Malawi vs Nigeria: Democracy

Malawi
5
in 2025
Nigeria
5
in 2025
Malawi rank
74th
Nigeria rank
74th

Democracy over time

  • Malawi
  • Nigeria
02468190019622025

How they compare

Malawi currently reports 5 against 5 in Nigeria, a difference of 0.

The two have swapped places 10 times across 112 shared years of data; in 1914 it was Nigeria ahead.

Malawi ranks 74th and Nigeria ranks 74th of 176 countries.

Malawi has averaged higher in every one of the 12 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade Malawi Nigeria Difference Ahead
1910s 0 0 0
1920s 0 0 0
1930s 0 0 0
1940s 0 0 0
1950s 0 0 0
1960s 2.1 0 2.1 Malawi
1970s 2.8 0.3 2.5 Malawi
1980s 2 0.9 1.1 Malawi
1990s 4 0.3 3.7 Malawi
2000s 3.6 3.3 0.3 Malawi
2010s 4.9 4.7 0.2 Malawi
2020s 6 4.33 1.67 Malawi

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher democracy, Malawi or Nigeria?
Malawi, at 5 against 5 in Nigeria as of 2025.
What is the difference in democracy between Malawi and Nigeria?
0, with Malawi ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Malawi and Nigeria?
112 years are reported by both, from 1914 to 2025.
How do Malawi and Nigeria rank globally for democracy?
Malawi ranks 74th and Nigeria ranks 74th of 176 countries.
Where does this data come from?
V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Democracy. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Individual pages

About this data

Indicator
Democracy
Source
V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
176 places, 29,594 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed

Political regime of a country using the Regimes of the World classification by political scientists Anna Lührmann, Marcus Tannenberg and Staffan Lindberg, including ambiguous categories.