Political Rights Score in Samoa
Samoa: Political Rights Score was 32 in 2025. ▬ Flat
Political Rights Score in Samoa, 2002–2025
Source: Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Samoa recorded 32 for political rights score in 2025. That is the highest value across all 24 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, political rights score in Samoa peaked at 32 in 2002 and was at its lowest, 30, in 2016.
Samoa ranks 71st of 197 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
Political Rights Score in Samoa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 32 | — |
| 2003 | 31 | -3.1% |
| 2004 | 32 | +3.2% |
| 2005 | 32 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 32 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 32 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 32 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 32 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 32 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 32 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 32 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 32 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 32 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 31 | -3.1% |
| 2016 | 30 | -3.2% |
| 2017 | 30 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 30 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 30 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 30 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 32 | +6.7% |
| 2022 | 31 | -3.1% |
| 2023 | 32 | +3.2% |
| 2024 | 32 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 32 | +0.0% |
Samoa compared with similar countries
- Samoa's 32 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 26, 1.2× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Samoa's 32 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 28, 1.1× the median. (31 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 31.88 | 31 | 32 | 8 |
| 2010s | 31.1 | 30 | 32 | 10 |
| 2020s | 31.5 | 30 | 32 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Samoa
- 71 Antigua and Barbuda 32 compare
- 71 Nauru 32 compare
- 71 United States 32 compare
- 71 Vanuatu 32 compare
More social development data for Samoa
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 17 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 2 (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 17 (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 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, per square kilometre 0.0007 units per square kilometre (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is political rights score in Samoa?
- Political rights score in Samoa was 32 in 2025, according to Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest political rights score recorded in Samoa?
- The highest recorded value was 32 in 2002.
- What is the lowest political rights score recorded in Samoa?
- The lowest recorded value was 30 in 2016.
- How does Samoa rank for political rights score?
- Samoa ranks 71st out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
- Is political rights score rising or falling in Samoa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this Samoa data come from?
- The figures come from Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Political Rights Score. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Identifies the fine-grained extent of free and fair elections, political pluralism and participation, and a functioning government. Higher scores indicate more rights.