Liberal Democracy Index in Malaysia
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.
Liberal Democracy Index in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1900 | 0.115 | — |
| 1901 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1902 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1903 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1904 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1905 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1906 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1907 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1908 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1909 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1910 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1911 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1912 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1913 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1914 | 0.115 | +0.0% |
| 1915 | 0.114 | -0.9% |
| 1916 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1917 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1918 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1919 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1920 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1921 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1922 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1923 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1924 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1925 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1926 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1927 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1928 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1929 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1930 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1931 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1932 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1933 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1934 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1935 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1936 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1937 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1938 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1939 | 0.114 | +0.0% |
| 1940 | 0.109 | -4.4% |
| 1941 | 0.088 | -19.3% |
| 1942 | 0.079 | -10.2% |
| 1943 | 0.079 | +0.0% |
| 1944 | 0.079 | +0.0% |
| 1945 | 0.08 | +1.3% |
| 1946 | 0.112 | +40.0% |
| 1947 | 0.116 | +3.6% |
| 1948 | 0.114 | -1.7% |
| 1949 | 0.14 | +22.8% |
| 1950 | 0.14 | +0.0% |
| 1951 | 0.14 | +0.0% |
| 1952 | 0.14 | +0.0% |
| 1953 | 0.14 | +0.0% |
| 1954 | 0.14 | +0.0% |
| 1955 | 0.187 | +33.6% |
| 1956 | 0.219 | +17.1% |
| 1957 | 0.214 | -2.3% |
| 1958 | 0.221 | +3.3% |
| 1959 | 0.221 | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 0.217 | -1.8% |
| 1961 | 0.219 | +0.9% |
| 1962 | 0.218 | -0.5% |
| 1963 | 0.218 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 0.212 | -2.8% |
| 1965 | 0.21 | -0.9% |
| 1966 | 0.21 | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 0.213 | +1.4% |
| 1968 | 0.209 | -1.9% |
| 1969 | 0.163 | -22.0% |
| 1970 | 0.133 | -18.4% |
| 1971 | 0.133 | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 0.17 | +27.8% |
| 1973 | 0.17 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 0.179 | +5.3% |
| 1975 | 0.194 | +8.4% |
| 1976 | 0.194 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 0.194 | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 0.194 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 0.194 | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 0.196 | +1.0% |
| 1981 | 0.191 | -2.6% |
| 1982 | 0.175 | -8.4% |
| 1983 | 0.173 | -1.1% |
| 1984 | 0.171 | -1.2% |
| 1985 | 0.17 | -0.6% |
| 1986 | 0.168 | -1.2% |
| 1987 | 0.163 | -3.0% |
| 1988 | 0.155 | -4.9% |
| 1989 | 0.161 | +3.9% |
| 1990 | 0.163 | +1.2% |
| 1991 | 0.162 | -0.6% |
| 1992 | 0.162 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 0.162 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 0.162 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 0.162 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 0.161 | -0.6% |
| 1997 | 0.161 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 0.161 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 0.162 | +0.6% |
| 2000 | 0.165 | +1.9% |
| 2001 | 0.166 | +0.6% |
| 2002 | 0.171 | +3.0% |
| 2003 | 0.173 | +1.2% |
| 2004 | 0.207 | +19.7% |
| 2005 | 0.209 | +1.0% |
| 2006 | 0.21 | +0.5% |
| 2007 | 0.21 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 0.216 | +2.9% |
| 2009 | 0.218 | +0.9% |
| 2010 | 0.216 | -0.9% |
| 2011 | 0.216 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 0.218 | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 0.206 | -5.5% |
| 2014 | 0.208 | +1.0% |
| 2015 | 0.204 | -1.9% |
| 2016 | 0.202 | -1.0% |
| 2017 | 0.206 | +2.0% |
| 2018 | 0.319 | +54.9% |
| 2019 | 0.338 | +6.0% |
| 2020 | 0.307 | -9.2% |
| 2021 | 0.3 | -2.3% |
| 2022 | 0.316 | +5.3% |
| 2023 | 0.362 | +14.6% |
| 2024 | 0.359 | -0.8% |
| 2025 | 0.355 | -1.1% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's 0.355 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.347, 1.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 0.355 is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.3575, 99% of the median. (22 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Liberal Democracy Index in Malaysia 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.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | +54.9% | 0.206 | 0.319 |
| 1946 | +40.0% | 0.08 | 0.112 |
| 1955 | +33.6% | 0.14 | 0.187 |
| 1972 | +27.8% | 0.133 | 0.17 |
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
- 84 North Macedonia 0.374 compare
- 85 Armenia 0.371 compare
- 86 Singapore 0.36 compare
- 88 Bolivia 0.352 compare
- 89 Sierra Leone 0.348 compare
- 90 Bosnia and Herzegovina 0.339 compare
More social development data for Malaysia
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 150,164 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 2,477 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 4 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 4 (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 2,477 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0042 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
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
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.