Statizoid

Civil liberties rating in Russia

Russia: Civil liberties rating was 6 in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)
6
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
16th
of 199 countries
All-time high
7
in 1980
All-time low
3
in 1991
Years of data
53
1972–2025

Civil liberties rating in Russia, 1972–2025

02468197219982025

Source: Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

Russia recorded 6 for civil liberties rating in 2025.

The figure is unchanged over ten years.

Over the whole period, civil liberties rating in Russia peaked at 7 in 1980 and was at its lowest, 3, in 1991.

Russia ranks 16th of 199 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 53 years of available data.

Civil liberties rating in Russia, year by year

Year Value Change
1972 6 —
1973 6 +0.0%
1974 6 +0.0%
1975 6 +0.0%
1976 6 +0.0%
1977 6 +0.0%
1978 6 +0.0%
1979 6 +0.0%
1980 7 +16.7%
1982 7 +0.0%
1983 7 +0.0%
1984 7 +0.0%
1985 7 +0.0%
1986 7 +0.0%
1987 6 -14.3%
1988 5 -16.7%
1989 5 +0.0%
1990 4 -20.0%
1991 3 -25.0%
1992 4 +33.3%
1993 4 +0.0%
1994 4 +0.0%
1995 4 +0.0%
1996 4 +0.0%
1997 4 +0.0%
1998 4 +0.0%
1999 5 +25.0%
2000 5 +0.0%
2001 5 +0.0%
2002 5 +0.0%
2003 5 +0.0%
2004 5 +0.0%
2005 5 +0.0%
2006 5 +0.0%
2007 5 +0.0%
2008 5 +0.0%
2009 5 +0.0%
2010 5 +0.0%
2011 5 +0.0%
2012 5 +0.0%
2013 5 +0.0%
2014 6 +20.0%
2015 6 +0.0%
2016 6 +0.0%
2017 6 +0.0%
2018 6 +0.0%
2019 6 +0.0%
2020 6 +0.0%
2021 6 +0.0%
2022 6 +0.0%
2023 6 +0.0%
2024 6 +0.0%
2025 6 +0.0%

Russia compared with similar countries

  • Russia's 6 is above the median for high income countries, which is 1, 6.0× the median. (66 countries reporting)
  • Russia's 6 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 2, 3.0× the median. (52 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 6 6 6 8
1980s 6.44 5 7 9
1990s 4 3 5 10
2000s 5 5 5 10
2010s 5.6 5 6 10
2020s 6 6 6 6

Countries ranked near Russia

  1. 16 Bahrain 6 compare
  2. 16 Burundi 6 compare
  3. 16 Cameroon 6 compare
  4. 16 Chad 6 compare
  5. 16 China 6 compare
  6. 16 Congo 6 compare
  7. 16 Cuba 6 compare
  8. 16 Democratic Republic of Congo 6 compare
  9. 16 Egypt 6 compare
  10. 16 Eswatini 6 compare
  11. 16 Ethiopia 6 compare
  12. 16 Iraq 6 compare
  13. 16 Laos 6 compare
  14. 16 Libya 6 compare
  15. 16 Nicaragua 6 compare
  16. 16 Rwanda 6 compare
  17. 16 Saudi Arabia 6 compare
  18. 16 Syria 6 compare
  19. 16 Turkey 6 compare
  20. 16 United Arab Emirates 6 compare
  21. 16 Uzbekistan 6 compare
  22. 16 Venezuela 6 compare
  23. 16 Vietnam 6 compare
  24. 16 Yemen 6 compare

See the full ranking of 199 places →

More reference data data for Russia

All data for Russia →

Frequently asked questions

What is civil liberties rating in Russia?
Civil liberties rating in Russia was 6 in 2025, according to Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest civil liberties rating recorded in Russia?
The highest recorded value was 7 in 1980.
What is the lowest civil liberties rating recorded in Russia?
The lowest recorded value was 3 in 1991.
How does Russia rank for civil liberties rating?
Russia ranks 16th out of 199 countries with data for 2025.
Is civil liberties rating rising or falling in Russia?
Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Russia data come from?
The figures come from Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Civil liberties rating. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Civil liberties rating in Russia. Statizoid, drawing on Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 23 October 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/civil-liberties-rating-fh/russian-federation/

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About this data

Indicator
Civil liberties rating
Source
Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
199 places, 10,083 data points, 1972–2025
Last refreshed

Identifies the extent of freedom of expression and association, the rule of law, and personal autonomy. Lower ratings indicate more liberties.