Press freedom in Guatemala
Guatemala: Press freedom was 1 in 2016. ▲ Rising
Press freedom in Guatemala, 1979–2016
Source: Freedom House (2017) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for press freedom in Guatemala is 1, measured in 2016. That is the highest value across all 36 years on record.
That represents a change of unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, press freedom in Guatemala peaked at 1 in 1979 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1983.
That places Guatemala 61st out of 194 countries with data for 2016, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 36 years of available data.
Press freedom in Guatemala, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | 1 | — |
| 1980 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 0 | -100.0% |
| 1984 | 0 | — |
| 1985 | 1 | — |
| 1986 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 0 | -100.0% |
| 2004 | 1 | — |
| 2005 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 1 | +0.0% |
Guatemala compared with similar countries
- Guatemala's 1 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 1, 1.0× the median. (57 countries reporting)
- Guatemala's 1 is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 1, 1.0× the median. (33 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 1980s | 0.75 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| 1990s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.9 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| 2010s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
Countries ranked near Guatemala
- 61 Afghanistan 1 compare
- 61 Albania 1 compare
- 61 Antigua and Barbuda 1 compare
- 61 Argentina 1 compare
- 61 Benin 1 compare
- 61 Bhutan 1 compare
- 61 Bolivia 1 compare
- 61 Bosnia and Herzegovina 1 compare
- 61 Botswana 1 compare
- 61 Brazil 1 compare
- 61 Bulgaria 1 compare
- 61 Burkina Faso 1 compare
- 61 Colombia 1 compare
- 61 Comoros 1 compare
- 61 Congo 1 compare
- 61 Cote d'Ivoire 1 compare
- 61 Croatia 1 compare
- 61 Dominican Republic 1 compare
- 61 East Timor 1 compare
- 61 El Salvador 1 compare
- 61 Fiji 1 compare
- 61 Georgia 1 compare
- 61 Ghana 1 compare
- 61 Greece 1 compare
- 61 Guinea-Bissau 1 compare
- 61 Guyana 1 compare
- 61 Haiti 1 compare
- 61 Hong Kong 1 compare
- 61 Hungary 1 compare
- 61 India 1 compare
- 61 Indonesia 1 compare
- 61 Israel 1 compare
- 61 Italy 1 compare
- 61 Kenya 1 compare
- 61 Kuwait 1 compare
- 61 Lebanon 1 compare
- 61 Lesotho 1 compare
- 61 Liberia 1 compare
- 61 Madagascar 1 compare
- 61 Malawi 1 compare
- 61 Mali 1 compare
- 61 Mauritania 1 compare
- 61 Moldova 1 compare
- 61 Mongolia 1 compare
- 61 Montenegro 1 compare
- 61 Mozambique 1 compare
- 61 Namibia 1 compare
- 61 Nauru 1 compare
- 61 Nepal 1 compare
- 61 Nicaragua 1 compare
- 61 Niger 1 compare
- 61 Nigeria 1 compare
- 61 Panama 1 compare
- 61 Paraguay 1 compare
- 61 Peru 1 compare
- 61 Philippines 1 compare
- 61 Poland 1 compare
- 61 Romania 1 compare
- 61 Senegal 1 compare
- 61 Serbia 1 compare
- 61 Seychelles 1 compare
- 61 Sierra Leone 1 compare
- 61 South Africa 1 compare
- 61 South Korea 1 compare
- 61 Tanzania 1 compare
- 61 Togo 1 compare
- 61 Tunisia 1 compare
- 61 Uganda 1 compare
- 61 Ukraine 1 compare
More social development data for Guatemala
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 1,586 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 34,994 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 4 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 4 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0019 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 34,994 (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)
Frequently asked questions
- What is press freedom in Guatemala?
- Press freedom in Guatemala was 1 in 2016, according to Freedom House (2017) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest press freedom recorded in Guatemala?
- The highest recorded value was 1 in 1979.
- What is the lowest press freedom recorded in Guatemala?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1983.
- How does Guatemala rank for press freedom?
- Guatemala ranks 61st out of 194 countries with data for 2016.
- Is press freedom rising or falling in Guatemala?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Guatemala data come from?
- The figures come from Freedom House (2017) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Press freedom. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Based on the classification and data by Freedom House. It captures the legal, political, and economic environment of the press.