What is liberal democracy index in Malaysia?

Liberal democracy index in Malaysia was 0.355 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

What is the highest liberal democracy index recorded in Malaysia?

The highest recorded value was 0.362 in 2023.

What is the lowest liberal democracy index recorded in Malaysia?

The lowest recorded value was 0.079 in 1942.

How does Malaysia rank for liberal democracy index?

Malaysia ranks 87th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.

Is liberal democracy index rising or falling in Malaysia?

Over the last ten years it is up 74.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.

Where does this Malaysia 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 Malaysia

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

Malaysia: Liberal Democracy Index was 0.355 in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)

0.355

Change on year

down 1.1%

World rank

87th

of 176 countries

All-time high

0.362

in 2023

All-time low

0.079

in 1942

Years of data

126

1900–2025

Liberal Democracy Index in Malaysia, 1900–2025

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

Analysis

The most recent figure for liberal democracy index in Malaysia is 0.355, measured in 2025.

The figure is down 1.1% on the previous year and up 74.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, liberal democracy index in Malaysia peaked at 0.362 in 2023 and was at its lowest, 0.079, in 1942.

Malaysia ranks 87th of 176 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 126 years of available data.

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1900s	0.115	0.115	0.115	10
1910s	0.1145	0.114	0.115	10
1920s	0.114	0.114	0.114	10
1930s	0.114	0.114	0.114	10
1940s	0.0996	0.079	0.14	10
1950s	0.1762	0.14	0.221	10
1960s	0.2089	0.163	0.219	10
1970s	0.1755	0.133	0.194	10
1980s	0.1723	0.155	0.196	10
1990s	0.1618	0.161	0.163	10
2000s	0.1945	0.165	0.218	10
2010s	0.2333	0.202	0.338	10
2020s	0.3332	0.3	0.362	6

Countries ranked near Malaysia

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More social development data for Malaysia

Political Rights Rating 4 (2025)
Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asy 150,164 (2025)
Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of ori 2,477 (2025)
Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
Liberal democracy 2 (2025)
Electoral democracy 2 (2025)
Human Rights Index 0.739 (2025)
Participatory Democracy Index 0.303 (2025)
Key features of human rights 0.739 (2025)
Key features of electoral democracy 0.504 (2025)

All data for Malaysia →

Frequently asked questions

What is liberal democracy index in Malaysia?: Liberal democracy index in Malaysia was 0.355 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest liberal democracy index recorded in Malaysia?: The highest recorded value was 0.362 in 2023.
What is the lowest liberal democracy index recorded in Malaysia?: The lowest recorded value was 0.079 in 1942.
How does Malaysia rank for liberal democracy index?: Malaysia ranks 87th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is liberal democracy index rising or falling in Malaysia?: Over the last ten years it is up 74.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Malaysia 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 — 126 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.