Liberal democracy index in El Salvador was 0.09 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest liberal democracy index recorded in El Salvador?
The highest recorded value was 0.465 in 2014.
What is the lowest liberal democracy index recorded in El Salvador?
The lowest recorded value was 0.038 in 1932.
How does El Salvador rank for liberal democracy index?
El Salvador ranks 149th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is liberal democracy index rising or falling in El Salvador?
Over the last ten years it is down 80.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this El Salvador 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.

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CSV · JSON — 147 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

Relationships involving this indicator

Comparisons with other indicators across countries. Each was re-measured with population and national income held constant, so a relationship that only reflected country size is not listed here.

All correlations →

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Liberal Democracy Index in El Salvador. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://social-development.statizoid.com/stat/liberal-democracy-index/el-salvador/

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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

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.