Costa Rica vs Sweden: Democracy
Costa Rica
3
in 2025
Sweden
3
in 2025
Costa Rica rank
1st
Sweden rank
1st
Democracy over time
- Costa Rica
- Sweden
How they compare
Costa Rica currently reports 3 against 3 in Sweden, a difference of 0.
The two have swapped places 6 times across 187 shared years of data; in 1838 it was Sweden ahead.
Costa Rica ranks 1st and Sweden ranks 1st of 176 countries.
Across the 20 decades both report, Costa Rica averaged higher in 4 and Sweden in 7.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Costa Rica | Sweden | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1830s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1840s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1850s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1860s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1870s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1880s | 0.1 | 0 | 0.1 | Costa Rica |
| 1890s | 0.1 | 0 | 0.1 | Costa Rica |
| 1900s | 1 | 0 | 1 | Costa Rica |
| 1910s | 0.8889 | 0.2222 | 0.6667 | Costa Rica |
| 1920s | 1 | 2.6 | 1.6 | Sweden |
| 1930s | 1 | 3 | 2 | Sweden |
| 1940s | 0.8 | 3 | 2.2 | Sweden |
| 1950s | 2 | 3 | 1 | Sweden |
| 1960s | 2 | 3 | 1 | Sweden |
| 1970s | 2 | 3 | 1 | Sweden |
| 1980s | 2.1 | 3 | 0.9 | Sweden |
| 1990s | 3 | 3 | 0 | — |
| 2000s | 3 | 3 | 0 | — |
| 2010s | 3 | 3 | 0 | — |
| 2020s | 3 | 3 | 0 | — |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher democracy, Costa Rica or Sweden?
- Costa Rica, at 3 against 3 in Sweden as of 2025.
- What is the difference in democracy between Costa Rica and Sweden?
- 0, with Costa Rica ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Costa Rica and Sweden?
- 187 years are reported by both, from 1838 to 2025.
- How do Costa Rica and Sweden rank globally for democracy?
- Costa Rica ranks 1st and Sweden ranks 1st 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
Identifies the political regime of a country by distinguishing between closed autocracies, electoral autocracies, electoral democracies, and liberal democracies.