Index of Economic Freedom

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This article is about the index published by the Wall Street Journal and the Heritage Foundation. For other indices, see Indices of economic freedom.

The 2018 Heritage Foundation Index of Economic Freedom overall heatmap

The Index of Economic Freedom is an annual index and ranking created in 1995 by The Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal to measure the degree of economic freedom in the world's nations. The creators of the index took an approach similar to Adam Smith's in The Wealth of Nations, that "basic institutions that protect the liberty of individuals to pursue their own economic interests result in greater prosperity for the larger society".[1][2]

2020 Index

As of 2020, Singapore’s economic freedom score is 89.4, making it the world’s freest economy in the 2020 Index. Singapore is ranked 1st among 42 countries in the Asia-Pacific region, and its overall score is well above the regional and world averages.

Key: ██ Free (80–100) ██ Mostly Free (70–79.9) ██ Moderately Free (65–69.9) ██ Moderately Unfree (60–64.9) ██ Mostly Unfree (55–59.9) ██ Mostly Unfree (50–54.9) ██ Repressed (0–49.9)

(worldwide rank: https://www.heritage.org/index/ranking)
Country[3] Score Change
 Singapore 89.4 Steady 0.0
 Hong Kong 89.1 Decrease 1.1
 New Zealand 84.1 Decrease 0.3
 Australia 82.6 Increase 1.7
  Switzerland 82.0 Increase 0.1
 Ireland 80.9 Increase 0.4
 United Kingdom 79.3 Increase 0.4
 Denmark 78.3 Increase 1.6
 Canada 78.2 Increase 0.5
 Estonia 77.7 Increase 1.1
 Taiwan 77.1 Decrease 0.2
 Georgia 77.1 Increase 1.2
 Iceland 77.1 Steady 0.0
 Netherlands 77.0 Increase 0.2
 Chile 76.8 Increase 1.4
 Lithuania 76.7 Increase 2.5
 United States 76.6 Decrease 0.2
 United Arab Emirates 76.2 Decrease 1.4
 Luxembourg 75.8 Decrease 0.1
 Finland 75.7 Increase 0.8
 Mauritius 74.9 Increase 1.9
 Sweden 74.9 Decrease 0.3
 Czech Republic 74.8 Increase 1.1
 Malaysia 74.7 Increase 0.7
 South Korea 74.0 Decrease 1.7
 Israel 74.0 Increase 1.2
 Germany 73.5 Steady 0.0
 Norway 73.4 Increase 0.3
 Austria 73.3 Increase 1.3
 Japan 73.3 Increase 1.2
 Qatar 72.3 Decrease 0.3
 Latvia 71.9 Increase 1.5
 Rwanda 70.9 Decrease 0.2
 Armenia 70.6 Increase 2.9
 Macau 70.3 Decrease 0.7
 Bulgaria 70.2 Increase 1.2
 Cyprus 70.1 Increase 2.0
 Romania 69.7 Increase 1.1
 Kazakhstan 69.6 Increase 4.2
 Botswana 69.6 Decrease 0.1
 North Macedonia 69.5 Increase 1.6
 Malta 69.5 Increase 0.9
 Thailand 69.4 Increase 1.1
 Azerbaijan 69.3 Increase 3.9
 Colombia 69.2 Increase 1.9
 Poland 69.1 Increase 1.3
 Uruguay 69.1 Increase 0.5
 Belgium 68.9 Increase 1.6
 Jamaica 68.5 Decrease 0.1
 Saint Lucia 68.2 Increase 0.5
 Peru 67.9 Increase 0.1
 Slovenia 67.8 Increase 2.3
 Kosovo 67.4 Increase 0.4
 Indonesia 67.2 Increase 1.4
 Panama 67.2 Steady 0.0
 Portugal 67.0 Increase 1.7
 Albania 66.9 Increase 0.4
 Spain 66.8 Increase 1.2
 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 66.8 Increase 1.0
 Slovakia 66.8 Increase 1.8
 Brunei Darussalam 66.6 Increase 1.5
 Hungary 66.4 Increase 1.4
 Bahrain 66.3 Decrease 0.1
 France 66.0 Increase 2.2
 Serbia 66.0 Increase 2.1
 Jordan 66.0 Decrease 0.5
 Mexico 66.0 Increase 1.3
 Costa Rica 65.8 Increase 0.5
 The Bahamas 64.5 Increase 1.6
 Philippines 64.5 Increase 0.7
 Turkey 64.4 Decrease 0.2
 Seychelles 64.3 Decrease 2.9
 Guatemala 64.0 Increase 1.4
 Italy 63.8 Increase 1.6
 Oman 63.6 Increase 2.6
 Cabo Verde 63.6 Increase 0.5
 Fiji 63.4 Decrease 1.2
 Morocco 63.3 Increase 0.4
 Kuwait 63.2 Decrease 2.4
 Paraguay 63.0 Decrease 1.2
 Kyrgyzstan 62.9 Increase 0.6
 Bosnia and Herzegovina 62.6 Increase 0.7
 Saudi Arabia 62.4 Decrease 1.7
 Croatia 62.2 Increase 0.8
 Bhutan 62.1 Decrease 0.8
 Samoa 62.1 Decrease 0.1
 Moldova 62.0 Increase 2.9
 Belarus 61.7 Decrease 3.8
 Tanzania 61.7 Increase 1.5
 El Salvador 61.6 Decrease 0.2
 Montenegro 61.5 Increase 1.0
 Barbados 61.4 Increase 3.3
 Honduras 61.1 Increase 0.9
 Russia 61.0 Increase 2.1
 Dominican Republic 60.9 Decrease 0.1
 Namibia 60.9 Increase 2.2
 Dominica 60.8 Decrease 2.8
 Vanuatu 60.7 Increase 4.3
 Madagascar 60.5 Decrease 3.9
 Greece 59.9 Increase 2.2
 Ivory Coast 59.7 Decrease 2.7
 Uganda 59.5 Decrease 0.2
 China 59.5 Increase 1.1
 Ghana 59.4 Increase 1.9
 Vietnam 58.8 Increase 3.5
 South Africa 58.8 Increase 0.5
 Tonga 58.8 Increase 1.1
 Papua New Guinea 58.4 Steady 0.0
 Trinidad and Tobago 58.3 Increase 1.3
 Senegal 58.0 Increase 1.7
 Belize 57.4 Increase 2.0
 Sri Lanka 57.4 Increase 1.0
 Cambodia 57.3 Decrease 0.5
 Uzbekistan 57.2 Increase 3.9
 Nicaragua 57.2 Decrease 0.5
 Nigeria 57.2 Decrease 0.1
 Burkina Faso 56.7 Decrease 2.7
 Gabon 56.7 Increase 0.4
 Maldives 56.5 Increase 3.3
 India 56.5 Increase 1.3
 Guinea 56.5 Increase 0.8
 Bangladesh 56.4 Increase 0.8
 The Gambia 56.3 Increase 3.9
 Guyana 56.2 Decrease 0.6
 São Tomé and Príncipe 56.2 Decrease 2.2
 Mali 55.9 Decrease 2.2
 Mongolia 55.9 Increase 0.5
 Tunisia 55.8 Increase 0.4
 Laos 55.5 Decrease 1.9
 Mauritania 55.3 Decrease 0.4
 Eswatini 55.3 Increase 0.6
 Kenya 55.3 Increase 0.2
 Benin 55.2 Decrease 0.1
 Ukraine 54.9 Increase 2.6
 Pakistan 54.8 Decrease 0.2
 Afghanistan 54.7 Increase 3.2
 Niger 54.7 Increase 3.1
 Lesotho 54.5 Increase 1.4
   Nepal 54.2 Increase 0.4
 Togo 54.1 Increase 3.8
 Myanmar 54.0 Increase 0.4
 Egypt 54.0 Increase 1.5
 Comoros 53.7 Decrease 1.7
 Brazil 53.7 Increase 1.8
 Cameroon 53.6 Increase 1.2
 Ethiopia 53.6 Steady 0.0
 Zambia 53.5 Decrease 0.1
 Guinea-Bissau 53.3 Decrease 0.7
 Argentina 53.1 Increase 0.9
 Solomon Islands 52.9 Decrease 1.7
 Djibouti 52.9 Increase 5.8
 Malawi 52.8 Increase 1.4
 Haiti 52.3 Decrease 0.4
 Angola 52.2 Increase 1.6
 Tajikistan 52.2 Decrease 3.4
 Micronesia 52.0 Increase 0.1
 Lebanon 51.7 Increase 0.6
 Ecuador 51.3 Increase 4.4
 Central African Republic 50.7 Increase 1.6
 Mozambique 50.5 Decrease 1.9
 Chad 50.2 Increase 0.3
 Congo-Kinshasa 49.5 Decrease 0.8
 Suriname 49.5 Increase 1.4
 Iran 49.2 Decrease 1.9
 Liberia 49.0 Decrease 0.7
 Burundi 49.0 Increase 0.1
 Equatorial Guinea 48.3 Increase 7.3
 Sierra Leone 48.0 Increase 0.5
 Algeria 46.9 Increase 0.7
 Turkmenistan 46.5 Decrease 1.9
 Timor-Leste 45.9 Increase 1.7
 Kiribati 45.2 Decrease 2.1
 Sudan 45.0 Decrease 2.7
 Zimbabwe 43.1 Increase 2.7
 Bolivia 42.8 Increase 0.5
 Congo-Brazzaville 41.8 Increase 2.1
 Eritrea 38.5 Decrease 0.4
 Cuba 26.9 Decrease 0.9
 Venezuela 25.2 Decrease 0.7
 North Korea 4.2 Decrease 1.7

Not ranked

2017 ranking with more attributes

The following table contains more attributes. The whole table is available in XLS format at The Heritage Foundation web site.[4]

Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
 Afghanistan 48,9 12,6 28,4 27,5 91,6 79,9 97,3 54,2 59,9 69,3 66,0 0 0
 Albania 64,4 54,0 28,5 39,7 86,9 72,5 51,5 79,3 50,7 81,4 87,7 70 70
 Algeria 46,5 38,2 29,6 31,7 81,1 51,0 19,8 62,1 49,5 67,0 63,3 35 30
 Angola 48,5 36,4 19,8 12,8 87,7 58,6 70,7 58,5 40,4 70,6 56,7 30 40
 Argentina 50,4 32,4 39,6 38,2 62,6 54,6 56,4 57,3 46,1 50,9 66,7 50 50
 Armenia 70,3 55,5 42,5 43,4 83,7 81,7 82,9 78,5 72,4 72,8 80,2 80 70
 Australia 81,0 81,7 92,9 74,8 63,2 59,0 84,6 89,3 84,1 86,4 86,2 80 90
 Austria 72,3 86,0 81,8 75,2 50,3 19,3 79,7 76,9 67,6 83,4 87,0 90 70
 Azerbaijan 63,6 50,5 33,0 37,6 87,7 57,5 97,4 71,5 75,0 73,6 74,4 55 50
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
 Bahamas 61,1 45,3 48,7 38,2 97,1 83,8 42,3 68,5 71,5 77,0 50,6 50 60
 Bahrain 68,5 64,2 53,7 55,5 99,9 69,8 12,0 69,4 78,7 80,7 82,8 75 80
 Bangladesh 55,0 34,9 26,0 19,1 72,8 94,0 78,7 53,4 68,7 68,6 63,6 50 30
 Barbados 54,5 55,5 33,0 34,3 74,0 39,0 0,0 69,6 67,7 83,7 62,2 75 60
 Belarus 58,6 50,9 56,3 37,6 89,8 48,7 92,8 71,3 74,6 60,4 80,6 30 10
 Belgium 67,8 83,3 69,3 71,5 44,1 9,6 66,3 82,0 61,1 84,9 87,0 85 70
 Belize 58,6 43,5 48,7 35,0 81,3 68,6 60,5 62,7 53,6 79,6 70,1 50 50
 Benin 59,2 36,0 29,4 31,3 68,6 85,9 71,3 51,9 52,4 85,4 68,7 80 50
 Bhutan 58,4 60,1 50,7 44,7 83,1 73,6 61,7 72,6 77,6 67,1 60,0 20 30
 Bolivia 47,7 25,7 15,4 32,6 86,1 49,1 81,4 58,9 35,8 66,4 76,0 5 40
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
 Bosnia and Herzegovina 60,2 41,2 40,0 32,7 83,5 33,7 89,3 47,4 59,3 84,0 86,6 65 60
 Botswana 70,1 58,1 54,0 57,6 77,1 61,2 99,4 68,8 68,6 77,9 83,8 65 70
 Brazil 52,9 55,0 49,7 33,4 70,1 53,1 22,8 61,3 52,3 67,0 69,4 50 50
 Bulgaria 67,9 62,5 38,9 41,8 91,0 58,4 86,4 66,7 68,3 83,3 87,0 70 60
 Burkina Faso 59,6 38,2 28,4 31,7 82,6 82,5 88,4 46,4 53,3 84,6 69,2 70 40
 Burma 52,5 23,0 12,9 29,6 86,2 81,5 89,9 50,1 77,1 65,4 74,2 20 20
 Burundi 53,2 25,7 19,8 24,6 73,8 69,5 69,6 53,5 67,4 75,2 74,2 55 30
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
 Cambodia 59,5 42,4 22,1 12,8 90,2 88,1 95,7 29,6 62,0 81,0 80,3 60 50
 Cameroon 51,8 43,5 29,6 17,4 75,4 84,4 60,9 44,3 47,8 80,1 53,4 35 50
 Canada 78,5 88,3 80,8 81,6 77,4 52,3 80,3 81,9 73,1 77,8 88,4 80 80
 Cabo Verde 56,9 42,6 50,2 41,8 78,3 70,7 1,2 65,5 43,2 86,7 68,2 75 60
 Central African Republic 51,8 12,6 33,0 28,7 65,8 94,1 84,1 27,2 42,7 68,2 55,2 80 30
 Chad 49,0 30,6 24,1 24,6 46,0 87,2 74,6 27,5 44,9 74,3 54,7 60 40
 Chile 76,5 68,2 63,7 70,5 77,6 82,2 96,1 72,3 64,3 82,2 86,4 85 70
 China 57,4 48,3 60,7 41,6 70,0 73,0 92,5 53,9 63,4 71,8 73,6 20 20
 Colombia 69,7 63,8 25,2 39,6 80,1 74,2 89,8 77,1 77,9 77,0 81,6 80 70
 Comoros 55,8 37,3 22,6 30,0 64,6 81,2 98,6 58,5 50,6 81,5 70,2 45 30
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
 Democratic Republic of the Congo 56,4 40,6 48,7 28,6 73,4 94,7 99,3 59,9 38,4 78,6 64,6 30 20
 Congo, Republic of 40,0 34,8 22,6 30,5 66,8 36,2 11,6 32,1 37,5 76,1 52,2 50 30
 Costa Rica 65,0 51,6 55,6 55,4 79,4 88,5 42,4 68,1 53,9 80,8 84,7 70 50
 Côte d'Ivoire 63,0 42,6 45,8 34,3 78,4 84,6 87,0 62,1 50,6 73,2 72,3 75 50
 Croatia 59,4 65,5 56,8 43,4 66,8 31,3 44,7 58,2 43,3 80,3 87,4 75 60
 Cuba 33,9 32,4 10,0 41,8 51,3 0,0 81,2 20,0 20,0 66,0 64,5 10 10
 Cyprus 67,9 75,4 60,7 53,6 73,0 48,8 72,9 75,8 58,6 83,3 87,0 75 50
 Czech Republic 73,3 70,3 55,9 55,9 82,9 45,3 92,0 67,2 77,7 85,8 87,0 80 80
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
 Denmark 75,1 86,7 68,5 84,9 37,2 5,7 95,4 93,9 85,8 85,5 87,0 90 80
 Djibouti 46,7 12,3 10,3 32,6 80,9 39,5 13,8 51,6 59,0 75,3 54,9 80 50
 Dominica 63,7 43,8 67,7 40,9 73,2 67,5 72,6 72,1 59,0 89,5 72,6 75 30
 Dominican Republic 62,9 56,1 25,3 30,9 84,6 90,2 90,1 52,8 56,2 76,7 77,0 75 40
 Ecuador 49,3 38,7 22,3 33,9 79,1 46,1 56,4 55,4 47,3 67,7 69,7 35 40
 Egypt 52,6 35,4 56,3 32,7 86,1 63,0 4,6 66,8 51,3 69,6 70,2 55 40
 El Salvador 64,1 45,3 35,4 31,7 79,0 85,9 74,7 57,3 54,5 79,2 86,5 80 60
 Equatorial Guinea 45,0 35,4 13,1 24,6 75,4 53,6 46,4 50,9 38,5 78,3 53,8 40 30
 Eritrea 42,2 36,4 10,3 27,5 81,3 74,7 0,0 56,7 69,7 61,0 69,2 0 20
 Estonia 79,1 82,6 82,8 69,9 81,2 55,8 99,8 77,0 56,9 85,7 87,0 90 80
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
 Ethiopia 52,7 32,6 29,6 37,6 77,1 90,3 86,5 50,0 57,2 65,7 65,1 20 20
 Fiji 63,4 67,7 41,9 32,7 80,7 72,5 84,1 61,3 70,5 75,5 68,8 55 50
 Finland 74,0 90,6 82,7 90,0 66,6 0,0 77,3 90,2 53,4 85,1 87,0 85 80
 France 63,3 85,0 72,7 69,7 47,6 2,0 57,0 78,0 44,1 81,6 82,0 70 70
 Gabon 58,6 35,9 26,7 37,6 77,0 81,0 96,1 50,6 58,4 83,0 61,8 55 40
 Gambia 53,4 39,1 38,8 38,2 74,9 74,3 3,2 52,8 65,6 63,8 65,0 75 50
 Georgia 76,0 55,1 66,5 65,0 87,3 74,4 93,5 87,2 75,9 78,2 88,6 80 60
 Germany 73,8 82,9 79,5 77,7 61,9 41,4 89,9 86,6 42,8 85,9 87,0 80 70
 Ghana 56,2 51,6 40,9 35,5 84,5 76,3 9,2 59,6 57,4 64,5 65,1 70 60
 Greece 55,0 52,5 56,1 41,3 61,1 5,4 58,1 74,3 51,0 78,2 82,0 60 40
 Guatemala 63,0 45,0 27,8 27,5 79,2 94,8 93,5 58,7 48,2 79,4 87,0 65 50
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
 Guinea 47,6 15,6 13,1 27,5 69,1 78,4 34,2 55,8 54,8 71,1 61,2 50 40
 Guinea-Bissau 56,1 33,8 48,7 28,7 89,0 87,5 75,3 46,7 60,9 77,7 65,2 30 30
 Guyana 58,5 37,7 34,1 33,9 68,0 72,8 80,9 63,2 70,9 79,8 70,7 60 30
 Haiti 49,6 12,6 25,1 19,1 80,3 81,0 51,8 49,4 62,1 73,8 70,6 40 30
 Honduras 58,8 45,0 38,2 32,2 83,3 74,7 64,1 56,9 31,2 77,3 78,4 65 60
 Hong Kong SAR 89,8 93,7 84,0 80,3 93,0 90,0 100,0 94,6 89,1 83,2 90,0 90 90
 Hungary 65,8 60,1 51,8 41,5 79,3 25,3 79,3 64,0 64,4 91,7 87,0 75 70
 Iceland 74,4 85,0 71,5 71,5 70,9 41,1 90,6 90,2 62,6 81,2 88,0 80 60
 India 52,6 55,4 44,4 44,3 77,2 77,4 11,0 52,8 41,6 75,0 72,6 40 40
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
 Indonesia 61,9 48,3 39,3 44,7 83,6 89,9 90,1 49,1 48,9 74,0 80,5 35 60
 Iran 50,5 32,4 36,0 29,6 81,1 92,7 94,9 64,8 54,5 55,5 54,5 0 10
 Iraq N/A 37,3 15,9 19,1 N/A 36,1 11,3 61,2 68,0 76,9 N/A N/A N/A
 Ireland 76,7 85,8 78,3 78,3 72,7 57,1 60,3 80,3 73,6 87,6 87,0 90 70
 Israel 69,7 71,9 82,0 47,6 61,0 50,5 71,8 69,9 64,3 84,9 88,0 75 70
 Italy 62,5 74,6 55,4 44,7 54,9 22,3 66,9 69,8 52,9 86,9 87,0 85 50
 Jamaica 69,5 58,0 61,5 38,2 81,0 77,5 79,9 78,9 73,7 79,5 75,3 80 50
 Japan 69,6 89,4 73,8 86,1 68,5 52,3 9,5 82,3 77,5 83,0 82,6 70 60
 Jordan 66,7 60,1 49,5 49,8 91,3 73,3 55,5 63,9 58,1 86,7 82,0 70 60
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
 Kazakhstan 69,0 56,1 56,5 38,0 93,3 85,7 98,9 74,5 82,5 73,9 78,5 40 50
 Kenya 53,5 45,1 42,7 24,7 78,5 77,9 14,4 50,0 62,4 73,8 67,2 55 50
 Kiribati 50,9 48,0 33,0 37,6 73,6 0,0 99,5 51,5 71,9 82,0 58,2 25 30
 Korea, North 4,9 32,4 5,0 11,6 0,0 0,0 0,0 5,0 5,0 0,0 0,0 0 0
 Korea, South 74,3 77,8 59,9 67,3 73,7 68,9 97,4 90,6 57,0 84,0 79,5 65 70
 Kuwait 65,1 55,5 56,4 41,3 97,7 40,8 99,8 61,2 61,5 73,6 78,7 55 60
 Kyrgyz Republic 61,1 50,9 17,2 30,3 93,7 55,2 78,9 73,7 79,8 68,5 75,3 60 50
 Laos 54,0 35,3 35,9 32,6 86,1 76,6 61,2 66,3 54,4 70,2 74,6 35 20
 Latvia 74,8 72,6 59,7 67,3 84,7 57,4 95,0 79,8 72,0 86,5 87,0 75 60
 Lebanon 53,3 43,8 25,3 23,3 91,8 76,1 0,0 51,5 49,5 78,4 84,4 65 50
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
 Lesotho 53,9 51,6 50,9 39,6 55,7 0,0 92,2 52,2 57,7 76,4 80,2 50 40
 Liberia 49,1 33,6 41,0 31,4 83,6 60,1 36,2 53,1 48,5 71,8 60,1 50 20
 Libya N/A 6,8 22,6 26,7 95 0 11,4 65,0 52,5 69,2 80,0 N/A N/A
 Liechtenstein N/A n/a n/a n/a N/A N/A N/A 92,3 85,7 N/A 90,0 85 80
 Lithuania 75,8 73,0 62,4 69,7 86,9 64,1 93,6 79,1 63,6 90,0 87,0 70 70
 Luxembourg 75,9 85,8 77,0 78,3 64,5 46,0 99,0 68,6 43,8 86,2 87,0 95 80
 Macau 70,7 60,0 60,0 37,1 72,3 92,8 100,0 60,0 50,0 70,8 90,0 85 70
 Macedonia 70,7 67,0 61,4 52,0 91,9 68,9 72,6 81,5 66,7 80,8 86,1 60 60
 Madagascar 57,4 34,8 21,4 25,0 91,0 93,2 79,8 43,3 43,8 73,3 78,0 55 50
 Malawi 52,2 36,0 44,2 31,3 79,1 69,8 33,5 45,3 56,9 54,7 70,5 55 50
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
 Malaysia 73,8 85,3 67,3 51,8 85,3 78,7 76,5 90,8 73,1 85,3 81,2 60 50
 Maldives 50,3 45,1 33,0 31,4 93,0 51,5 9,4 80,6 70,4 76,3 47,8 35 30
 Mali 58,6 36,7 33,8 34,3 69,4 88,0 87,8 44,2 51,1 83,0 70,1 65 40
 Malta 67,7 67,7 62,9 53,6 62,8 44,9 85,1 62,5 57,2 83,5 87,0 85 60
 Mauritania 54,4 22,5 13,8 29,2 81,2 73,2 77,1 64,4 57,4 81,9 62,3 50 40
 Mauritius 74,7 64,4 72,6 44,3 92,0 81,5 74,9 78,2 68,8 81,1 88,7 80 70
 Mexico 63,6 58,1 38,7 30,0 74,9 76,7 66,8 70,7 57,9 78,8 80,0 70 60
 Micronesia 54,1 30,0 30,0 40,7 90,7 0,0 98,6 57,8 67,7 83,6 85,6 35 30
 Moldova 58,0 49,6 23,9 28,6 86,1 54,8 90,6 65,9 38,9 72,0 80,0 55 50
 Mongolia 54,8 51,3 28,4 36,8 87,1 57,6 0,0 67,2 76,6 72,3 74,9 45 60
 Montenegro 62,0 58,0 50,4 43,4 83,1 33,1 44,3 72,0 67,4 82,5 84,7 75 50
 Morocco 61,5 55,0 41,9 37,1 71,7 69,4 55,0 67,7 33,8 82,7 84,0 70 70
 Mozambique 49,9 40,6 32,4 30,9 73,2 58,2 22,7 58,8 41,0 79,9 76,7 35 50
 Namibia 62,5 53,8 50,6 41,3 65,2 55,6 66,4 67,6 84,4 77,2 83,5 65 40
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
   Nepal 55,1 37,3 32,0 26,7 84,9 89,5 98,4 64,6 47,6 72,2 68,1 10 30
 Netherlands 75,8 87,4 69,9 85,7 53,2 37,0 83,0 80,2 70,5 85,8 87,0 90 80
 New Zealand 83,7 96,1 88,5 89,9 70,8 46,5 97,8 91,8 86,2 90,1 87,4 80 80
 Nicaragua 59,2 31,1 15,9 27,4 77,2 80,8 96,1 59,0 55,6 71,2 81,0 65 50
 Niger 50,8 33,8 22,6 35,0 76,3 73,4 38,5 39,1 46,1 83,3 66,4 55 40
 Nigeria 57,1 35,3 33,2 12,2 85,2 95,2 87,2 48,9 73,9 71,3 62,3 40 40
 Norway 74,0 86,7 83,3 88,3 55,6 38,5 98,4 89,5 48,8 75,8 87,7 75 60
 Oman 62,1 60,8 52,3 47,6 98,5 20,5 36,3 68,4 70,3 80,6 85,2 65 60
 Pakistan 52,8 36,4 34,1 30,5 78,9 87,3 30,8 61,2 37,8 74,8 67,2 55 40
 Panama 66,3 61,1 21,5 40,9 85,2 83,1 84,9 74,4 43,0 78,4 77,8 75 70
 Papua New Guinea 50,9 37,7 54,0 32,7 67,8 64,5 16,7 59,8 67,4 69,8 85,4 25 30
 Paraguay 62,4 38,2 23,3 32,6 96,2 83,0 95,1 62,4 28,5 78,3 76,6 75 60
 Peru 68,9 58,3 28,2 38,8 80,3 85,1 98,4 69,4 62,8 83,3 87,1 75 60
 Philippines 65,6 49,2 37,1 38,7 78,9 89,4 97,2 62,6 57,2 80,6 76,4 60 60
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
 Poland 68,3 60,8 58,0 55,5 76,0 46,9 76,1 67,8 61,5 84,7 87,0 75 70
 Portugal 62,6 73,3 68,9 59,0 59,8 25,1 32,1 86,4 43,4 85,9 87,0 70 60
 Qatar 73,1 74,8 63,0 59,0 99,6 71,2 97,4 68,1 65,4 80,6 83,1 55 60
 Romania 69,7 63,9 58,5 45,9 87,4 65,3 90,9 65,9 62,5 83,6 87,0 75 50
 Russia 57,1 47,6 44,5 38,2 81,8 61,5 93,4 74,8 50,8 57,3 75,2 30 30
 Rwanda 67,6 64,4 68,8 45,9 79,8 77,3 83,3 59,0 81,8 80,0 70,3 60 40
 Saint Lucia 65,0 65,5 68,8 39,6 76,4 71,6 53,8 77,2 68,7 82,3 71,6 65 40
 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 65,2 37,3 68,8 47,6 72,8 71,7 66,7 80,3 74,5 82,9 65,2 75 40
 Samoa 58,4 51,3 22,6 37,1 80,4 51,9 66,6 77,0 73,3 84,5 70,7 55 30
 São Tomé and Príncipe 55,4 37,7 15,9 39,7 87,8 67,9 67,1 65,0 47,2 69,6 71,8 65 30
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
 Saudi Arabia 64,4 62,0 65,0 45,9 99,7 54,5 65,7 73,8 68,5 70,1 78,2 40 50
 Senegal 55,9 44,0 39,3 42,1 70,9 74,3 51,8 50,8 38,9 86,0 73,1 60 40
 Serbia 58,9 50,3 40,2 38,2 83,3 40,3 46,9 62,9 65,9 80,8 77,8 70 50
 Seychelles 61,8 55,2 42,6 44,3 78,8 63,9 90,7 63,4 55,9 78,3 83,4 55 30
 Sierra Leone 52,6 37,4 27,0 18,9 81,3 90,2 76,2 49,6 29,7 71,1 69,4 60 20
 Singapore 88,6 97,1 91,5 87,9 90,5 90,1 80,7 95,1 90,8 84,3 90,0 85 80
 Slovak Republic 65,7 69,0 38,0 39,6 79,7 47,2 82,9 64,9 54,4 81,1 87,0 75 70
 Slovenia 59,2 75,0 55,1 53,6 58,7 28,6 6,1 80,6 60,2 85,3 87,0 70 50
 Solomon Islands 55,0 39,3 41,9 33,9 62,8 34,4 99,8 68,5 70,5 81,0 83,0 15 30
 South Africa 62,3 67,6 59,7 47,6 70,2 68,4 70,0 62,0 58,9 75,8 77,3 40 50
 Spain 63,6 71,2 53,9 57,2 62,5 41,4 26,9 66,9 55,3 85,5 87,0 85 70
 Sri Lanka 57,4 48,0 48,3 30,0 85,3 90,2 31,2 72,8 57,5 76,0 74,5 35 40
 Sudan 48,8 31,1 19,8 18,9 86,5 95,1 85,5 53,9 49,7 59,3 50,5 15 20
 Suriname 48,0 45,1 15,4 31,7 70,1 69,6 16,2 48,6 76,1 75,1 68,4 30 30
 Swaziland 61,1 53,5 33,3 30,9 74,8 71,6 93,2 57,5 64,4 75,6 88,9 50 40
 Sweden 74,9 88,6 82,2 87,4 44,4 21,7 93,4 90,8 53,2 85,3 87,0 85 80
  Switzerland 81,5 86,9 77,6 80,3 70,9 67,5 95,8 76,8 72,2 84,4 90,0 85 90
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
 Syria N/A 37,3 22,6 30,0 N/A N/A 0,0 66,4 55,7 N/A 56,6 N/A N/A
 Taiwan 76,5 86,5 67,7 70,5 75,3 89,5 83,7 93,4 55,0 85,2 86,2 65 60
 Tajikistan 58,2 45,5 45,6 32,7 90,9 74,1 95,8 65,6 49,2 69,8 73,9 25 30
 Tanzania 58,6 33,8 28,8 29,2 80,3 89,5 76,6 50,1 64,3 69,6 76,0 55 50
 Thailand 66,2 51,3 41,7 40,7 81,0 85,3 96,3 69,9 62,8 72,9 82,8 50 60
 Timor-Leste 46,3 6,8 10,3 29,2 64,7 65,6 20,0 72,2 63,9 77,5 80,0 45 20
 Togo 53,2 33,8 39,9 36,8 68,2 79,8 45,1 50,3 46,2 77,5 71,3 60 30
 Tonga 63,0 65,5 19,8 47,6 86,9 74,4 79,6 76,1 86,0 80,6 79,7 40 20
 Trinidad and Tobago 61,2 54,7 48,7 36,8 81,4 57,7 51,8 67,7 71,4 75,9 78,6 60 50
 Tunisia 55,7 49,6 39,9 37,3 73,7 73,4 53,4 80,6 56,1 75,9 63,8 35 30
 Turkey 65,2 61,3 52,5 40,7 75,5 57,7 95,7 64,3 48,5 72,2 79,4 75 60
 Turkmenistan 47,4 32,4 5,0 29,6 95,3 92,3 98,9 30,0 20,0 74,8 80,0 0 10
 Uganda 60,9 39,3 34,6 28,7 73,7 91,0 78,1 42,4 84,6 80,3 78,3 60 40
 Ukraine 48,1 41,4 22,6 29,2 78,6 38,2 67,9 62,1 48,8 47,4 85,9 25 30
 United Arab Emirates 76,9 76,7 85,0 74,2 96,4 67,4 99,2 81,1 80,9 78,4 83,5 40 60
 United Kingdom 76,4 93,8 93,0 78,3 65,1 41,9 40,4 89,9 72,8 85,0 87,0 90 80
 United States 75,1 81,3 75,1 78,1 65,3 55,9 53,3 84,4 91,0 80,1 87,1 80 70
 Uruguay 69,7 70,2 66,8 70,3 77,5 69,4 77,2 74,8 62,9 71,3 80,6 85 30
 Uzbekistan 52,3 48,0 41,9 27,5 90,7 66,2 99,8 64,8 50,4 61,1 66,8 0 10
 Vanuatu 67,4 65,5 33,0 70,5 97,0 80,4 99,1 51,4 58,1 74,8 73,9 65 40
 Venezuela 27,0 6,8 10,3 11,6 72,5 51,5 15,2 39,7 28,5 16,8 60,7 0 10
 Vietnam 52,4 49,7 32,0 24,6 79,6 74,6 21,1 61,2 62,2 76,0 83,1 25 40
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom
 Yemen N/A 37,3 22,6 17,4 N/A 77,2 10,6 51,4 54,2 59,7 N/A N/A N/A
 Zambia 55,8 49,6 39,8 35,0 73,1 81,6 21,6 66,6 48,2 70,7 78,3 55 50
 Zimbabwe 44,0 27,3 26,1 14,7 61,1 75,2 90,6 36,2 33,1 76,5 52,8 25 10
 Somalia N/A 6,8 N/A 11,6 100 N/A 0,0 92,3 91,8 N/A N/A N/A N/A
 Kosovo 67,9 70,3 58,0 45,9 93,5 77,8 88,9 68,8 65,3 80,0 70,8 65 30
 Brunei Darussalam 69,8 62,5 39,9 40,9 85,6 61,2 100,0 76,6 90,4 76,1 89,1 65 50
Country Name 2017 Score Property Rights Judicial Strength Gov't Integrity Tax Burden Gov't Spending Fiscal Health Business Freedom Labor Freedom Monetary Freedom Trade Freedom Investment Freedom Financial Freedom

Method

The 2018 ranking scores aspects of economic freedom between 0 and 100, with 0 meaning "no economic freedom" and 100 meaning "total economic freedom". There are twelve aspects divided into four categories.[5]

Rule of law

Property rights

Degree of a country's legal protection of private property rights and degree of enforcement of those laws. It is divided into the following sub-factors:

  1. physical property rights
  2. intellectual property rights
  3. strength of investor protection
  4. risk of expropriation
  5. quality of land administration
Judicial effectiveness

Degree of the judiciary's efficiency and fairness, especially dealing with property laws. It is divided into the following sub-factors:

  1. judicial independence
  2. quality of the judicial process
  3. likelihood of obtaining favorable judicial decisions
Government integrity

Analyzes how prevalent are forms of political corruption and practices such as bribery, extortion, nepotism, cronyism, patronage, embezzlement, and graft. It is divided into the following sub-factors:

  1. public trust in politicians
  2. irregular payments and bribes
  3. transparency of government policymaking
  4. absence of corruption
  5. perceptions of corruption
  6. governmental and civil service transparency

Government size

Tax burden

Analyzes marginal tax rates on personal and corporate income and the overall taxation level (including direct and indirect taxes imposed by all levels of government) as a percentage of the GDP. Its sub-factors are:

  1. top marginal tax rate on individual income
  2. top marginal tax rate on corporate income
  3. total tax burden as a percentage of GDP
Government spending

Quantifies the burden of government expenditures, including consumption by the state and all transfer payments related to various entitlement programs. The ideal level varies from country to country, but zero expenditure is used as a benchmark.

Fiscal health

Analyzes how well a country manages its budget by quantifying the growing debt and deficit. It is divided into the following sub-factors:

  1. average deficits as a percentage of GDP for the most recent three years (80 percent of score)
  2. debt as a percentage of GDP (20 percent of score)

Regulatory efficiency

Business freedom

Analyses the cost, time and freedom to open, operate and close a business, taking into consideration factors like electricity. It is divided into thirteen sub-factors:

  1. starting a business—procedures (number);
  2. starting a business—time (days);
  3. starting a business—cost (% of income per capita);
  4. starting a business—minimum capital (% of income per capita);
  5. obtaining a license—procedures (number);
  6. obtaining a license—time (days);
  7. obtaining a license—cost (% of income per capita);
  8. closing a business—time (years);
  9. closing a business—cost (% of estate);
  10. closing a business—recovery rate (cents on the dollar);
  11. getting electricity—procedures (number);
  12. getting electricity—time (days); and
  13. getting electricity—cost (% of income per capita).
Labor freedom

Quantifies the intrusiveness of labor rights such as minimum wage, laws inhibiting layoffs, severance requirements, and measurable regulatory restraints on hiring and hours worked, plus the labor force participation rate as an indicative measure of employment opportunities in the labor market. It is divided into the following sub-factors:

  1. ratio of minimum wage to the average value added per worker
  2. hindrance to hiring additional workers
  3. rigidity of hours
  4. difficulty of firing redundant employees
  5. legally mandated notice period
  6. mandatory severance pay
  7. labor force participation rate
Monetary freedom

Analyses how stable are prices and how much microeconomy intervenes. It is divided into the following sub-factors:

  1. weighted average inflation rate for the most recent three years
  2. price controls

Market openness

Trade freedom

Quantifies the extent to which tariff and nontariff barriers affect imports and exports of goods and services into and out of the country. Its sub-factors are:

  1. trade-weighted average tariff rate
  2. nontariff barriers (NTBs)
Investment freedom

Analyses how free or constrained is the flow of investment capital of individuals and firms.

Financial freedom

Indicates banking efficiency as well as how independent the government is from the financial sector. This aspect looks at five broad areas:

  1. extent of government regulation of financial services
  2. degree of state intervention in banks and other financial firms through direct and indirect ownership
  3. government influence on the allocation of credit
  4. extent of financial and capital market development
  5. openness to foreign competition

Meaning

The Heritage Foundation reports that the top 20% on the index have twice the per capita income of those in the second quintile, and five times that of the bottom 20%.[6] Carl Schramm, who wrote the first chapter of the 2008 Index, states that cities of Medieval Italy and mid-19th century Midwestern American cities all flourished to the degree they possessed economic fluidity and institutional adaptiveness created by economic freedom.[7]

According to Will Wilkinson of the libertarian think tank Cato Institute, studies show that higher economic freedom correlates strongly with higher self-reported happiness.[8] According to economists Tomi Ovaska and Ryo Takashima, economic freedom research suggests "that people unmistakably care about the degree to which the society where they live provides them opportunities and the freedom to undertake new projects, strongly with and make choices based on one's personal preferences."[9]

According to the Cato Institute, higher economic freedom promotes participation and collaboration.[10] Also claimed is that higher economic freedom is extremely significant in preventing wars; according to their calculations, freedom is around 54 times more effective than democracy (as measured by Democracy Score) in diminishing violent conflict.[11]

Ratings

Since the index was created in 1995, the score for world economic freedom has increased, rising 2.6 points up to 2008.[12] In 2011 the score had decreased from the 2008 score of 60.2 to 59.7, which represents an increase of 2.2 points since 1995. The Economic Freedom score improved for 117 countries, the majority of countries included in the index, which were mainly developing and emerging market economies. With the exception of Europe and North America, there were increased levels of freedom recorded in all regions, with the greatest improvement shown in Sub-Saharan Africa. The top five "free" economies identified by the 2011 index were Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, and Switzerland, each scoring over 80 on the economic freedom grading scale.[13] Since the Index was created in 1995, Hong Kong has been the top performing economy.[13][14]

In 2011, the United States dropped to 9th place behind such countries as Denmark, Canada, and first-place Hong Kong.[13] The Heritage Foundation has pointed to increases in government spending as the reason for the United States' decline, and according to data from the 2011 index, the growth rates of countries with the highest levels of government spending were 4.5 points lower, on average, than countries where government spending was under control.[15] In their "Executive Highlights" of index results, the Heritage Foundation stated that "high levels of government spending in response to the global economic turmoil have not resulted in higher economic growth".[13]

The results from the 2012 index showed an overall decline in global economic freedom; according to The Heritage Foundation, the average score in its ranking was the second lowest of the last ten years.[16] In particular, the U.S. dropped to 10th place in the ranking, and has now fallen three places since 2008, when it was 7th.[17] A report issued by the Foundation stated that government spending was the cause of the decline, and had "not only failed to arrest the economic crisis, but also—in many countries—seems to be prolonging it".[18] According to the report, activity in the private sector is threatened by the greater government spending, which has increased public debt and led to more bureaucracy.[16]

Countries that shared the same rank received a tie score.

Reception

According to the Freedom House, "there is a high and statistically significant correlation between the level of political freedom as measured by Freedom House and economic freedom as measured by the Wall Street Journal/Heritage Foundation survey."[19] The Millennium Challenge Account, a U.S. government foreign aid program, has used the Trade freedom indicator in determining which countries will receive their performance-based compacts.[20]

Critics such as Jeffrey Sachs have contested the Index's assumption that economic openness necessarily leads to better growth. In his book The End of Poverty, Sachs graphed countries' ratings on the index against GDP per capita growth between 1995 and 2003, claiming to demonstrate no correlation between a country's rating and its rate of economic growth. Sachs pointed out, as examples, that countries with good ratings such as Switzerland and Uruguay had sluggish economic performances, others, like China, with poorer rating had very strong economic growth.[21]

The UAE questioned the rating of their country's economic freedom in 2008, comparing its middling rating with the high rating they had received from other indicators such as Transparency International and Moody's. They also argued that the report is "unreliable", because its methodology had changed twice in the last two years.[22]

Stefan Karlsson of the Ludwig von Mises Institute challenged the usefulness of the index due to the fuzziness of many of the categories used to determine freedom.[23] John Miller roundly criticizes the "Index", writing in Dollars & Sense, "In the hands of the Wall Street Journal and the Heritage Foundation, Washington's foremost right-wing think tank, however, an economic freedom index merely measures corporate and entrepreneurial freedom from accountability. Upon examination, the index turns out to be a poor barometer of either freedom more broadly construed or of prosperity."[24] According to Left Business Observer, growth in Index accounts for 10% of the variation in the growth of GDP.[25]

Historical rankings

Historical ranks and scores

Key: ██ Free (80–100) ██ Mostly Free (70.0–79.9) ██ Moderately Free (60.0–69.9) ██ Mostly Unfree (50.0–59.9) ██ Repressed (0–49.9)

  2017[26] 2016[27] 2015[28] 2014[29]
Country Rank Score Change in Yearly Score from 2016 Rank Score Change in Yearly Score from 2015 Rank Score Change in Yearly Score from 2014 Rank Score Change in Yearly Score from 2013
 Hong Kong 1 89.8 Increase 1.2 1 88.6 Decrease -1.0 1 89.6 Decrease -0.5 1 90.1 Increase 0.8
 Singapore 2 88.6 Increase 1.2 2 87.8 Decrease -1.6 2 89.4 Decrease -0.5 2 89.4 Steady 0.0
 New Zealand 3 83.7 Increase 2.1 3 81.6 Decrease -0.5 3 82.1 Increase 0.9 5 81.2 Decrease -0.2
 Switzerland 4 81.5 Increase 0.5 4 81 Increase 0.5 5 80.5 Decrease -1.1 4 81.6 Increase 0.6
 Australia 5 81 Increase 0.7 5 80.3 Decrease -1.1 4 81.4 Decrease -0.6 3 82 Decrease -0.6
 Estonia 6 79.1 Increase 1.9 9 77.2 Increase 0.4 8 76.8 Increase 0.9 11 75.9 Increase 0.6
 Canada 7 78.5 Increase 0.5 6 78 Decrease -1.1 6 79.1 Decrease -1.1 6 80.2 Increase 0.8
 United Arab Emirates 8 76.9 Increase 4.5 25 72.4 Increase 1 28 71.4 Increase 0.3 28 71.1 Increase 1.8
 Ireland 9 76.7 Decrease -0.6 8 77.3 Increase 0.7 9 76.6 Increase 0.4 9 76.2 Increase 0.5
 Chile 10 76.5 Decrease -1.2 7 77.7 Decrease -0.8 7 78.5 Decrease -0.2 7 78.7 Decrease -0.3
 Taiwan 11 76.5 Increase 1.8 14 74.7 Decrease -0.4 14 75.1 Increase 1.2 17 73.9 Increase 1.2
 United Kingdom 12 76.4 Steady 0 10 76.4 Increase 0.6 13 75.8 Increase 0.9 14 74.9 Increase 0.1
 Georgia 13 76 Increase 3.0 22 73 Increase 0.4 22 72.6 Increase 0.4 21 72.2 Increase 2.8
 Luxembourg 14 75.9 Increase 2.7 21 73.2 Decrease -1 16 74.2 Steady 0 15 74.2 Decrease -0.3
 Netherlands 15 75.8 Increase 2.1 17 73.7 Decrease -0.5 15 74.2 Increase 0.7 17 73.5 Increase 0.2
 Lithuania 16 75.8 Increase 0.6 13 75.2 Increase 0.5 15 74.7 Increase 1.7 21 73 Increase 0.9
 United States 17 75.1 Decrease -0.3 11 75.4 Decrease -0.8 12 76.2 Increase 0.7 12 75.5 Decrease -0.5
 Denmark 18 75.1 Decrease -0.2 12 75.3 Decrease -1.0 11 76.3 Increase 0.2 10 76.1 Steady 0
 Sweden 19 74.9 Increase 2.2 23 72.7 Decrease -0.4 20 73.1 Increase 0.2 18 72.9 Increase 1.2
 Latvia 20 74.8 Increase 5.1 37 69.7 Increase 1 42 68.7 Increase 2.2 55 66.5 Increase 1.3
 Mauritius 21 74.7 Steady 0 15 74.7 Decrease -1.7 10 76.4 Decrease -0.1 8 76.5 Decrease -0.4
 Iceland 22 74.4 Increase 2.4 26 72 Decrease -0.4 23 72.4 Increase 0.3 23 72.1 Increase 1.2
 South Korea 23 74.3 Increase 2.8 29 71.5 Increase 0.3 31 71.2 Increase 0.9 34 70.3 Increase 0.4
 Finland 24 74.0 Increase 0.6 19 73.4 Steady 0 19 73.4 Decrease -0.6 16 74 Increase 1.7
 Norway 25 74 Increase 2.2 27 71.8 Increase 0.9 32 70.9 Increase 0.4 31 70.5 Increase 1.7
 Germany 26 73.8 Steady 0 16 73.8 Increase 0.4 18 73.4 Increase 0.6 19 72.8 Increase 1.8
 Malaysia 27 73.8 Increase 3 31 70.8 Increase 1.2 37 69.6 Increase 3.5 56 66.1 Decrease -0.3
 Czech Republic 28 73.3 Increase 0.8 24 72.5 Increase 0.3 26 72.2 Increase 1.3 29 70.9 Increase 1
 Qatar 29 73.1 Increase 2.3 32 70.8 Decrease -0.4 30 71.2 Decrease -0.1 27 71.3 Steady 0
 Austria 30 72.3 Increase 1.1 30 71.2 Decrease -1.2 24 72.4 Increase 0.6 25 71.8 Increase 1.5
 North Macedonia 31 70.7 Increase 3.6 53 67.1 Decrease -1.5 43 68.6 Increase 0.4 43 68.2 Decrease -0.3
 Macau 32 70.7 Increase 0.4 34 70.3 Decrease -1 29 71.3 Decrease -0.4 26 71.7 Decrease -0.1
 Armenia 33 70.3 Increase 3.2 52 67.1 Decrease -1.8 41 68.9 Decrease -0.5 38 69.4 Increase 0.6
 Botswana 34 71.1 Decrease -2.2 36 69.8 Decrease -2.2 27 72 Increase 1.4 30 70.6 Increase 1
 Brunei 35 69.8 Increase 0.9 39 68.9 Decrease -0.1 40 69 -
 Israel 36 69.7 Decrease -0.8 33 70.5 Increase 2.1 44 68.4 Increase 1.5 51 66.9 Decrease -0.9
 Colombia 37 69.7 Decrease -2 28 71.7 Increase 1 34 70.7 Increase 1.1 37 69.6 Increase 1.6
 Uruguay 38 69.7 Increase 1.1 43 68.6 Decrease -0.7 38 69.3 Decrease -0.4 36 69.7 Decrease -0.2
 Romania 39 69.7 Increase 3.1 57 66.6 Increase 1.1 62 65.5 Increase 0.4 59 65.1 Increase 0.7
 Japan 40 69.6 Decrease -3.7 20 73.3 Increase 0.9 25 72.4 Increase 0.6 24 71.8 Increase 0.2
 Jamaica 41 69.5 Increase 1.8 48 67.7 Increase 1 56 66.7 Decrease -0.1 52 66.8 Increase 1.7
 Kazakhstan 42 69 Increase 5.7 69 63.3 Decrease -0.4 67 63.7 Increase 0.7 68 63 Decrease -0.6
 Peru 43 68.9 Increase 1.2 47 67.7 Increase 0.3 47 67.4 Decrease -0.8 44 68.2 Decrease -0.5
 Bahrain 44 68.5 Decrease -4.9 18 73.4 Decrease -1.7 13 75.1 Decrease -0.4 12 75.5 Increase 0.3
 Poland 45 68.3 Decrease -0.3 42 68.6 Increase 1.6 50 67 Increase 1 57 66 Increase 1.8
 Kosovo 46 67.9
 Bulgaria 47 67.9 Increase 1.1 55 66.8 Increase 1.1 61 65.7 Increase 0.7 60 65 Increase 0.3
 Cyprus 48 67.9 Steady 0 45 67.9 Increase 0.3 46 67.6 Decrease -1.4 41 69 Decrease -2.8
 Belgium 49 67.8 Decrease -1 40 68.8 Decrease -1.1 35 69.9 Increase 0.7 40 69.2 Increase 0.2
 Malta 50 67.7 Increase 1.2 58 66.5 Increase 0.1 58 66.4 Decrease -1.1 47 67.5 Increase 0.5
 Rwanda 51 67.6 Increase 2.8 65 64.8 Increase 0.1 65 64.7 Increase 0.6 63 64.1 Decrease -0.8
 Vanuatu 52 67.4 Increase 6.3 84 61.1 Increase 1.6 93 59.5 Increase 2.9 109 56.6 Steady 0
 Jordan 53 66.7 Decrease -2.6 38 69.3 Increase 0.1 39 69.2 Decrease -1.2 33 70.4 Increase 0.5
 Panama 54 66.3 Increase 2.2 68 64.1 Increase 0.7 71 63.4 Increase 0.9 71 62.5 Decrease -2.7
 Thailand 55 66.2 Increase 3.8 75 62.4 Decrease -0.9 72 63.3 Decrease -0.8 61 64.1 Decrease -0.8
 Hungary 56 65.8 Decrease -1.0 54 66.8 Decrease -0.2 51 67 Decrease -0.3 48 67.3 Increase 0.2
 Slovakia 57 65.7 Decrease -1.5 50 67.2 Increase 0.8 57 66.4 Decrease -2.3 42 68.7 Increase 1.7
 Philippines 58 65.6 Increase 3.4 76 62.2 Increase 2.1 89 60.1 Increase 1.9 97 58.2 Increase 1.1
 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 59 65.2 Decrease -2.8 44 68 Increase 1 52 67 Increase 0.3 54 66.7 Increase 0.2
 Turkey 60 65.2 Increase 2 70 63.2 Decrease -1.7 64 64.9 Increase 2 69 62.9 Increase 0.4
 Kuwait 61 65.1 Increase 2.6 74 62.5 Increase 0.2 76 62.3 Decrease -0.8 66 63.1 Increase 0.6
 Saint Lucia 62 65 Decrease -5.2 35 70.2 Decrease -0.5 33 70.7 Increase 0.3 32 70.4 Decrease -0.9
 Costa Rica 63 65 Decrease -2.2 51 67.2 Increase 0.3 53 66.9 Decrease -0.1 49 67 Decrease -1
 Saudi Arabia 64 64.4 Increase 2.3 77 62.1 Decrease -0.1 77 62.2 Increase 1.6 82 60.6 Decrease -1.9
 Albania 65 64.4 Decrease -1.3 63 65.7 Decrease -1.2 54 66.9 Increase 1.7 58 65.2 Increase 0.1
 El Salvador 66 64.1 Decrease -1.6 62 65.7 Decrease -0.5 59 66.2 Decrease -0.5 53 66.7 Decrease -2
 Dominica 67 63.7 Decrease -2.4 61 66.1 Increase 0.9 63 65.2 Increase 1.3 64 63.9 Increase 2.3
 Azerbaijan 68 63.6 Increase 2.6 85 61 Decrease -0.3 81 61.3 Increase 1.6 88 59.7 Increase 0.8
 Spain 69 63.6 Decrease -4.0 49 67.6 Increase 0.4 49 67.2 Decrease -0.8 46 68 Decrease -1.1
 Mexico 70 63.6 Decrease -2.8 59 66.4 Decrease -0.4 55 66.8 Decrease -0.2 50 67 Increase 1.7
 Fiji 71 63.4 Increase 4.4 98 59 Increase 0.3 99 58.7 Increase 1.5 105 57.2 Decrease -0.1
 France 72 63.3 Increase 0.8 73 62.5 Decrease -1 70 63.5 Decrease -0.6 62 64.1 Increase 0.9
 Tonga 73 63 Increase 3.7 95 59.3 Increase 1.1 104 58.2 Increase 2.2 112 56 Decrease -1
 Guatemala 74 63 Increase 2.6 87 60.4 Decrease -0.8 83 61.2 Increase 1.2 85 60 Decrease -0.9
 Ivory Coast 75 63.0 Increase 4.5 103 58.5 Increase 0.8 107 57.7 Increase 3.6 126 54.1 Decrease -0.2
 Dominican Republic 76 62.9 Increase 1.9 86 61 Decrease -0.3 80 61.3 Increase 1.6 87 59.7 Decrease -0.5
 Portugal 77 62.6 Decrease -2.7 64 65.3 Increase 1.8 69 63.5 Increase 0.4 67 63.1 Increase 0.1
 Namibia 78 62.5 Increase 2.9 93 59.6 Increase 0.2 94 59.4 Decrease -0.9 84 60.3 Decrease -1.6
 Italy 79 62.5 Increase 0.8 80 61.7 Increase 0.8 86 60.9 Increase 0.3 83 60.6 Increase 1.8
 Paraguay 80 62.4 Increase 1.3 83 61.1 Decrease -0.9 78 62 Increase 0.9 80 61.1 Decrease -0.7
 South Africa 81 62.3 Decrease -0.3 72 62.6 Increase 0.1 75 62.5 Increase 0.7 74 61.8 Decrease -0.9
 Oman 82 62.1 Decrease -4.6 56 66.7 Decrease -0.7 48 67.4 Decrease -0.7 45 68.1 Increase 0.2
 Montenegro 83 62 Decrease -2.7 66 64.7 Increase 1.1 68 63.6 Increase 1 70 62.6 Increase 0.1
 Indonesia 84 61.9 Increase 3.8 105 58.1 Decrease -0.4 100 58.5 Increase 1.6 108 56.9 Increase 0.5
 Seychelles 85 61.8 Increase 4.3 114 57.5 Increase 1.3 117 56.2 Increase 1.3 124 54.9 Increase 1.9
 Morocco 86 61.5 Increase 1.4 89 60.1 Increase 1.8 103 58.3 Decrease -1.3 90 59.6 Decrease -0.6
 Trinidad and Tobago 87 61.2 Decrease -2.9 67 64.1 Increase 1.4 73 62.7 Increase 0.4 72 62.3 Decrease -2.1
 Eswatini 88 61.1 Increase 1.2 91 59.9 Decrease -1.3 82 61.2 Increase 4 104 57.2 Steady 0
 Kyrgyzstan 89 61.1 Decrease -0.2 82 61.3 Increase 0.2 85 61.1 Increase 1.5 89 59.6 Decrease -0.6
 Bahamas 90 61.1 Decrease -7.6 41 68.7 Decrease -1.1 36 69.8 Decrease -0.3 35 70.1 Increase 2.1
 Uganda 91 60.9 Increase 1.2 92 59.7 Decrease -0.2 91 59.9 Decrease -1.2 79 61.1 Decrease -0.8
 Bosnia and Herzegovina 92 60.2 Increase 1.2 97 59 Increase 0.6 101 58.4 Increase 1.1 103 57.3 Steady 0
 Burkina Faso 93 59.6 Increase 1 102 58.6 Decrease -0.3 98 58.9 Decrease -1 86 59.9 Decrease -0.7
 Cambodia 94 59.5 Increase 2 110 57.5 Increase 0.1 108 57.4 Decrease -1.1 95 58.5 Increase 0.9
 Croatia 95 59.4 Decrease -2.1 81 61.5 Increase 1.1 87 60.4 Decrease -0.9 78 61.3 Increase 0.4
 Benin 96 59.2 Increase 0.4 99 58.8 Increase 1.7 113 57.1 Decrease -0.5 101 57.6 Increase 1.9
 Slovenia 97 59.2 Decrease -1.1 88 60.3 Decrease -2.4 74 62.7 Increase 1 76 61.7 Decrease -1.2
 Nicaragua 98 59.2 Increase 1.6 108 57.6 Decrease -0.8 102 58.4 Increase 1.8 110 56.6 Decrease -1.3
 Serbia 99 58.9 Decrease -1.1 90 60 Increase 0.6 95 59.4 Increase 0.8 94 58.6 Increase 0.6
 Honduras 100 58.8 Increase 1.4 116 57.4 Increase 0.3 112 57.1 Decrease -1.3 96 58.4 Decrease -0.4
 Belize 101 58.6 Increase 1.8 117 56.8 Increase 0.1 115 56.7 Decrease -0.6 102 57.3 Decrease -4.6
 Mali 102 58.6 Increase 2.2 119 56.4 Increase 0.9 122 55.5 Decrease -0.9 111 56.4 Increase 0.6
 Gabon 103 58.6 Increase 0.3 104 58.3 Increase 0.5 105 57.8 Steady 0 99 57.8 Increase 1.4
 Belarus 104 58.6 Increase 8.8 153 49.8 Decrease -0.3 150 50.1 Increase 2.1 154 48 Decrease -1
 Tanzania 105 58.6 Increase 1.1 109 57.5 Decrease -0.3 106 57.8 Decrease -0.1 98 57.9 Increase 0.9
 Guyana 106 58.5 Increase 3 123 55.5 Decrease -0.2 121 55.7 Increase 1.9 129 53.8 Increase 2.5
 Bhutan 107 58.4 Increase 1 115 57.4 Increase 0.7 116 56.7 Increase 1.7 122 55 Decrease -1.6
 Samoa 108 58.4 Decrease -3.5 78 61.9 Increase 0.8 84 61.1 Increase 4 106 57.1 Decrease -3.4
 Tajikistan 109 58.2 Increase 5.5 140 52.7 Increase 0.7 139 52 Decrease -1.4 131 53.4 Steady 0
 Moldova 110 58 Increase 0.5 111 57.5 Increase 0.2 110 57.3 Increase 1.8 115 55.5 Increase 1.1
 China 111 57.4 Increase 4.7 139 52.7 Increase 0.2 137 52.5 Increase 0.6 136 51.9 Increase 0.7
 Sri Lanka 112 57.4 Decrease -1.2 101 58.6 Decrease -1.4 90 60 Decrease -0.7 81 60.7 Increase 2.4
 Madagascar 113 57.4 Decrease -4.3 79 61.7 Steady 0 79 61.7 Decrease -0.3 73 62 Decrease -0.4
 Russia 114 57.1 Increase 5 143 52.1 Increase 0.2 140 51.9 Increase 0.8 139 51.1 Increase 0.6
 Nigeria 115 57.1 Increase 1.5 120 55.6 Increase 1.3 129 54.3 Decrease -0.8 120 55.1 Decrease -1.2
 Cape Verde 116 56.9 Decrease -9.5 60 66.4 Increase 0.3 60 66.1 Increase 2.4 65 63.7 Increase 0.2
 Democratic Republic of the Congo 117 56.4 Increase 13.7 170 42.7 Decrease -1 169 43.7 Increase 0.2 167 43.5 Decrease -0.3
 Ghana 118 56.2 Decrease -6.8 71 63 Decrease -1.2 66 64.2 Increase 2.9 77 61.3 Increase 0.6
 Guinea-Bissau 119 56.1 Increase 4.1 145 52 Increase 0.7 143 51.3 Increase 0.2 138 51.1 Increase 1
 Senegal 120 55.9 Decrease -1.9 106 57.8 Increase 2.4 125 55.4 Decrease -0.1 116 55.5 Increase 0.1
 Comoros 121 55.8 Increase 3.7 142 52.1 Increase 0.7 142 51.4 Increase 3.9 157 47.5 Increase 1.8
 Zambia 122 55.8 Decrease -2.9 100 58.7 Decrease -1.7 88 60.4 Increase 1.7 93 58.7 Increase 0.4
 Tunisia 123 55.7 Decrease -2.0 107 57.7 Increase 0.4 109 57.3 Increase 0.3 107 57 Decrease -1.6
 São Tomé and Príncipe 124 55.4 Increase 2.1 136 53.3 Increase 4.5 157 48.8 Increase 0.8 153 48 Decrease -2.2
 Nepal 125 55.1 Increase 3.8 152 51.3 Increase 1.2 149 50.1 Decrease -0.3 141 50.4 Increase 0.2
 Solomon Islands 126 55 Increase 8 159 47 Increase 0.8 165 46.2 Increase 1.2 165 45 Decrease -1.2
 Greece 127 55 Increase 1 130 54 Decrease -1.7 119 55.7 Increase 0.3 117 55.4 Steady 0
 Bangladesh 128 55 Increase 1.1 131 53.9 Decrease -0.2 131 54.1 Increase 1.5 132 52.6 Decrease -0.6
 Mongolia 129 54.8 Decrease -4.4 96 59.2 Increase 0.3 97 58.9 Decrease -2.8 75 61.7 Increase 0.2
 Barbados 130 54.5 Decrease -13.4 46 67.9 Decrease -0.4 45 68.3 Decrease -1 39 69.3 Increase 0.3
 Mauritania 131 54.4 Increase 1.1 135 53.3 Increase 0.1 134 53.2 Increase 0.9 134 52.3 Decrease -0.7
 Federated States of Micronesia 132 54.1 Increase 4.5 154 49.6 Decrease -0.2 153 49.8 Decrease -0.3 143 50.1 Decrease -0.6
 Laos 133 54 Increase 2.6 150 51.4 Increase 0.2 144 51.2 Increase 1.1 144 50.1 Increase 0.1
 Lesotho 134 53.9 Increase 4.3 155 49.6 Increase 0.1 154 49.5 Increase 2.4 155 47.9 Increase 1.3
 Kenya 135 53.5 Decrease -2.1 122 55.6 Decrease -1.5 111 57.1 Increase 1.2 114 55.9 Decrease -1.6
 Gambia 136 53.4 Decrease -4.1 113 57.5 Decrease -2 92 59.5 Increase 0.7 92 58.8 Steady 0
 Lebanon 137 53.3 Decrease -6.0 94 59.3 Decrease -0.1 96 59.4 Decrease -0.1 91 59.5 Decrease -0.6
 Togo 138 53.2 Increase 0.2 138 53 Increase 3.1 152 49.9 Increase 1.1 150 48.8 Increase 0.5
 Burundi 139 53.2 Decrease -0.5 132 53.7 Increase 2.3 141 51.4 Increase 2.4 148 49 Increase 0.9
 Brazil 140 52.9 Decrease -3.7 118 56.6 Decrease -0.3 114 56.9 Decrease -0.8 100 57.7 Decrease -0.2
 Pakistan 141 52.8 Decrease -2.8 121 55.6 Increase 0.4 126 55.2 Increase 0.1 121 55.1 Increase 0.4
 Ethiopia 142 52.7 Increase 1.2 149 51.5 Increase 1.5 151 50 Increase 0.6 146 49.4 Decrease -2.6
 India 143 52.6 Decrease -2 128 54.6 Decrease -1.1 120 55.7 Increase 0.5 119 55.2 Increase 0.6
 Egypt 144 52.6 Decrease -2.6 124 55.2 Increase 2.3 135 52.9 Decrease -1.9 125 54.8 Decrease -3.1
 Sierra Leone 145 52.6 Increase 0.9 147 51.7 Increase 1.2 148 50.5 Increase 2.2 151 48.3 Decrease -0.8
 Myanmar 146 52.5 Increase 5.6 161 46.9 Increase 0.4 162 46.5 Increase 7.3 172 39.2 Increase 0.5
 Vietnam 147 52.4 Increase 0.7 148 51.7 Increase 0.9 147 50.8 Decrease -0.2 140 51 Decrease -0.3
 Uzbekistan 148 52.3 Increase 5.3 160 47 Increase 0.5 163 46.5 Increase 0.5 162 46 Increase 0.2
 Malawi 149 52.9 Decrease -1.9 126 54.8 Decrease -0.6 124 55.4 Increase 0.1 118 55.3 Decrease -1.1
 Cameroon 150 51.8 Decrease -0.1 146 51.9 Decrease -0.7 136 52.6 Increase 0.3 133 52.3 Increase 0.5
 Central African Republic 151 51.8 Increase 5.9 166 45.9 Decrease -0.8 161 46.7 Decrease -3.7 142 50.4 Increase 0.1
 Papua New Guinea 152 50.9 Decrease -2.2 137 53.1 Decrease -0.8 132 53.9 Increase 0.3 130 53.6 Decrease -0.2
 Kiribati 153 50.9 Increase 4.5 164 46.4 Increase 0.1 164 46.3 Increase 0.4 163 45.9 Decrease -1
 Niger 154 50.8 Decrease -3.8 127 54.6 Decrease -0.5 127 55.1 Increase 1.2 128 53.9 Decrease -0.4
 Iran 155 50.5 Increase 8.7 171 41.8 Increase 1.5 173 40.3 Decrease -2.9 168 43.2 Increase 0.9
 Argentina 156 50.4 Increase 6.3 169 44.1 Decrease -0.5 166 44.6 Decrease -2.1 160 46.7 Decrease -1.3
 Maldives 157 50.3 Decrease -3.1 134 53.4 Increase 2.4 145 51 Increase 2 149 49 Decrease -0.2
 Mozambique 158 49.9 Decrease -4.9 125 54.8 Decrease -0.2 128 55 Steady 0 123 55 Decrease -2.1
 Haiti 159 49.6 Decrease -1.7 151 51.3 Increase 2.4 156 48.9 Increase 0.8 152 48.1 Decrease -2.6
 Ecuador 160 49.3 Increase 0.1 156 49.2 Increase 1.2 159 48 Increase 1.1 159 46.9 Decrease -1.4
 Liberia 161 49.1 Decrease -3.6 141 52.7 Increase 0.3 138 52.4 Increase 3.1 147 49.3 Increase 0.7
 Chad 162 49 Increase 3.1 165 45.9 Increase 1.4 167 44.5 Decrease -0.7 164 45.2 Increase 0.4
 Afghanistan 163 48.9
 Angola 165 48.5 Increase 0.6 158 47.9 Increase 0.2 160 47.7 Increase 0.4 158 47.3 Increase 0.6
 Ukraine 166 48.1 Increase 1.2 162 46.9 Decrease -2.4 155 49.3 Increase 3 161 46.3 Increase 0.2
 Suriname 167 48 Decrease -6.2 129 54.2 Steady 0 130 54.2 Increase 2.2 135 52 Decrease -0.6
 Bolivia 168 47.7 Increase 0.9 163 46.8 Decrease -1.6 158 48.4 Increase 0.5 156 47.9 Decrease -2.3
 Guinea 169 47.6 Decrease -4.5 144 52.1 Decrease -1.4 133 53.5 Increase 2.3 137 51.2 Increase 0.4
 Turkmenistan 170 47.4 Increase 6 172 41.4 Decrease -0.8 171 42.2 Decrease -0.4 169 42.6 Decrease -1.2
 Djibouti 171 46.7 Decrease -10.8 112 57.5 Increase 1.6 118 55.9 Increase 2 127 53.9 Steady 0
 Algeria 172 46.5 Decrease -2.4 157 48.9 Decrease -1.9 146 50.8 Increase 1.2 145 49.6 Decrease -1.4
 Timor-Leste 173 46.3 Increase 0.8 167 45.5 Increase 2.3 170 43.2 Decrease -0.5 166 43.7 Increase 0.4
 Equatorial Guinea 174 45 Increase 4.6 173 40.4 Decrease -4 168 44.4 Increase 2.1 170 42.3 Decrease -0.5
 Zimbabwe 175 44 Increase 6.4 175 37.6 Increase 2.1 176 35.5 Increase 6.9 175 28.6 Increase 2.3
 Eritrea 176 42.2 Increase 3.3 174 38.9 Increase 0.4 174 38.5 Increase 2.2 173 36.3 Increase 0.1
 Republic of the Congo 177 40 Decrease -5 168 45 Increase 4.4 172 40.6 Increase 1 171 39.6 Decrease -1.5
 Cuba 178 33.9 Increase 4.3 177 29.6 Increase 0.9 177 28.7 Increase 0.2 176 28.5 Increase 0.2
 Venezuela 179 27 Decrease -7.3 176 34.3 Decrease -2 175 36.3 Increase 0.2 174 36.1 Decrease -2
 North Korea 180 4.9 Increase 3.6 178 1.3 Increase 0.3 178 1 Decrease -0.5 177 1.5 Increase 0.5
 Yemen 133 53.7 Decrease -1.8 123 55.5 Decrease -0.4 113 55.9 Increase 0.6

Method (old)

The Index's 2008 definition of economic freedom is "the highest form of economic freedom provides an absolute right of property ownership, fully realized freedoms of movement for labor, capital, and goods, and an absolute absence of coercion or constraint of economic liberty beyond the extent necessary for citizens to protect and maintain liberty itself."[30]

The index scores nations on ten factors of economic freedom, separated into four categories, using statistics from organizations like the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, Economist Intelligence Unit and Transparency International. In each factor, countries are scored 0 to 100, with 0 being the least free and 100 the most free. A score of 100 signifies an economic environment or set of policies that is most conducive to economic freedom.[30] The methodology has shifted and changed as new data and measurements have become available, especially in the area of Labor Freedom, which was given its own indicator spot in 2007.[2] The following list explains what each factor currently assesses and groups them according to their respective category:

Rule of Law
Limited Government
  • Fiscal Freedom: How free is a country from tax burden. It comprises three quantitative measures: top marginal tax rate of both individual (1) and corporate (2) income, and total tax burden as a percentage of GDP (3).
  • Government Size/Spending: Governments' expenditures as a percentage of GDP, including consumption and transfers. The higher the percentual spending, the lower the score.
Regulatory Efficiency
  • Business Freedom: A country's freedom from the burden of regulations on starting, operating, and closing business, given factors such as time, cost and number of procedures, as well as the efficiency of government in the regulatory process.
  • Labor Freedom: How free is a country from legal regulation on the labor market, including those relating to minimum wages, hiring and firing, hours of work and severance requirements.
  • Monetary Freedom: How free from microeconomic intervention and price instability is a country, basing on an equation considering the weighted average inflation rate in the last three years and price controls.
Open Markets
  • Trade Freedom: Freedom from sizeable numbers and burdens of tariffs and non-tariff barriers to imports and exports of a country.
  • Investment Freedom: Freedom from restrictions on the movement and use of investment capital, regardless of activity, within and across the country's borders.
  • Financial Freedom: A country's independence from government control and interference in the financial sector, including banks. It considers government ownership of financial firms, extent of financial and capital market development, government influence on the allocation of credit and openness to foreign competition.

Historical positions (1995–2008)

Country/Region 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 1996 1995
 Hong Kong[a] 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
 Ireland 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 3 10 11 11 13 27 20
 Australia 4 4 7 9 8 10 11 8 5 5 7 9 10 8
 United States 5 6 5 5 7 7 8 6 8 7 8 8 5 4
 New Zealand 6 5 4 3 3 3 3 4 3 3 3 3 3
 Canada 7 10 10 12 12 13 14 21 20 25 27 26 20 18
 Chile 8 8 8 8 11 12 9 12 12 12 9 7 13 14
  Switzerland 9 9 9 6 5 6 6 10 6 4 4 4 4
 United Kingdom 10 7 6 7 9 9 7 7 4 6 5 5 7 3
 Denmark 11 12 13 13 17 20 23 33 33 32 34 30 31
 Estonia 12 11 15 14 10 8 10 9 24 13 15 24 38 26
 Netherlands 13 15 16 18 14 14 14 16 21 57 24 20 23
 Iceland 14 13 11 10 19 16 19 15 15 19 18 19
 Luxembourg 15 14 12 11 6 5 5 5 7 15 13 12 15
 Finland 16 16 17 21 16 15 16 27 50 54 55 39 47
 Japan 17 18 18 36 50 34 39 23 19 27 21 21 14 6
 Mauritius 18 32 35 35 51 52 33 45 36 20
 Bahrain 19 24 23 22 13 11 12 11 11 8 6 6 6 5
 Belgium 20 17 24 30 30 33 34 57 55 60 48 44 36
 Barbados 21 27 20 24 28 23 17 20 27 37 33 46 53
 Cyprus 22 20 21 20 15 19 20 22 35 33 29 27 30
 Germany 23 22 25 28 27 26 25 29 43 40 52 29 25 17
 The Bahamas 24 19 19 15 20 17 15 14 16 10 10 10 11 11
 Taiwan 25 25 29 19 26 21 22 18 17 18 20 22 9 7
 Lithuania 26 21 22 23 18 27 43 53 67 67 74 78 104
 Sweden 27 33 27 27 24 24 24 43 47 51 53 53 55 41
 Armenia 28 30 14 25 23 37 32 46 62 96 117 123 125
 Trinidad and Tobago 29 23 26 17 21 29 26 19 13 16 17 16 24
 Austria 30 26 30 34 32 35 36 37 31 53 43 40 26 16
 Spain 31 28 32 31 29 28 29 36 41 45 62 68 65 34
 Georgia 32 31 54 93 78 84 104 87 107 114 122 125 123
 El Salvador 33 29 28 16 22 22 21 17 9 9 22 18 21 19
 Norway 34 37 34 45 42 39 37 41 22 29 31 41 39
 Slovakia 35 36 33 42 48 77 76 85 108 105 85 85 75 46
 Botswana 36 35 31 26 25 30 42 42 42 59 60 72 56 57
 Czech Republic 37 39 40 47 35 36 40 26 30 23 28 54 29 23
 Latvia 38 38 37 39 33 44 52 44 57 50 56 57 86
 Kuwait 39 41 41 48 55 43 46 35 25 24 38 42 35
 Uruguay 40 34 43 33 37 25 30 24 28 30 26 31 46 37
  1. ^ Special administrative region (SAR) of China since 1997

See also

References

  1. ^ "Executive Summary" (PDF). Index of Economic Freedom. 15 January 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 February 2008. Retrieved 4 February 2008.
  2. ^ a b William Beach, Time Kane (15 January 2008). "Methodology; Measuring the 10 Economic Freedoms" (PDF). Index of Economic Freedom. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 February 2008. Retrieved 4 February 2008.
  3. ^ Heritage - Country Rankings
  4. ^ Economic Freedom Index - Downloads
  5. ^ Methodology | 2018 Index of Economic Freedom Book
  6. ^ Mary Anastasia O'Grady (15 January 2008). "The Real Key to Development". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 4 February 2008.
  7. ^ Carl J. Schramm (15 January 2008). "Chapter 1 Economic Fluidity: A Crucial Dimension of Economic Freedom" (PDF). The Heritage Foundation. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 February 2008. Retrieved 4 February 2008.
  8. ^ "In Pursuit of Happiness Research: Is It Reliable? What Does It Imply for Policy?", Will Wilkinson, The Cato institute, Policy Analysis No. 590, 11 April 2007
  9. ^ Ovaska Tomi, Takashima Ryo (2006). "Economic policy and the level of self-perceived well-being: An international comparison". The Journal of Socio-Economics. 35 (2): 308–325. doi:10.1016/j.socec.2005.11.054.
  10. ^ More Freedom = More Happiness Archived 29 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine, Public Issues, Libertad Desarrollo, No. 750, 23 January 2006, ISSN 0717-1528
  11. ^ "Chapter2: Economic Freedom and Peace" Archived 16 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine, Erik Gartzke, in Economic Freedom of the World: 2005 Annual Report, James Gwartney and Robert Lawson, Fraser Institute, 30 August 2005
  12. ^ Barry Wood (15 January 2008). "Economic Freedom Holding Steady, 14th Index of Economic Freedom Shows". PR Newswire. Archived from the original on 18 January 2008. Retrieved 4 February 2008.
  13. ^ a b c d "Executive Highlights" (PDF). The Heritage Foundation. The Heritage Foundation. 2011. Retrieved 20 February 2011.
  14. ^ Ed Feulner (22 January 2008). "Football and economic freedom". IndyStar. Archived from the original on 19 March 2012. Retrieved 4 February 2008.
  15. ^ Miller, Terry (2011). "The Limits of Government" (PDF). Heritage.org. The Heritage Foundation. p. 13. Retrieved 20 February 2011.
  16. ^ a b "Global economic freedom dipped last year, annual survey says; Hong Kong remains world's freest". Washington Post. Associated Press. 12 January 2012. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  17. ^ Edwin Feulner (17 January 2012). "Still in top 10, but falling fast". The Washington Times. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  18. ^ Edwin J. Feulner (12 January 2012). "A Step Backward for Economic Freedom in 2012". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 24 January 2012.
  19. ^ Adrian Karatnycky. Freedom in the World: The Annual Survey of Political Rights and Civil Liberties. Transaction Publishers. 2001. ISBN 978-0-7658-0101-2. p. 11
  20. ^ "Report on the Criteria and Methodology for Determining the Eligibility of Candidate Countries for Millennium Challenge Account Assistance during Fiscal Year 2008" (PDF). Millennium Challenge Corporation. 1 September 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 February 2008. Retrieved 4 February 2008.
  21. ^ The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for our Time, Jeffrey Sachs, Penguin Books, 2005, ISBN 1-59420-045-9, pp. 320–321.
  22. ^ "UAE challenges its economic freedom ranking in paper by Heritage Foundation". Business Intelligence Middle East. 31 January 2008. Archived from the original on 7 July 2011. Retrieved 31 January 2008.
  23. ^ Stefan Karlsson (21 January 2005). "The Failings of the Economic Freedom Index". Mises Daily. Ludwig von Mises Institute. Archived from the original on 14 February 2015. Retrieved 18 April 2008.
  24. ^ "Free, Free at Last", John Miller, Dollars and Sense, No. 258, March/April 2005
  25. ^ "Laissez-faire Olympics, an LBO special report", Left Business Observer, 26 March 2005
  26. ^ "2017 IEF (XLS) table download". The Heritage Foundation. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
  27. ^ "2016 IEF (XLS) table download". The Heritage Foundation. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
  28. ^ "2015 IEF (XLS) table download". The Heritage Foundation. Retrieved 2 February 2015.
  29. ^ "2014 IEF (XLS) table download". The Heritage Foundation. Retrieved 2 February 2014.
  30. ^ a b "Frequently Asked Questions". Index of Economic Freedom. 15 January 2008. Archived from the original on 23 January 2008. Retrieved 4 February 2008.

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