Free and fair elections
Can people choose their leaders through broad voting rights, honest elections, free political groups, and open public debate?
A public measure of public power
How democratic is democracy?
Democracys.org shows how much control people have over public power—across countries and over time. One understandable score. Five essential tests. Every choice open to inspection.
Data through 2025 179 current places 19,215 country-years
GLOBAL SCORE EXPLORER / 1900–2025
Democracy is a direction,
not a label.
Compare national trajectories. Scores are annual estimates on a 0–100 scale; higher means closer to the published Democracys Standard.
Range
Democracys.org estimates calculated from V-Dem v16. Scores are not percentages or V-Dem endorsements.
Read the method| Country or territory | 2025 score |
|---|---|
| Switzerland | 93.1 |
| United States | 66.1 |
| Brazil | 76.8 |
| India | 49.1 |
2025 SNAPSHOT
Closest to the standard
Rank is a navigation aid, not a verdict. Small differences may fall inside source uncertainty, so every profile shows the dimensions beneath the order.
View all 179 places- 01Switzerland93.1weakest: Elections
- 02Denmark90.4weakest: Participation
- 03Norway88.6weakest: Participation
- 04Germany87.1weakest: Participation
- 05Sweden86.5weakest: Participation
THE DEMOCRACYS STANDARD
Five tests. None optional.
A country can hold elections and still concentrate power. Our beta standard gives equal weight to honest elections, rights and checks, participation, public reasoning, and equality. A severe weakness in one area cannot simply be erased by strength in another.
Rights and checks on power
Are basic freedoms protected, laws applied fairly, courts independent, and leaders prevented from abusing power?
Public participation
Can people shape public life through civic groups, direct voting, and meaningful local and regional government?
Public reasoning
Do leaders explain decisions, consult the public, answer opposing arguments, and consider the common good?
Political equality
Do different social groups have equal rights, access, resources, and a real chance to influence political power?
OPEN METHOD / VERSION 1.0 BETA
A score you can disagree with—and inspect.
We average five published measures, then blend that result with a second average that makes weak areas count more. This keeps the calculation understandable without allowing one excellent result to hide a major democratic failure. It is an experimental Democracys.org score, not an official V-Dem score or endorsement.
In plain English: equal weight for all five tests, with weak links made visible.
What is the purest form of democracy?
A practical standard: equal public control, protected rights, accountable power, informed deliberation, and meaningful participation.
Read the guide DEMOCRACY 101What is democracy?
Definitions, models, institutions, and why elections are necessary but insufficient.
Learn the foundations MEASUREMENT GUIDEHow is democracy measured?
What expert-coded indices can reveal, what they cannot, and how to read uncertainty.
Understand the evidencePRIMARY DATA FOUNDATION
V-Dem Country-Year Core v16
Published March 2026 · observations through 2025 · source archive fingerprinted · derivative data licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.