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Political Civil Liberties Index in Japan

Japan: Political Civil Liberties Index was 0.92 in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
0.92
Change on year
down 0.3%
World rank
28th
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.941
in 2009
All-time low
0.104
in 1789
Years of data
237
1789–2025

Political Civil Liberties Index in Japan, 1789–2025

0.20.40.60.81178919072025

Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

Japan recorded 0.92 for political civil liberties index in 2025.

The figure is down 0.3% on the previous year and up 1.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, political civil liberties index in Japan peaked at 0.941 in 2009 and was at its lowest, 0.104, in 1789.

Japan ranks 28th of 176 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Political Civil Liberties Index in Japan, year by year

Year Value Change
1789 0.104 —
1790 0.116 +11.5%
1791 0.116 +0.0%
1792 0.116 +0.0%
1793 0.116 +0.0%
1794 0.116 +0.0%
1795 0.116 +0.0%
1796 0.116 +0.0%
1797 0.116 +0.0%
1798 0.116 +0.0%
1799 0.116 +0.0%
1800 0.116 +0.0%
1801 0.116 +0.0%
1802 0.116 +0.0%
1803 0.116 +0.0%
1804 0.116 +0.0%
1805 0.116 +0.0%
1806 0.116 +0.0%
1807 0.116 +0.0%
1808 0.116 +0.0%
1809 0.116 +0.0%
1810 0.116 +0.0%
1811 0.116 +0.0%
1812 0.116 +0.0%
1813 0.116 +0.0%
1814 0.116 +0.0%
1815 0.116 +0.0%
1816 0.116 +0.0%
1817 0.116 +0.0%
1818 0.116 +0.0%
1819 0.116 +0.0%
1820 0.116 +0.0%
1821 0.116 +0.0%
1822 0.116 +0.0%
1823 0.116 +0.0%
1824 0.116 +0.0%
1825 0.116 +0.0%
1826 0.116 +0.0%
1827 0.116 +0.0%
1828 0.116 +0.0%
1829 0.116 +0.0%
1830 0.116 +0.0%
1831 0.116 +0.0%
1832 0.116 +0.0%
1833 0.116 +0.0%
1834 0.116 +0.0%
1835 0.116 +0.0%
1836 0.116 +0.0%
1837 0.116 +0.0%
1838 0.116 +0.0%
1839 0.116 +0.0%
1840 0.116 +0.0%
1841 0.116 +0.0%
1842 0.116 +0.0%
1843 0.116 +0.0%
1844 0.116 +0.0%
1845 0.116 +0.0%
1846 0.116 +0.0%
1847 0.116 +0.0%
1848 0.116 +0.0%
1849 0.116 +0.0%
1850 0.145 +25.0%
1851 0.145 +0.0%
1852 0.145 +0.0%
1853 0.145 +0.0%
1854 0.145 +0.0%
1855 0.145 +0.0%
1856 0.145 +0.0%
1857 0.145 +0.0%
1858 0.145 +0.0%
1859 0.145 +0.0%
1860 0.145 +0.0%
1861 0.145 +0.0%
1862 0.145 +0.0%
1863 0.145 +0.0%
1864 0.145 +0.0%
1865 0.145 +0.0%
1866 0.145 +0.0%
1867 0.145 +0.0%
1868 0.152 +4.8%
1869 0.217 +42.8%
1870 0.41 +88.9%
1871 0.41 +0.0%
1872 0.41 +0.0%
1873 0.41 +0.0%
1874 0.41 +0.0%
1875 0.41 +0.0%
1876 0.41 +0.0%
1877 0.41 +0.0%
1878 0.41 +0.0%
1879 0.41 +0.0%
1880 0.41 +0.0%
1881 0.41 +0.0%
1882 0.41 +0.0%
1883 0.41 +0.0%
1884 0.41 +0.0%
1885 0.41 +0.0%
1886 0.41 +0.0%
1887 0.41 +0.0%
1888 0.41 +0.0%
1889 0.41 +0.0%
1890 0.436 +6.3%
1891 0.436 +0.0%
1892 0.469 +7.6%
1893 0.469 +0.0%
1894 0.469 +0.0%
1895 0.469 +0.0%
1896 0.469 +0.0%
1897 0.469 +0.0%
1898 0.458 -2.3%
1899 0.442 -3.5%
1900 0.457 +3.4%
1901 0.466 +2.0%
1902 0.466 +0.0%
1903 0.466 +0.0%
1904 0.454 -2.6%
1905 0.454 +0.0%
1906 0.468 +3.1%
1907 0.468 +0.0%
1908 0.468 +0.0%
1909 0.468 +0.0%
1910 0.463 -1.1%
1911 0.476 +2.8%
1912 0.476 +0.0%
1913 0.476 +0.0%
1914 0.476 +0.0%
1915 0.476 +0.0%
1916 0.476 +0.0%
1917 0.476 +0.0%
1918 0.482 +1.3%
1919 0.482 +0.0%
1920 0.482 +0.0%
1921 0.471 -2.3%
1922 0.471 +0.0%
1923 0.471 +0.0%
1924 0.471 +0.0%
1925 0.454 -3.6%
1926 0.435 -4.2%
1927 0.435 +0.0%
1928 0.435 +0.0%
1929 0.435 +0.0%
1930 0.404 -7.1%
1931 0.395 -2.2%
1932 0.395 +0.0%
1933 0.387 -2.0%
1934 0.357 -7.8%
1935 0.349 -2.2%
1936 0.341 -2.3%
1937 0.241 -29.3%
1938 0.23 -4.6%
1939 0.225 -2.2%
1940 0.156 -30.7%
1941 0.151 -3.2%
1942 0.153 +1.3%
1943 0.153 +0.0%
1944 0.153 +0.0%
1945 0.214 +39.9%
1946 0.741 +246.3%
1947 0.799 +7.8%
1948 0.802 +0.4%
1949 0.813 +1.4%
1950 0.817 +0.5%
1951 0.817 +0.0%
1952 0.822 +0.6%
1953 0.901 +9.6%
1954 0.901 +0.0%
1955 0.921 +2.2%
1956 0.926 +0.5%
1957 0.926 +0.0%
1958 0.926 +0.0%
1959 0.926 +0.0%
1960 0.926 +0.0%
1961 0.926 +0.0%
1962 0.926 +0.0%
1963 0.926 +0.0%
1964 0.926 +0.0%
1965 0.926 +0.0%
1966 0.926 +0.0%
1967 0.926 +0.0%
1968 0.926 +0.0%
1969 0.926 +0.0%
1970 0.929 +0.3%
1971 0.933 +0.4%
1972 0.933 +0.0%
1973 0.933 +0.0%
1974 0.933 +0.0%
1975 0.933 +0.0%
1976 0.933 +0.0%
1977 0.933 +0.0%
1978 0.933 +0.0%
1979 0.933 +0.0%
1980 0.932 -0.1%
1981 0.932 +0.0%
1982 0.932 +0.0%
1983 0.932 +0.0%
1984 0.932 +0.0%
1985 0.933 +0.1%
1986 0.933 +0.0%
1987 0.933 +0.0%
1988 0.933 +0.0%
1989 0.933 +0.0%
1990 0.934 +0.1%
1991 0.934 +0.0%
1992 0.934 +0.0%
1993 0.934 +0.0%
1994 0.934 +0.0%
1995 0.934 +0.0%
1996 0.934 +0.0%
1997 0.934 +0.0%
1998 0.934 +0.0%
1999 0.934 +0.0%
2000 0.934 +0.0%
2001 0.934 +0.0%
2002 0.934 +0.0%
2003 0.934 +0.0%
2004 0.934 +0.0%
2005 0.934 +0.0%
2006 0.934 +0.0%
2007 0.934 +0.0%
2008 0.936 +0.2%
2009 0.941 +0.5%
2010 0.941 +0.0%
2011 0.941 +0.0%
2012 0.934 -0.7%
2013 0.909 -2.7%
2014 0.909 +0.0%
2015 0.911 +0.2%
2016 0.911 +0.0%
2017 0.91 -0.1%
2018 0.927 +1.9%
2019 0.925 -0.2%
2020 0.927 +0.2%
2021 0.922 -0.5%
2022 0.925 +0.3%
2023 0.925 +0.0%
2024 0.923 -0.2%
2025 0.92 -0.3%

Japan compared with similar countries

  • Japan's 0.92 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.893, 1.0× the median. (55 countries reporting)
  • Japan's 0.92 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.666, 1.4× the median. (22 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1780s 0.104 0.104 0.104 1
1790s 0.116 0.116 0.116 10
1800s 0.116 0.116 0.116 10
1810s 0.116 0.116 0.116 10
1820s 0.116 0.116 0.116 10
1830s 0.116 0.116 0.116 10
1840s 0.116 0.116 0.116 10
1850s 0.145 0.145 0.145 10
1860s 0.1529 0.145 0.217 10
1870s 0.41 0.41 0.41 10
1880s 0.41 0.41 0.41 10
1890s 0.4586 0.436 0.469 10
1900s 0.4635 0.454 0.468 10
1910s 0.4759 0.463 0.482 10
1920s 0.456 0.435 0.482 10
1930s 0.3324 0.225 0.404 10
1940s 0.4135 0.151 0.813 10
1950s 0.8883 0.817 0.926 10
1960s 0.926 0.926 0.926 10
1970s 0.9326 0.929 0.933 10
1980s 0.9325 0.932 0.933 10
1990s 0.934 0.934 0.934 10
2000s 0.9349 0.934 0.941 10
2010s 0.9218 0.909 0.941 10
2020s 0.9237 0.92 0.927 6

Countries ranked near Japan

  1. 28 Trinidad and Tobago 0.92 compare
  2. 30 Suriname 0.916 compare
  3. 31 Portugal 0.914 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More reference data data for Japan

All data for Japan →

Frequently asked questions

What is political civil liberties index in Japan?
Political civil liberties index in Japan was 0.92 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest political civil liberties index recorded in Japan?
The highest recorded value was 0.941 in 2009.
What is the lowest political civil liberties index recorded in Japan?
The lowest recorded value was 0.104 in 1789.
How does Japan rank for political civil liberties index?
Japan ranks 28th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is political civil liberties index rising or falling in Japan?
Over the last ten years it is up 1.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Japan data come from?
The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Political Civil Liberties Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Political Civil Liberties Index in Japan. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 29 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/political-civil-liberties-index/japan/

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About this data

Indicator
Political Civil Liberties Index
Source
V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
176 places, 30,211 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed

Central estimate of the extent to which people enjoy the freedoms of expression and association.