Statizoid

Participatory Democracy Index in Germany

Germany: Participatory Democracy Index was 0.593 in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
0.593
Change on year
up 0.5%
World rank
15th
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.656
in 2006
All-time low
0.03
in 1789
Years of data
191
1789–2025

Participatory Democracy Index in Germany, 1789–2025

00.20.40.6178919072025

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

Analysis

In 2025, participatory democracy index in Germany stood at 0.593.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.5% on the previous year and down 7.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, participatory democracy index in Germany peaked at 0.656 in 2006 and was at its lowest, 0.03, in 1789.

Germany ranks 15th of 176 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

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

Participatory Democracy Index in Germany, year by year

Year Value Change
1789 0.03 —
1790 0.03 +0.0%
1791 0.03 +0.0%
1792 0.03 +0.0%
1793 0.03 +0.0%
1794 0.03 +0.0%
1795 0.03 +0.0%
1796 0.03 +0.0%
1797 0.03 +0.0%
1798 0.03 +0.0%
1799 0.03 +0.0%
1800 0.03 +0.0%
1801 0.03 +0.0%
1802 0.03 +0.0%
1803 0.03 +0.0%
1804 0.03 +0.0%
1805 0.03 +0.0%
1806 0.03 +0.0%
1807 0.03 +0.0%
1808 0.034 +13.3%
1809 0.04 +17.6%
1810 0.04 +0.0%
1811 0.04 +0.0%
1812 0.04 +0.0%
1813 0.04 +0.0%
1814 0.04 +0.0%
1815 0.04 +0.0%
1816 0.04 +0.0%
1817 0.04 +0.0%
1818 0.04 +0.0%
1819 0.04 +0.0%
1820 0.04 +0.0%
1821 0.04 +0.0%
1822 0.04 +0.0%
1823 0.04 +0.0%
1824 0.04 +0.0%
1825 0.04 +0.0%
1826 0.04 +0.0%
1827 0.04 +0.0%
1828 0.04 +0.0%
1829 0.04 +0.0%
1830 0.04 +0.0%
1831 0.04 +0.0%
1832 0.04 +0.0%
1833 0.04 +0.0%
1834 0.04 +0.0%
1835 0.04 +0.0%
1836 0.04 +0.0%
1837 0.04 +0.0%
1838 0.04 +0.0%
1839 0.04 +0.0%
1840 0.04 +0.0%
1841 0.04 +0.0%
1842 0.04 +0.0%
1843 0.04 +0.0%
1844 0.04 +0.0%
1845 0.04 +0.0%
1846 0.04 +0.0%
1847 0.04 +0.0%
1848 0.076 +90.0%
1849 0.078 +2.6%
1850 0.075 -3.8%
1851 0.075 +0.0%
1852 0.075 +0.0%
1853 0.075 +0.0%
1854 0.075 +0.0%
1855 0.075 +0.0%
1856 0.075 +0.0%
1857 0.075 +0.0%
1858 0.075 +0.0%
1859 0.075 +0.0%
1860 0.075 +0.0%
1861 0.082 +9.3%
1862 0.082 +0.0%
1863 0.082 +0.0%
1864 0.082 +0.0%
1865 0.082 +0.0%
1866 0.082 +0.0%
1867 0.126 +53.7%
1868 0.128 +1.6%
1869 0.128 +0.0%
1870 0.127 -0.8%
1871 0.146 +15.0%
1872 0.146 +0.0%
1873 0.146 +0.0%
1874 0.146 +0.0%
1875 0.146 +0.0%
1876 0.146 +0.0%
1877 0.147 +0.7%
1878 0.146 -0.7%
1879 0.146 +0.0%
1880 0.146 +0.0%
1881 0.146 +0.0%
1882 0.146 +0.0%
1883 0.146 +0.0%
1884 0.146 +0.0%
1885 0.146 +0.0%
1886 0.146 +0.0%
1887 0.146 +0.0%
1888 0.146 +0.0%
1889 0.146 +0.0%
1890 0.164 +12.3%
1891 0.158 -3.7%
1892 0.158 +0.0%
1893 0.158 +0.0%
1894 0.158 +0.0%
1895 0.158 +0.0%
1896 0.158 +0.0%
1897 0.158 +0.0%
1898 0.159 +0.6%
1899 0.159 +0.0%
1900 0.158 -0.6%
1901 0.159 +0.6%
1902 0.164 +3.1%
1903 0.168 +2.4%
1904 0.169 +0.6%
1905 0.169 +0.0%
1906 0.171 +1.2%
1907 0.171 +0.0%
1908 0.17 -0.6%
1909 0.17 +0.0%
1910 0.17 +0.0%
1911 0.17 +0.0%
1912 0.172 +1.2%
1913 0.173 +0.6%
1914 0.16 -7.5%
1915 0.159 -0.6%
1916 0.157 -1.3%
1917 0.159 +1.3%
1918 0.171 +7.5%
1919 0.372 +117.5%
1920 0.42 +12.9%
1921 0.428 +1.9%
1922 0.425 -0.7%
1923 0.418 -1.6%
1924 0.408 -2.4%
1925 0.4 -2.0%
1926 0.444 +11.0%
1927 0.444 +0.0%
1928 0.428 -3.6%
1929 0.428 +0.0%
1930 0.414 -3.3%
1931 0.397 -4.1%
1932 0.382 -3.8%
1933 0.159 -58.4%
1934 0.041 -74.2%
1935 0.036 -12.2%
1936 0.038 +5.6%
1937 0.035 -7.9%
1938 0.037 +5.7%
1939 0.035 -5.4%
1940 0.035 +0.0%
1941 0.035 +0.0%
1942 0.035 +0.0%
1943 0.034 -2.9%
1944 0.033 -2.9%
1991 0.647 +1860.6%
1992 0.647 +0.0%
1993 0.647 +0.0%
1994 0.647 +0.0%
1995 0.646 -0.2%
1996 0.646 +0.0%
1997 0.646 +0.0%
1998 0.649 +0.5%
1999 0.652 +0.5%
2000 0.652 +0.0%
2001 0.652 +0.0%
2002 0.651 -0.2%
2003 0.65 -0.2%
2004 0.65 +0.0%
2005 0.65 +0.0%
2006 0.656 +0.9%
2007 0.656 +0.0%
2008 0.656 +0.0%
2009 0.654 -0.3%
2010 0.652 -0.3%
2011 0.654 +0.3%
2012 0.652 -0.3%
2013 0.647 -0.8%
2014 0.641 -0.9%
2015 0.639 -0.3%
2016 0.643 +0.6%
2017 0.644 +0.2%
2018 0.637 -1.1%
2019 0.635 -0.3%
2020 0.629 -0.9%
2021 0.622 -1.1%
2022 0.616 -1.0%
2023 0.616 +0.0%
2024 0.59 -4.2%
2025 0.593 +0.5%

Germany compared with similar countries

  • Germany's 0.593 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.529, 1.1× the median. (55 countries reporting)
  • Germany's 0.593 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.4995, 1.2× the median. (48 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1780s 0.03 0.03 0.03 1
1790s 0.03 0.03 0.03 10
1800s 0.0314 0.03 0.04 10
1810s 0.04 0.04 0.04 10
1820s 0.04 0.04 0.04 10
1830s 0.04 0.04 0.04 10
1840s 0.0474 0.04 0.078 10
1850s 0.075 0.075 0.075 10
1860s 0.0949 0.075 0.128 10
1870s 0.1442 0.127 0.147 10
1880s 0.146 0.146 0.146 10
1890s 0.1588 0.158 0.164 10
1900s 0.1669 0.158 0.171 10
1910s 0.1863 0.157 0.372 10
1920s 0.4243 0.4 0.444 10
1930s 0.1574 0.035 0.414 10
1940s 0.0344 0.033 0.035 5
1990s 0.6474 0.646 0.652 9
2000s 0.6527 0.65 0.656 10
2010s 0.6444 0.635 0.654 10
2020s 0.611 0.59 0.629 6

Countries ranked near Germany

  1. 12 Finland 0.597 compare
  2. 12 France 0.597 compare
  3. 14 Latvia 0.595 compare
  4. 16 Canada 0.589 compare
  5. 17 Austria 0.582 compare
  6. 18 New Zealand 0.581 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More social development data for Germany

All data for Germany →

Frequently asked questions

What is participatory democracy index in Germany?
Participatory democracy index in Germany was 0.593 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest participatory democracy index recorded in Germany?
The highest recorded value was 0.656 in 2006.
What is the lowest participatory democracy index recorded in Germany?
The lowest recorded value was 0.03 in 1789.
How does Germany rank for participatory democracy index?
Germany ranks 15th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is participatory democracy index rising or falling in Germany?
Over the last ten years it is down 7.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Germany data come from?
The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Participatory Democracy Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 191 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Participatory Democracy Index in Germany. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://social-development.statizoid.com/stat/participatory-democracy-index/germany/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://social-development.statizoid.com/stat/participatory-democracy-index/germany/">Participatory Democracy Index in Germany</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Participatory Democracy Index
Source
V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
176 places, 29,363 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed

Central estimate of the extent of suffrage, the freedom and fairness of elections, freedoms of association and expression, as well as the extent to which citizens can engage in regional and local government, civil society organizations, and direct democracy.