Political Rights Rating in Tonga
Tonga: Political Rights Rating was 3 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
3
Change on year
up 50.0%
World rank
95th
of 199 countries
All-time high
5
in 1973
All-time low
2
in 2013
Years of data
53
1972–2025
Political Rights Rating in Tonga, 1972–2025
Source: Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Tonga recorded 3 for political rights rating in 2025.
The figure is up 50.0% on the previous year and up 50.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, political rights rating in Tonga peaked at 5 in 1973 and was at its lowest, 2, in 2013.
That places Tonga 95th out of 199 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 53 years of available data.
Political Rights Rating in Tonga, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 4 | — |
| 1973 | 5 | +25.0% |
| 1974 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 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 | 4 | -20.0% |
| 1990 | 3 | -25.0% |
| 1991 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 5 | +66.7% |
| 1994 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 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 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 3 | -40.0% |
| 2011 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 2 | -33.3% |
| 2014 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 2 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 3 | +50.0% |
Tonga compared with similar countries
- Tonga's 3 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 3, 1.0× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Tonga's 3 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3, 1.0× the median. (31 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 4.88 | 4 | 5 | 8 |
| 1980s | 4.89 | 4 | 5 | 9 |
| 1990s | 4.4 | 3 | 5 | 10 |
| 2000s | 5 | 5 | 5 | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.3 | 2 | 3 | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.17 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Tonga
- 95 Albania 3 compare
- 95 Dominican Republic 3 compare
- 95 Ecuador 3 compare
- 95 Fiji 3 compare
- 95 Guyana 3 compare
- 95 Hungary 3 compare
- 95 Indonesia 3 compare
- 95 Mexico 3 compare
- 95 Moldova 3 compare
- 95 Monaco 3 compare
- 95 Montenegro 3 compare
- 95 Namibia 3 compare
- 95 Nepal 3 compare
- 95 North Macedonia 3 compare
- 95 Paraguay 3 compare
- 95 Peru 3 compare
- 95 Philippines 3 compare
- 95 Solomon Islands 3 compare
- 95 Sri Lanka 3 compare
More social development data for Tonga
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 65 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 50 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 3 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0006 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 65 (2025)
- Sovereign state gleditsch ward, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 54.76 % change on previous year (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, per square kilometre 0.0028 units per square kilometre (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is political rights rating in Tonga?
- Political rights rating in Tonga was 3 in 2025, according to Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest political rights rating recorded in Tonga?
- The highest recorded value was 5 in 1973.
- What is the lowest political rights rating recorded in Tonga?
- The lowest recorded value was 2 in 2013.
- How does Tonga rank for political rights rating?
- Tonga ranks 95th out of 199 countries with data for 2025.
- Is political rights rating rising or falling in Tonga?
- Over the last ten years it is up 50.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Tonga 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.