In 2024, 60 countries saw their freedom decline in a historic election year.

Strikingly, 40% of countries and territories that held elections experienced targeted attacks on candidates amid heightened instability.

Yet bright spots were seen in Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Syria, driven by political reform.

This graphic, via Visual Capitalist’s Dorothy Neufeld, shows the state of freedom by country, based on data from Freedom House.

Global Freedom Continues to Deteriorate

For the 19th year in a row, the state of freedom declined globally.

In particular, freedom declined the most in 2024 for El Salvador, Haiti, and Kuwait. In absolute terms, the Gaza Strip and the Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine have among the lowest scores of freedom amid ongoing, violent conflict.

Country/ Territory
Status
Score
🇫🇮 Finland
F
100
🇳🇿 New Zealand
F
99
🇳🇴 Norway
F
99
🇸🇪 Sweden
F
99
🇨🇦 Canada
F
97
🇩🇰 Denmark
F
97
🇮🇪 Ireland
F
97
🇱🇺 Luxembourg
F
97
🇳🇱 Netherlands
F
97
🇸🇲 San Marino
F
97
🇧🇪 Belgium
F
96
🇪🇪 Estonia
F
96
🇯🇵 Japan
F
96
🇵🇹 Portugal
F
96
🇸🇮 Slovenia
F
96
🇨🇭 Switzerland
F
96
🇺🇾 Uruguay
F
96
🇦🇺 Australia
F
95
🇨🇱 Chile
F
95
🇨🇿 Czech Republic
F
95
🇩🇪 Germany
F
95
🇮🇸 Iceland
F
95
🇧🇧 Barbados
F
94
🇹🇼 Taiwan
F
94
🇦🇩 Andorra
F
93
🇦🇹 Austria
F
93
🇲🇭 Marshall Islands
F
93
🇹🇻 Tuvalu
F
93
🇨🇻 Cabo Verde
F
92
🇩🇲 Dominica
F
92
🇫🇲 Micronesia
F
92
🇵🇼 Palau
F
92
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
F
92
🇨🇷 Costa Rica
F
91
🇨🇾 Cyprus
F
91
🏴 St. Lucia
F
91
🇧🇸 Bahamas
F
90
🇱🇮 Liechtenstein
F
90
🇪🇸 Spain
F
90
🏴 St. Vincent and the Grenadines
F
90
🇫🇷 France
F
89
🇬🇩 Grenada
F
89
🇮🇹 Italy
F
89
🇰🇮 Kiribati
F
89
🇱🇻 Latvia
F
89
🇱🇹 Lithuania
F
89
🇸🇰 Slovakia
F
89
🏴 St. Kitts and Nevis
F
89
🇧🇿 Belize
F
88
🇲🇹 Malta
F
87
🇲🇺 Mauritius
F
86
🇦🇷 Argentina
F
85
🇬🇷 Greece
F
85
🇲🇳 Mongolia
F
84
🇼🇸 Samoa
F
84
🇸🇹 Sao Tome and Principe
F
84
🇺🇸 United States
F
84
🇦🇬 Antigua and Barbuda
F
83
🇵🇦 Panama
F
83
🇭🇷 Croatia
F
82
🇲🇨 Monaco
F
82
🇵🇱 Poland
F
82
🇷🇴 Romania
F
82
🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago
F
82
🇻🇺 Vanuatu
F
82
🇿🇦 South Africa
F
81
🏴 South Korea
F
81
🇬🇭 Ghana
F
80
🇯🇲 Jamaica
F
80
🇸🇨 Seychelles
F
80
🇸🇷 Suriname
F
80
🇹🇴 Tonga
F
80
🇧🇬 Bulgaria
F
77
🏴 Northern Cyprus
F
76
🇧🇼 Botswana
F
75
🇳🇷 Nauru
F
75
🇸🇧 Solomon Islands
F
75
🇬🇾 Guyana
F
74
🇮🇱 Israel
F
73
🇳🇦 Namibia
F
73
🇧🇷 Brazil
F
72
🇹🇱 Timor-Leste
F
72
🇨🇴 Colombia
F
70
🇫🇯 Fiji
PF
69
🇲🇪 Montenegro
PF
69
🇸🇳 Senegal
F
69
🇦🇱 Albania
PF
68
🇧🇹 Bhutan
F
68
🇩🇴 Dominican Republic
PF
68
🇲🇰 North Macedonia
PF
67
🇵🇪 Peru
PF
67
🇱🇸 Lesotho
F
66
🇧🇴 Bolivia
PF
65
🇪🇨 Ecuador
PF
65
🇭🇺 Hungary
PF
65
🇲🇼 Malawi
PF
65
🇱🇷 Liberia
PF
64
🇮🇳 India
PF
63
🇵🇾 Paraguay
PF
63
🇳🇵 Nepal
PF
62
🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea
PF
61
🇧🇯 Benin
PF
60
🇽🇰 Kosovo
PF
60
🇲🇩 Moldova
PF
60
🇲🇽 Mexico
PF
59
🇸🇱 Sierra Leone
PF
59
🇵🇭 Philippines
PF
58
🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
PF
58
🇮🇩 Indonesia
PF
56
🇷🇸 Serbia
PF
56
🇬🇪 Georgia
PF
55
🇲🇬 Madagascar
PF
55
🇦🇲 Armenia
PF
54
🇲🇾 Malaysia
PF
53
🇿🇲 Zambia
PF
53
🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina
PF
52
🇰🇪 Kenya
PF
51
🇺🇦 Ukraine
PF
51
🇬🇲 The Gambia
PF
50
🇨🇮 Cote d’Ivoire
PF
49
🇬🇹 Guatemala
PF
48
🇭🇳 Honduras
PF
48
🇸🇬 Singapore
PF
48
🇸🇻 El Salvador
PF
47
🏴 Somaliland
PF
47
🇧🇩 Bangladesh
PF
45
🇳🇬 Nigeria
PF
44
🇹🇳 Tunisia
PF
44
🇲🇻 Maldives
PF
43
🇰🇲 Comoros
PF
42
🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau
PF
41
🇲🇿 Mozambique
PF
41
🇹🇬 Togo
PF
41
🇭🇰 Hong Kong
PF
40
🏴 Abkhazia
PF
39
🇱🇧 Lebanon
PF
39
🇲🇷 Mauritania
PF
39
🏴 Indian Kashmir
PF
38
🇲🇦 Morocco
PF
37
🇹🇿 Tanzania
NF
35
🇯🇴 Jordan
PF
34
🇹🇭 Thailand
NF
34
🇺🇬 Uganda
NF
34
🇹🇷 Turkey
NF
33
🇵🇰 Pakistan
PF
32
🇩🇿 Algeria
NF
31
🇮🇶 Iraq
NF
31
🇰🇼 Kuwait
NF
31
🇬🇳 Guinea
NF
30
🇳🇪 Niger
NF
30
🏴 Pakistani Kashmir
NF
30
🇦🇴 Angola
NF
28
🇧🇳 Brunei
NF
27
🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan
NF
26
🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
NF
26
🇧🇫 Burkina Faso
NF
25
🇶🇦 Qatar
NF
25
🇩🇯 Djibouti
NF
24
🇭🇹 Haiti
NF
24
🇲🇱 Mali
NF
24
🇴🇲 Oman
NF
24
🇰🇭 Cambodia
NF
23
🇰🇿 Kazakhstan
NF
23
🏴 West Bank
NF
22
🇬🇦 Gabon
NF
21
🇷🇼 Rwanda
NF
21
🇻🇳 Vietnam
NF
20
🏴 Congo (Kinshasa)
NF
18
🇪🇬 Egypt
NF
18
🇪🇹 Ethiopia
NF
18
🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
NF
18
🏴 Congo (Brazzaville)
NF
17
🇸🇿 Eswatini
NF
17
🏴 Transnistria
NF
17
🇧🇮 Burundi
NF
15
🇨🇲 Cameroon
NF
15
🇹🇩 Chad
NF
15
🇳🇮 Nicaragua
NF
14
🏴 Laos
NF
13
🇻🇪 Venezuela
NF
13
🇧🇭 Bahrain
NF
12
🇷🇺 Russia
NF
12
🏴 South Ossetia
NF
12
🇺🇿 Uzbekistan
NF
12
🇮🇷 Iran
NF
11
🇨🇺 Cuba
NF
10
🇱🇾 Libya
NF
10
🇾🇪 Yemen
NF
10
🇨🇳 China
NF
9
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia
NF
9
🇸🇴 Somalia
NF
8
🇦🇿 Azerbaijan
NF
7
🇧🇾 Belarus
NF
7
🇲🇲 Myanmar
NF
7
🇦🇫 Afghanistan
NF
6
🇨🇫 Central African Republic
NF
5
🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea
NF
5
🇸🇾 Syria
NF
5
🇹🇯 Tajikistan
NF
5
🏴 Western Sahara
NF
4
🇪🇷 Eritrea
NF
3
🏴 North Korea
NF
3
🏴 Gaza Strip
NF
2
🇸🇩 Sudan
NF
2
🇸🇸 South Sudan
NF
1
🇹🇲 Turkmenistan
NF
1
🏴 Tibet
NF
0
🏴 Russian-Occupied Territories of Ukraine
NF
-1

Finland ranks highest globally, supported by a multiparty system that mitigates voter polarization.

Following behind are New Zealand, Norway, and Sweden—each with populations under six million. Notably, only two countries in the top 10 have medium-sized populations: the Netherlands (18 million) and Canada (39 million).

When it comes to the U.S., freedom continued to erode in 2024. In recent years, institutional trust has plunged to near record lows. Political polarization has deepened alongside growing income inequality, further weakening public confidence.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh recorded one of the biggest gains. In 2024, mass protests ousted Sheikh Hasina’s 15-year regime. Under interim leader and Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, reforms aimed at curbing corruption and expanding welfare are now underway.

To learn more about this topic from a democratic perspective, check out this graphic on the state of democracy by country in 2024.