Political Rights Rating in Bahrain
Bahrain: Political Rights Rating was 7 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
7
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
1st
of 199 countries
All-time high
7
in 1996
All-time low
4
in 1974
Years of data
53
1972–2025
Political Rights Rating in Bahrain, 1972–2025
Source: Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for political rights rating in Bahrain is 7, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 53 years on record.
The figure is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, political rights rating in Bahrain peaked at 7 in 1996 and was at its lowest, 4, in 1974.
Bahrain ranks 1st of 199 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 53 years of available data.
Political Rights Rating in Bahrain, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 6 | — |
| 1973 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 4 | -33.3% |
| 1975 | 6 | +50.0% |
| 1976 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 5 | -16.7% |
| 1980 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 6 | +20.0% |
| 1990 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 7 | +16.7% |
| 1997 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 6 | -14.3% |
| 2002 | 5 | -16.7% |
| 2003 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 6 | +20.0% |
| 2010 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 7 | +16.7% |
| 2015 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 7 | +0.0% |
Bahrain compared with similar countries
- Bahrain's 7 is above the median for high income countries, which is 1, 7.0× the median. (66 countries reporting)
- Bahrain's 7 is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 6, 1.2× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5.62 | 4 | 6 | 8 |
| 1980s | 5.11 | 5 | 6 | 9 |
| 1990s | 6.4 | 6 | 7 | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.4 | 5 | 7 | 10 |
| 2010s | 6.6 | 6 | 7 | 10 |
| 2020s | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Bahrain
- 1 Afghanistan 7 compare
- 1 Azerbaijan 7 compare
- 1 Belarus 7 compare
- 1 Burkina Faso 7 compare
- 1 Burundi 7 compare
- 1 Cambodia 7 compare
- 1 Central African Republic 7 compare
- 1 Chad 7 compare
- 1 China 7 compare
- 1 Congo 7 compare
- 1 Cuba 7 compare
- 1 Democratic Republic of Congo 7 compare
- 1 Djibouti 7 compare
- 1 Equatorial Guinea 7 compare
- 1 Eritrea 7 compare
- 1 Eswatini 7 compare
- 1 Gabon 7 compare
- 1 Haiti 7 compare
- 1 Iran 7 compare
- 1 Kazakhstan 7 compare
- 1 Kyrgyzstan 7 compare
- 1 Laos 7 compare
- 1 Libya 7 compare
- 1 Mali 7 compare
- 1 Myanmar 7 compare
- 1 Nicaragua 7 compare
- 1 Niger 7 compare
- 1 North Korea 7 compare
- 1 Russia 7 compare
- 1 Saudi Arabia 7 compare
- 1 Somalia 7 compare
- 1 South Sudan 7 compare
- 1 Sudan 7 compare
- 1 Syria 7 compare
- 1 Tajikistan 7 compare
- 1 Turkmenistan 7 compare
- 1 United Arab Emirates 7 compare
- 1 Uzbekistan 7 compare
- 1 Venezuela 7 compare
- 1 Vietnam 7 compare
- 1 Western Sahara 7 compare
- 1 Yemen 7 compare
More social development data for Bahrain
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 240 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 267 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 0 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 7 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0002 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 267 (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 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of -4 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is political rights rating in Bahrain?
- Political rights rating in Bahrain was 7 in 2025, according to Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest political rights rating recorded in Bahrain?
- The highest recorded value was 7 in 1996.
- What is the lowest political rights rating recorded in Bahrain?
- The lowest recorded value was 4 in 1974.
- How does Bahrain rank for political rights rating?
- Bahrain ranks 1st out of 199 countries with data for 2025.
- Is political rights rating rising or falling in Bahrain?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Bahrain data come from?
- The figures come from Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Political Rights Rating. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Identifies the extent of free and fair elections, political pluralism and participation, and a functioning government. Lower ratings indicate more rights.