Finland vs Sweden: Democracy
Finland
7
in 2025
Sweden
7
in 2025
Finland rank
1st
Sweden rank
1st
Democracy over time
- Finland
- Sweden
How they compare
Finland currently reports 7 against 7 in Sweden, a difference of 0.
Across all 217 years both countries report, Sweden has been ahead every year.
Finland ranks 1st and Sweden ranks 1st of 197 countries.
Sweden has averaged higher in every one of the 23 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Finland | Sweden | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1800s | 0 | 2 | 2 | Sweden |
| 1810s | 0 | 2 | 2 | Sweden |
| 1820s | 0 | 2 | 2 | Sweden |
| 1830s | 0 | 2 | 2 | Sweden |
| 1840s | 0 | 2 | 2 | Sweden |
| 1850s | 0 | 2 | 2 | Sweden |
| 1860s | 1.4 | 2 | 0.6 | Sweden |
| 1870s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1880s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1890s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1900s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1910s | 2.4 | 2.8 | 0.4 | Sweden |
| 1920s | 6 | 6.8 | 0.8 | Sweden |
| 1930s | 6 | 6.3 | 0.3 | Sweden |
| 1940s | 6 | 6.4 | 0.4 | Sweden |
| 1950s | 7 | 7 | 0 | — |
| 1960s | 7 | 7 | 0 | — |
| 1970s | 7 | 7 | 0 | — |
| 1980s | 7 | 7 | 0 | — |
| 1990s | 7 | 7 | 0 | — |
| 2000s | 7 | 7 | 0 | — |
| 2010s | 7 | 7 | 0 | — |
| 2020s | 7 | 7 | 0 | — |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher democracy, Finland or Sweden?
- Finland, at 7 against 7 in Sweden as of 2025.
- What is the difference in democracy between Finland and Sweden?
- 0, with Finland ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Finland and Sweden?
- 217 years are reported by both, from 1809 to 2025.
- How do Finland and Sweden rank globally for democracy?
- Finland ranks 1st and Sweden ranks 1st of 197 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Lexical Index (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
Identifies the political regime of a country. It distinguishes between non-electoral autocracies (score 0), one-party autocracies (score 1), multi-party autocracies without elected executive (score 2), multi-party autocracies (score 3), exclusive democracies (score 4), male democracies (score 5), electoral democracies (score 6), and full democracies (score 7).