Participatory Democracy Index in Iceland
Iceland: Participatory Democracy Index was 0.565 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Participatory Democracy Index in Iceland, 1900–2025
Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for participatory democracy index in Iceland is 0.565, measured in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 6.6% on the previous year and down 11.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, participatory democracy index in Iceland peaked at 0.655 in 2010 and was at its lowest, 0.258, in 1900.
That places Iceland 22nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 126 years of available data.
Participatory Democracy Index in Iceland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1900 | 0.258 | — |
| 1901 | 0.258 | +0.0% |
| 1902 | 0.258 | +0.0% |
| 1903 | 0.258 | +0.0% |
| 1904 | 0.346 | +34.1% |
| 1905 | 0.371 | +7.2% |
| 1906 | 0.371 | +0.0% |
| 1907 | 0.371 | +0.0% |
| 1908 | 0.386 | +4.0% |
| 1909 | 0.371 | -3.9% |
| 1910 | 0.371 | +0.0% |
| 1911 | 0.371 | +0.0% |
| 1912 | 0.37 | -0.3% |
| 1913 | 0.37 | +0.0% |
| 1914 | 0.371 | +0.3% |
| 1915 | 0.371 | +0.0% |
| 1916 | 0.545 | +46.9% |
| 1917 | 0.527 | -3.3% |
| 1918 | 0.546 | +3.6% |
| 1919 | 0.527 | -3.5% |
| 1920 | 0.522 | -0.9% |
| 1921 | 0.522 | +0.0% |
| 1922 | 0.522 | +0.0% |
| 1923 | 0.522 | +0.0% |
| 1924 | 0.523 | +0.2% |
| 1925 | 0.523 | +0.0% |
| 1926 | 0.523 | +0.0% |
| 1927 | 0.525 | +0.4% |
| 1928 | 0.527 | +0.4% |
| 1929 | 0.527 | +0.0% |
| 1930 | 0.525 | -0.4% |
| 1931 | 0.524 | -0.2% |
| 1932 | 0.542 | +3.4% |
| 1933 | 0.523 | -3.5% |
| 1934 | 0.523 | +0.0% |
| 1935 | 0.538 | +2.9% |
| 1936 | 0.538 | +0.0% |
| 1937 | 0.538 | +0.0% |
| 1938 | 0.538 | +0.0% |
| 1939 | 0.538 | +0.0% |
| 1940 | 0.524 | -2.6% |
| 1941 | 0.524 | +0.0% |
| 1942 | 0.526 | +0.4% |
| 1943 | 0.528 | +0.4% |
| 1944 | 0.59 | +11.7% |
| 1945 | 0.596 | +1.0% |
| 1946 | 0.599 | +0.5% |
| 1947 | 0.597 | -0.3% |
| 1948 | 0.598 | +0.2% |
| 1949 | 0.595 | -0.5% |
| 1950 | 0.596 | +0.2% |
| 1951 | 0.593 | -0.5% |
| 1952 | 0.592 | -0.2% |
| 1953 | 0.591 | -0.2% |
| 1954 | 0.589 | -0.3% |
| 1955 | 0.585 | -0.7% |
| 1956 | 0.583 | -0.3% |
| 1957 | 0.581 | -0.3% |
| 1958 | 0.578 | -0.5% |
| 1959 | 0.573 | -0.9% |
| 1960 | 0.569 | -0.7% |
| 1961 | 0.566 | -0.5% |
| 1962 | 0.562 | -0.7% |
| 1963 | 0.559 | -0.5% |
| 1964 | 0.559 | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 0.559 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 0.568 | +1.6% |
| 1967 | 0.573 | +0.9% |
| 1968 | 0.572 | -0.2% |
| 1969 | 0.575 | +0.5% |
| 1970 | 0.577 | +0.3% |
| 1971 | 0.579 | +0.3% |
| 1972 | 0.581 | +0.3% |
| 1973 | 0.581 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 0.581 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 0.581 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 0.581 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 0.581 | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 0.581 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 0.581 | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 0.599 | +3.1% |
| 1981 | 0.599 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 0.599 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 0.596 | -0.5% |
| 1984 | 0.594 | -0.3% |
| 1985 | 0.594 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 0.603 | +1.5% |
| 1987 | 0.608 | +0.8% |
| 1988 | 0.608 | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 0.608 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 0.611 | +0.5% |
| 1991 | 0.611 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 0.61 | -0.2% |
| 1993 | 0.61 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 0.61 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 0.611 | +0.2% |
| 1996 | 0.615 | +0.7% |
| 1997 | 0.615 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 0.615 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 0.615 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 0.615 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 0.615 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 0.615 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 0.614 | -0.2% |
| 2004 | 0.614 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 0.613 | -0.2% |
| 2006 | 0.613 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 0.619 | +1.0% |
| 2008 | 0.625 | +1.0% |
| 2009 | 0.626 | +0.2% |
| 2010 | 0.655 | +4.6% |
| 2011 | 0.655 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 0.652 | -0.5% |
| 2013 | 0.636 | -2.5% |
| 2014 | 0.634 | -0.3% |
| 2015 | 0.638 | +0.6% |
| 2016 | 0.637 | -0.2% |
| 2017 | 0.636 | -0.2% |
| 2018 | 0.649 | +2.0% |
| 2019 | 0.638 | -1.7% |
| 2020 | 0.635 | -0.5% |
| 2021 | 0.612 | -3.6% |
| 2022 | 0.607 | -0.8% |
| 2023 | 0.602 | -0.8% |
| 2024 | 0.605 | +0.5% |
| 2025 | 0.565 | -6.6% |
Iceland compared with similar countries
- Iceland's 0.565 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.529, 1.1× the median. (55 countries reporting)
- Iceland's 0.565 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.4995, 1.1× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Participatory Democracy Index in Iceland 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1916 | +46.9% | 0.371 | 0.545 |
| 1904 | +34.1% | 0.258 | 0.346 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 0.3248 | 0.258 | 0.386 | 10 |
| 1910s | 0.4369 | 0.37 | 0.546 | 10 |
| 1920s | 0.5236 | 0.522 | 0.527 | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.5327 | 0.523 | 0.542 | 10 |
| 1940s | 0.5677 | 0.524 | 0.599 | 10 |
| 1950s | 0.5861 | 0.573 | 0.596 | 10 |
| 1960s | 0.5662 | 0.559 | 0.575 | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.5804 | 0.577 | 0.581 | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.6008 | 0.594 | 0.608 | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.6123 | 0.61 | 0.615 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.6169 | 0.613 | 0.626 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.643 | 0.634 | 0.655 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.6043 | 0.565 | 0.635 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Iceland
More social development data for Iceland
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 8,459 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 1 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 1 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0216 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 participatory democracy index in Iceland?
- Participatory democracy index in Iceland was 0.565 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest participatory democracy index recorded in Iceland?
- The highest recorded value was 0.655 in 2010.
- What is the lowest participatory democracy index recorded in Iceland?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.258 in 1900.
- How does Iceland rank for participatory democracy index?
- Iceland ranks 22nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
- Is participatory democracy index rising or falling in Iceland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 11.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Iceland 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 — 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, as well as the extent to which citizens can engage in regional and local government, civil society organizations, and direct democracy.