The Economist Democracy Index

The Economist Intelligence Unit Democracy Index map for 2017.
Bluer colours represent more democratic countries as reported by the company.

The Democracy Index is an index compiled by the UK-based company the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) that intends to measure the state of democracy in 167 countries, of which 166 are sovereign states and 165 are UN member states.

The index was first produced in 2006, with updates for 2008, 2010 and the following years since then. The index is based on 60 indicators grouped in five different categories measuring pluralism, civil liberties and political culture. In addition to a numeric score and a ranking, the index categorises countries as one of four regime types: full democracies, flawed democracies, hybrid regimes and authoritarian regimes.

Method

As described in the report, the democracy index is a weighted average based on the answers of 60 questions, each one with either two or three permitted alternative answers. Most answers are "experts' assessments"; the report does not indicate what kinds of experts, nor their number, nor whether the experts are employees of the Economist Intelligence Unit or independent scholars, nor the nationalities of the experts. Some answers are provided by public-opinion surveys from the respective countries. In the case of countries for which survey results are missing, survey results for similar countries and expert assessments are used in order to fill in gaps.

The questions are distributed in the five categories: electoral process and pluralism, civil liberties, functioning of government, political participation, and political culture. Each answer is translated to a mark, either 0 or 1, or for the three-answer alternative questions, 0.5. With the exceptions mentioned below, the sums are added within each category, multiplied by ten, and divided by the total number of questions within the category. There are a few modifying dependencies, which are explained much more precisely than the main rule procedures. In a few cases, an answer yielding zero for one question voids another question; e.g., if the elections for the national legislature and head of government are not considered free (question 1), then the next question, "Are elections... fair?" is not considered, but automatically marked zero. Likewise, there are a few questions considered so important that a low score on them yields a penalty on the total score sum for their respective categories, namely:

1. "Whether national elections are free and fair";
2. "The security of voters";
3. "The influence of foreign powers on government";
4. "The capability of the civil servants to implement policies".

The five category indices, which are listed in the report, are then averaged to find the Democracy Index for a given country. Finally, the Democracy Index, rounded to two decimals, decides the regime type classification of the country.

The report discusses other indices of democracy, as defined e.g. by Freedom House, and argues for some of the choices made by the team from the Economist Intelligence Unit. In this comparison, a higher emphasis has been put on the public opinion and attitudes, as measured by surveys, but on the other hand, economic living standard has not been weighted as one criterion of democracy (as seemingly some other investigators have done).

The report is widely cited in the international press as well as in peer reviewed academic journals.

Classification definitions

Full democracies are nations where civil liberties and basic political freedoms are not only respected, but also reinforced by a political culture conducive to the thriving of democratic principles. These nations have a valid system of governmental checks and balances, independent judiciary whose decisions are enforced, governments that function adequately, and media that is diverse and independent. These nations have only limited problems in democratic functioning.

Flawed democracies are nations where elections are fair and free and basic civil liberties are honored but may have issues (e.g. media freedom infringement). Nonetheless, these nations have significant faults in other democratic aspects, including underdeveloped political culture, low levels of participation in politics, and issues in the functioning of governance.

Hybrid regimes are nations where consequential irregularities exist in elections regularly preventing them from being fair and free. These nations commonly have governments that apply pressure on political opponents, non independent judiciaries, and have widespread corruption, harassment and pressure placed on the media, anemic rule of law, and more pronounced faults than flawed democracies in the realms of underdeveloped political culture, low levels of participation in politics, and issues in the functioning of governance.

Authoritarian regimes are nations where political pluralism has vanished or is extremely limited. These nations are often absolute monarchies or dictatorships, may have some conventional institutions of democracy but with meager significance, infringements and abuses of civil liberties are commonplace, elections (if they take place) are not fair and free, the media is often state-owned or controlled by groups associated with the ruling regime, the judiciary is not independent, and they are characterised by the presence of omnipresent censorship and suppression of governmental criticism.

Democracy Index by country (2017)

Listing by country is available on The Economist website.

Democracy Index 2017

Rank	Country	Score	Electoral process and pluralism	Functioning of government	Political participation	Political culture	Civil liberties	Category
1	Norway	9.87	10.00	9.64	10.00	10.00	9.71	Full democracy
2	Iceland	9.58	10.00	9.29	8.89	10.00	9.71	Full democracy
3	Sweden	9.39	9.58	9.64	8.33	10.00	9.41	Full democracy
4	New Zealand	9.26	10.00	9.29	8.89	8.13	10.00	Full democracy
5	Denmark	9.22	10.00	9.29	8.33	9.38	9.12	Full democracy
=6	Ireland	9.15	9.58	7.86	8.33	10.00	10.00	Full democracy
=6	Canada	9.15	9.58	9.64	7.78	8.75	10.00	Full democracy
8	Australia	9.09	10.00	8.93	7.78	8.75	10.00	Full democracy
9	Finland	9.03	10.00	8.93	7.78	8.75	9.71	Full democracy
9	Switzerland	9.03	9.58	9.29	7.78	9.38	9.12	Full democracy
11	Netherlands	8.89	9.58	9.29	8.33	8.13	9.12	Full democracy
12	Luxembourg	8.81	10.00	8.93	6.67	8.75	9.71	Full democracy
13	Germany	8.61	9.58	8.21	8.33	7.50	9.41	Full democracy
14	United Kingdom	8.53	9.58	7.50	8.33	8.13	9.12	Full democracy
15	Austria	8.42	9.58	8.21	8.33	6.88	9.12	Full democracy
16	Mauritius	8.22	9.17	8.21	5.56	8.75	9.41	Full democracy
17	Malta	8.15	9.17	8.21	6.11	8.75	8.53	Full democracy
18	Uruguay	8.12	10.00	8.93	4.44	7.50	9.71	Full democracy
19	Spain	8.08	9.17	7.14	7.78	7.50	8.82	Full democracy
Rank	Country	Score	Electoral process and pluralism	Functioning of government	Political participation	Political culture	Civil liberties	Category
20	South Korea	8.00	9.17	7.89	7.22	7.50	8.24	Flawed democracy
=21	United States	7.98	9.17	7.14	7.22	8.13	8.24	Flawed democracy
=21	Italy	7.98	9.58	6.43	7.22	8.13	8.53	Flawed democracy
=23	Japan	7.88	8.75	8.21	6.11	7.50	8.82	Flawed democracy
=23	Cape Verde	7.88	9.17	7.86	6.67	6.88	9.12	Flawed democracy
=23	Costa Rica	7.88	9.58	7.14	6.67	6.88	9.12	Flawed democracy
=26	Chile	7.84	9.58	8.57	4.44	7.50	9.12	Flawed democracy
=26	Portugal	7.84	9.58	7.50	6.11	6.88	9.12	Flawed democracy
28	Botswana	7.81	9.17	7.14	6.11	7.50	9.12	Flawed democracy
29	France	7.80	9.58	7.50	7.78	5.63	8.53	Flawed democracy
=30	Estonia	7.79	9.58	7.86	6.11	6.88	8.53	Flawed democracy
=30	Israel	7.79	9.17	7.50	8.89	7.50	5.88	Flawed democracy
32	Belgium	7.78	9.58	8.93	5.00	6.88	8.53	Flawed democracy
33	Taiwan	7.73	9.58	8.21	6.11	5.63	9.12	Flawed democracy
34	Czech Republic	7.62	9.58	6.43	6.67	6.88	8.53	Flawed democracy
35	Cyprus	7.59	9.17	6.43	6.67	6.88	8.82	Flawed democracy
36	Slovenia	7.50	9.58	6.79	6.67	6.25	8.24	Flawed democracy
37	Lithuania	7.41	9.58	5.71	6.11	6.25	9.41	Flawed democracy
=38	Greece	7.29	9.58	5.36	6.11	6.88	8.53	Flawed democracy
=38	Jamaica	7.29	9.17	7.14	4.44	6.88	8.82	Flawed democracy
40	Latvia	7.25	9.58	5.71	5.56	6.88	8.53	Flawed democracy
41	South Africa	7.24	7.42	7.50	8.33	5.00	7.94	Flawed democracy
42	India	7.23	9.17	6.97	7.22	5.63	7.35	Flawed democracy
43	Timor-Leste	7.19	9.08	6.97	5.56	6.88	7.65	Flawed democracy
44	Slovakia	7.16	9.58	6.97	5.56	5.63	8.24	Flawed democracy
45	Panama	7.08	9.58	6.97	6.11	5.00	7.94	Flawed democracy
46	Trinidad and Tobago	7.04	9.58	7.14	5.56	5.00	7.94	Flawed democracy
47	Bulgaria	7.03	9.17	6.43	7.22	4.38	7.94	Flawed democracy
48	Argentina	6.96	9.17	5.00	6.11	6.88	7.65	Flawed democracy
49	Brazil	6.86	9.58	5.36	6.11	3.75	8.24	Flawed democracy
50	Suriname	6.76	9.17	6.43	5.56	5.00	7.65	Flawed democracy
51	Philippines	6.71	9.17	5.71	7.22	4.38	7.06	Flawed democracy
52	Ghana	6.69	8.33	5.71	6.67	6.25	6.47	Flawed democracy
=53	Poland	6.67	9.17	6.07	6.11	4.38	7.65	Flawed democracy
=53	Colombia	6.67	9.17	6.79	4.44	4.38	7.94	Flawed democracy
55	Dominican Republic	6.66	9.17	5.36	6.11	6.25	7.06	Flawed democracy
=56	Lesotho	6.64	9.17	5.00	6.67	5.63	6.76	Flawed democracy
=56	Hungary	6.64	8.75	6.07	4.44	6.88	7.06	Flawed democracy
58	Croatia	6.63	9.17	5.36	5.56	5.00	6.76	Flawed democracy
59	Malaysia	6.54	6.92	7.14	6.11	6.25	7.06	Flawed democracy
60	Mongolia	6.50	9.17	5.71	5.56	5.00	6.76	Flawed democracy
61	Peru	6.49	9.17	5.36	5.56	5.00	7.35	Flawed democracy
62	Sri Lanka	6.48	7.83	7.14	5.00	6.25	6.18	Flawed democracy
63	Guyana	6.46	8.75	5.71	6.11	4.38	7.35	Flawed democracy
64	Romania	6.44	9.17	5.71	5.00	4.38	7.94	Flawed democracy
65	El Salvador	6.43	9.17	5.36	4.44	5.00	7.06	Flawed democracy
=66	Serbia	6.41	8.25	5.36	6.67	5.00	7.35	Flawed democracy
=66	Mexico	6.41	7.83	6.43	7.22	4.38	6.18	Flawed democracy
68	Indonesia	6.39	6.92	7.14	6.67	5.63	5.59	Flawed democracy
=69	Tunisia	6.32	6.00	5.71	7.78	6.25	5.88	Flawed democracy
=69	Singapore	6.32	4.33	7.86	6.11	6.25	7.06	Flawed democracy
=71	Hong Kong	6.31	3.92	6.07	5.56	7.50	8.53	Flawed democracy
=71	Namibia	6.31	5.67	5.36	6.67	5.63	8.24	Flawed democracy
=71	Paraguay	6.31	8.75	6.07	5.00	4.38	7.35	Flawed democracy
74	Senegal	6.15	7.50	6.07	4.44	6.25	6.47	Flawed democracy
75	Papua New Guinea	6.03	6.92	6.07	3.89	5.63	7.65	Flawed democracy
76	Ecuador	6.02	8.75	4.64	5.56	4.38	6.76	Flawed democracy
Rank	Country	Score	Electoral process and pluralism	Functioning of government	Political participation	Political culture	Civil liberties	Category
77	Albania	5.98	7.00	4.71	5.56	5.00	7.65	Hybrid regime
78	Moldova	5.94	7.50	4.64	6.11	4.38	7.06	Hybrid regime
79	Georgia	5.93	8.67	4.29	6.11	5.00	5.59	Hybrid regime
80	Guatemala	5.86	7.92	5.71	3.89	5.00	6.76	Hybrid regime
81	Fiji	5.85	6.58	5.36	6.11	5.63	5.59	Hybrid regime
82	Honduras	5.72	8.25	5.36	4.44	4.38	6.18	Hybrid regime
=83	Ukraine	5.69	6.17	3.21	6.67	6.25	6.18	Hybrid regime
=83	Montenegro	5.69	6.08	5.36	5.56	4.38	7.06	Hybrid regime
85	Zambia	5.68	6.17	5.00	3.89	6.88	6.47	Hybrid regime
86	Mali	5.64	7.42	3.93	4.44	6.25	6.18	Hybrid regime
87	Benin	5.61	6.50	5.36	5.00	5.63	5.59	Hybrid regime
88	North Macedonia	5.57	6.50	5.00	5.56	3.75	7.06	Hybrid regime
=89	Bolivia	5.49	7.00	4.64	5.00	3.75	7.06	Hybrid regime
=89	Malawi	5.49	6.58	4.29	4.44	6.25	5.88	Hybrid regime
91	Tanzania	5.47	7.00	5.00	5.00	5.63	4.71	Hybrid regime
92	Bangladesh	5.43	7.42	5.07	5.00	4.38	5.29	Hybrid regime
93	Liberia	5.23	7.42	2.57	5.56	5.00	5.59	Hybrid regime
94	Nepal	5.18	4.33	5.36	5.00	5.63	5.59	Hybrid regime
=95	Kenya	5.11	3.50	5.36	6.67	5.63	4.41	Hybrid regime
=95	Kyrgyzstan	5.11	6.58	2.93	6.67	4.38	5.00	Hybrid regime
=95	Madagascar	5.11	6.08	3.57	5.56	5.63	4.71	Hybrid regime
98	Uganda	5.09	5.25	3.57	3.89	6.88	5.88	Hybrid regime
99	Bhutan	5.08	8.33	6.07	2.78	4.38	3.82	Hybrid regime
100	Turkey	4.88	5.33	6.07	5.00	5.63	2.35	Hybrid regime
=101	Morocco	4.87	5.25	4.64	4.44	5.63	4.41	Hybrid regime
=101	Bosnia and Herzegovina	4.87	6.50	2.93	5.00	3.75	6.18	Hybrid regime
103	Burkina Faso	4.75	4.42	4.29	4.44	5.63	5.00	Hybrid regime
104	Lebanon	4.72	3.50	2.57	7.22	5.63	4.71	Hybrid regime
=105	Sierra Leone	4.66	6.58	1.86	3.33	6.25	5.29	Hybrid regime
=105	Nicaragua	4.66	3.42	3.29	3.89	5.63	7.06	Hybrid regime
107	Thailand	4.63	3.00	4.29	5.00	5.00	5.88	Hybrid regime
108	Palestine	4.46	3.83	2.50	7.78	4.38	3.82	Hybrid regime
109	Nigeria	4.44	6.08	4.64	3.33	3.75	4.41	Hybrid regime
110	Pakistan	4.26	6.50	5.36	2.22	2.50	4.71	Hybrid regime
111	Armenia	4.11	5.25	2.86	5.00	1.88	5.59	Hybrid regime
112	Iraq	4.09	4.33	0.07	7.22	5.00	3.82	Hybrid regime
113	Gambia	4.06	4.48	3.93	3.33	5.63	2.94	Hybrid regime
114	Haiti	4.03	5.17	2.21	2.22	4.38	6.18	Hybrid regime
115	Mozambique	4.02	4.42	2.14	5.00	5.00	3.53	Hybrid regime
Rank	Country	Score	Electoral process and pluralism	Functioning of government	Political participation	Political culture	Civil liberties	Category
116	Ivory Coast	3.93	4.42	2.14	3.33	5.63	4.12	Authoritarian
=117	Jordan	3.87	3.58	4.29	3.89	4.38	3.24	Authoritarian
=117	Venezuela	3.87	2.17	2.86	6.11	4.38	3.82	Authoritarian
119	Kuwait	3.85	3.17	4.29	3.89	4.38	3.53	Authoritarian
120	Myanmar	3.83	3.67	3.93	3.89	5.63	2.06	Authoritarian
121	Mauritania	3.82	3.00	3.57	5.00	3.13	4.41	Authoritarian
122	Niger	3.76	5.25	1.14	3.33	4.38	4.71	Authoritarian
123	Comoros	3.71	4.33	2.21	4.44	3.75	3.82	Authoritarian
124	Cambodia	3.63	1.33	5.71	2.22	5.63	3.24	Authoritarian
125	Angola	3.62	1.75	2.86	5.56	5.00	2.94	Authoritarian
=126	Gabon	3.61	2.58	2.21	4.44	5.00	3.82	Authoritarian
=126	Cameroon	3.61	4.00	2.86	3.89	4.38	2.94	Authoritarian
128	Algeria	3.56	2.58	2.21	3.89	5.00	4.12	Authoritarian
129	Ethiopia	3.42	0.00	3.57	5.56	5.63	2.35	Authoritarian
130	Egypt	3.36	3.58	3.21	3.33	3.75	2.94	Authoritarian
131	Cuba	3.31	1.33	4.29	3.89	4.38	2.65	Authoritarian
132	Republic of the Congo	3.25	3.17	2.50	3.89	3.75	2.94	Authoritarian
=133	Qatar	3.19	0.00	4.29	2.22	5.63	3.82	Authoritarian
=133	Rwanda	3.19	0.83	5.00	2.78	4.38	2.94	Authoritarian
135	Russia	3.17	2.17	1.79	5.00	2.50	4.41	Authoritarian
136	Zimbabwe	3.16	0.50	2.00	4.44	5.63	3.24	Authoritarian
137	Guinea	3.14	3.50	0.43	4.44	4.38	2.94	Authoritarian
138	Belarus	3.13	0.92	2.86	3.89	5.63	2.35	Authoritarian
139	China	3.10	0.00	5.00	2.78	6.25	1.47	Authoritarian
140	Vietnam	3.08	0.00	3.21	3.89	5.63	2.65	Authoritarian
141	Kazakhstan	3.06	0.50	2.14	4.44	4.38	3.82	Authoritarian
142	Togo	3.05	3.17	0.79	2.78	5.00	3.53	Authoritarian
143	Oman	3.04	0.00	3.93	2.78	4.38	4.12	Authoritarian
144	Eswatini	3.03	0.92	2.86	2.22	5.63	3.53	Authoritarian
145	Djibouti	2.76	0.42	1.79	3.33	5.63	2.65	Authoritarian
146	Bahrain	2.71	0.83	3.21	2.78	4.38	2.35	Authoritarian
147	United Arab Emirates	2.69	0.00	3.57	2.22	5.00	2.65	Authoritarian
148	Azerbaijan	2.65	0.50	2.14	3.33	3.75	3.53	Authoritarian
149	Afghanistan	2.55	2.50	1.14	2.78	2.50	3.82	Authoritarian
150	Iran	2.45	0.00	3.21	4.44	3.13	1.47	Authoritarian
=151	Eritrea	2.37	0.00	2.14	1.67	6.88	1.18	Authoritarian
=151	Laos	2.37	0.83	2.86	1.67	5.00	1.47	Authoritarian
153	Burundi	2.33	0.00	0.43	3.89	5.00	2.35	Authoritarian
154	Libya	2.32	1.00	0.36	1.67	5.63	2.94	Authoritarian
155	Sudan	2.15	0.00	1.79	2.78	5.00	1.18	Authoritarian
156	Yemen	2.07	0.00	0.00	4.44	5.00	0.88	Authoritarian
157	Guinea-Bissau	1.98	1.67	0.00	2.78	3.13	2.35	Authoritarian
158	Uzbekistan	1.95	0.08	1.86	2.22	5.00	0.59	Authoritarian
=159	Saudi Arabia	1.93	0.00	2.86	2.22	3.13	1.47	Authoritarian
=159	Tajikistan	1.93	0.08	0.79	1.67	6.25	0.88	Authoritarian
161	Equatorial Guinea	1.81	0.00	0.43	2.78	4.38	1.47	Authoritarian
162	Turkmenistan	1.72	0.00	0.79	2.22	5.00	0.59	Authoritarian
163	Democratic Republic of the Congo	1.61	0.50	0.71	2.22	3.75	0.88	Authoritarian
164	Central African Republic	1.52	2.25	0.00	1.11	1.88	2.35	Authoritarian
165	Chad	1.50	0.00	0.00	1.11	3.75	2.65	Authoritarian
166	Syria	1.43	0.00	0.00	2.78	4.38	0.00	Authoritarian
167	North Korea	1.08	0.00	2.50	1.67	1.25	0.00	Authoritarian
Rank	Country	Score	Electoral process and pluralism	Functioning of government	Political participation	Political culture	Civil liberties	Category

Recent changes

In 2016, the United States was downgraded from a full democracy to a flawed democracy; its score, which had been experiencing a persistent downward trend, crossed the threshold from 8.05 in 2015 to 7.98 in 2016. The report states that this was not due only to the election of Donald Trump, but was caused by other factors as well — dating back to the late 1960s — that led to his election.

The 2017 Democracy index registered the worst year for global democracy since 2010–11 in the aftermath of the global economic and financial crisis. 89 countries experienced a decline in their total score compared with 2016, more than three times as many as the countries that recorded an improvement. Asia was the worst performing region overall, while Venezuela was downgraded from a "hybrid regime" to an "authoritarian regime" and Armenia was reupgraded from an "authoritarian regime" to a "hybrid regime".

Australia (ranked 8th) and Taiwan (ranked 33rd) both legalised gay marriage in 2017. In China, Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Communist Party of China, further entrenched his power by writing his theoretical contribution to the Chinese Communist Party’s ideology, dubbed “Xi Jinping Thought”, into the party’s constitution. Moldova was downgraded from a “flawed democracy” to a “hybrid regime” as a result of problematic elections. By contrast, Armenia moved from the authoritarian category to a “hybrid regime” as a result of constitutional changes that shifted power from the presidency to parliament.

Democracy Index by regime type

The following table gives the number and percentage of countries and the percentage of the world population for each regime type in 2017:

Type of regime	Scores (s)	Number of countries	Percentage of countries	Percentage of world population
Full democracies	8 ≤ s ≤ 10	19	11.4	4.4
Flawed democracies	6 ≤ s < 8	57	34.1	44.3
Hybrid regimes	4 ≤ s < 6	39	23.4	17.7
Authoritarian regimes	0 ≤ s < 4	52	31.1	32.3

World population refers to the total population of the 167 countries covered by the Index. Since this excludes only micro-states, this is nearly equal to the entire estimated world population.

Democracy Index by region

The following table gives the index average by world region, and the number of covered countries in 2017. Note that some regional groups (e.g. Eastern Europe) are very heterogeneous and composed of full democracies as well as authoritarian regimes:

Rank	Region	Countries	2006	2008	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017
1	Northern America	2	8.64	8.64	8.63	8.59	8.59	8.59	8.59	8.56	8.56	8.56
2	Western Europe	21	8.60	8.61	8.45	8.40	8.44	8.41	8.41	8.42	8.40	8.38
3	Latin America and the Caribbean	24	6.37	6.43	6.37	6.35	6.36	6.38	6.36	6.37	6.33	6.26
4	Asia and Australasia	28	5.44	5.58	5.53	5.51	5.56	5.61	5.70	5.74	5.74	5.63
5	Central and Eastern Europe	28	5.76	5.67	5.55	5.50	5.51	5.53	5.58	5.55	5.43	5.40
6	Sub-Saharan Africa	44	4.24	4.28	4.23	4.32	4.33	4.36	4.34	4.38	4.37	4.35
7	Middle East and North Africa	20	3.54	3.48	3.52	3.62	3.73	3.68	3.65	3.58	3.56	3.54
	World	167	5.52	5.55	5.46	5.49	5.52	5.53	5.55	5.55	5.52	5.48

See also

• Democracy promotion
• Democracy Ranking
• Freedom in the World
• List of freedom indices

External links

• The Economist Intelligence Unit's website
• EIU Democracy Index main page