United Kingdom vs United States: Universal right to vote in practice
United Kingdom
2
in 2025
United States
2
in 2025
United Kingdom rank
1st
United States rank
1st
Universal right to vote in practice over time
- United Kingdom
- United States
How they compare
United Kingdom currently reports 2 against 2 in United States, a difference of 0.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 237 shared years of data; in 1789 it was United States ahead.
United Kingdom ranks 1st and United States ranks 1st of 197 countries.
United Kingdom has averaged higher in every one of the 25 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | United Kingdom | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1780s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1790s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1800s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1810s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1820s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1830s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1840s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1850s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1860s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1870s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1880s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1890s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1900s | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 1910s | 0.2 | 0 | 0.2 | United Kingdom |
| 1920s | 1.2 | 0 | 1.2 | United Kingdom |
| 1930s | 2 | 0 | 2 | United Kingdom |
| 1940s | 2 | 0 | 2 | United Kingdom |
| 1950s | 2 | 0 | 2 | United Kingdom |
| 1960s | 2 | 1 | 1 | United Kingdom |
| 1970s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1980s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 1990s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 2000s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 2010s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
| 2020s | 2 | 2 | 0 | — |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher universal right to vote in practice, United Kingdom or United States?
- United Kingdom, at 2 against 2 in United States as of 2025.
- What is the difference in universal right to vote in practice between United Kingdom and United States?
- 0, with United Kingdom ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for United Kingdom and United States?
- 237 years are reported by both, from 1789 to 2025.
- How do United Kingdom and United States rank globally for universal right to vote in practice?
- United Kingdom ranks 1st and United States ranks 1st of 197 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Universal right to vote in practice. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Indicates whether virtually all adult citizens have the right to vote in practice (score 2), only men have broad voting rights in practice (score 1), or there are no broad voting rights in practice (score 0).