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Individual liberties and equality before the law index in United States

United States: Individual liberties and equality before the law index was 0.822 in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
0.822
Change on year
down 11.7%
World rank
67th
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.965
in 2010
All-time low
0.507
in 1838
Years of data
237
1789–2025

Individual liberties and equality before the law index in United States, 1789–2025

00.20.40.60.81178919072025

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for individual liberties and equality before the law index in United States is 0.822, measured in 2025.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 11.7% on the previous year and down 14.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, individual liberties and equality before the law index in United States peaked at 0.965 in 2010 and was at its lowest, 0.507, in 1838.

United States ranks 67th of 176 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 237 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1780s 0.534 0.534 0.534 1
1790s 0.534 0.534 0.534 10
1800s 0.534 0.534 0.534 10
1810s 0.534 0.534 0.534 10
1820s 0.534 0.534 0.534 10
1830s 0.5286 0.507 0.534 10
1840s 0.507 0.507 0.507 10
1850s 0.507 0.507 0.507 10
1860s 0.6193 0.54 0.671 10
1870s 0.671 0.671 0.671 10
1880s 0.6712 0.671 0.672 10
1890s 0.6744 0.672 0.678 10
1900s 0.678 0.678 0.678 10
1910s 0.673 0.655 0.678 10
1920s 0.6684 0.658 0.671 10
1930s 0.6874 0.671 0.696 10
1940s 0.7002 0.676 0.747 10
1950s 0.7444 0.742 0.75 10
1960s 0.7924 0.748 0.881 10
1970s 0.9286 0.905 0.943 10
1980s 0.9508 0.946 0.953 10
1990s 0.96 0.958 0.961 10
2000s 0.9536 0.945 0.964 10
2010s 0.9521 0.933 0.965 10
2020s 0.9215 0.822 0.954 6

Countries ranked near United States

  1. 65 Malawi 0.829 compare
  2. 66 Senegal 0.823 compare
  3. 68 Bulgaria 0.821 compare
  4. 69 East Timor 0.82 compare
  5. 70 Portugal 0.807 compare
  6. 70 Serbia 0.807 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More reference data data for United States

All data for United States →

Frequently asked questions

What is individual liberties and equality before the law index in United States?
Individual liberties and equality before the law index in United States was 0.822 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest individual liberties and equality before the law index recorded in United States?
The highest recorded value was 0.965 in 2010.
What is the lowest individual liberties and equality before the law index recorded in United States?
The lowest recorded value was 0.507 in 1838.
How does United States rank for individual liberties and equality before the law index?
United States ranks 67th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is individual liberties and equality before the law index rising or falling in United States?
Over the last ten years it is down 14.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this United States data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Individual liberties and equality before the law index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 237 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Individual liberties and equality before the law index
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
176 places, 30,494 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed