Statizoid

Free country in South Korea

South Korea: Free country was 2 in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
2
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
1st
of 198 countries
All-time high
2
in 1988
All-time low
0
in 1972
Years of data
53
1972–2025

Free country in South Korea, 1972–2025

00.511.52197219982025

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

Analysis

In 2025, free country in South Korea stood at 2. That is the highest value across all 53 years on record.

That represents a change of unchanged over ten years.

Over the whole period, free country in South Korea peaked at 2 in 1988 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1972.

That places South Korea 1st out of 198 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 0.875 0 1 8
1980s 1.22 1 2 9
1990s 2 2 2 10
2000s 2 2 2 10
2010s 2 2 2 10
2020s 2 2 2 6

Countries ranked near South Korea

  1. 1 Andorra 2 compare
  2. 1 Antigua and Barbuda 2 compare
  3. 1 Argentina 2 compare
  4. 1 Australia 2 compare
  5. 1 Austria 2 compare
  6. 1 Bahamas 2 compare
  7. 1 Barbados 2 compare
  8. 1 Belgium 2 compare
  9. 1 Belize 2 compare
  10. 1 Bhutan 2 compare
  11. 1 Bolivia 2 compare
  12. 1 Botswana 2 compare
  13. 1 Brazil 2 compare
  14. 1 Bulgaria 2 compare
  15. 1 Canada 2 compare
  16. 1 Cape Verde 2 compare
  17. 1 Chile 2 compare
  18. 1 Colombia 2 compare
  19. 1 Costa Rica 2 compare
  20. 1 Croatia 2 compare
  21. 1 Cyprus 2 compare
  22. 1 Czechia 2 compare
  23. 1 Denmark 2 compare
  24. 1 Dominica 2 compare
  25. 1 East Timor 2 compare
  26. 1 Estonia 2 compare
  27. 1 Fiji 2 compare
  28. 1 Finland 2 compare
  29. 1 France 2 compare
  30. 1 Germany 2 compare
  31. 1 Ghana 2 compare
  32. 1 Greece 2 compare
  33. 1 Grenada 2 compare
  34. 1 Guyana 2 compare
  35. 1 Iceland 2 compare
  36. 1 Israel 2 compare
  37. 1 Italy 2 compare
  38. 1 Jamaica 2 compare
  39. 1 Japan 2 compare
  40. 1 Kiribati 2 compare
  41. 1 Latvia 2 compare
  42. 1 Lesotho 2 compare
  43. 1 Lithuania 2 compare
  44. 1 Malawi 2 compare
  45. 1 Marshall Islands 2 compare
  46. 1 Mauritius 2 compare
  47. 1 Micronesia (country) 2 compare
  48. 1 Monaco 2 compare
  49. 1 Mongolia 2 compare
  50. 1 Namibia 2 compare
  51. 1 Nauru 2 compare
  52. 1 Netherlands 2 compare
  53. 1 New Zealand 2 compare
  54. 1 Norway 2 compare
  55. 1 Palau 2 compare
  56. 1 Panama 2 compare
  57. 1 Poland 2 compare
  58. 1 Portugal 2 compare
  59. 1 Puerto Rico 2 compare
  60. 1 Romania 2 compare
  61. 1 Saint Kitts and Nevis 2 compare
  62. 1 Saint Lucia 2 compare
  63. 1 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 2 compare
  64. 1 Samoa 2 compare
  65. 1 San Marino 2 compare
  66. 1 Sao Tome and Principe 2 compare
  67. 1 Senegal 2 compare
  68. 1 Seychelles 2 compare
  69. 1 Slovakia 2 compare
  70. 1 Slovenia 2 compare
  71. 1 Solomon Islands 2 compare
  72. 1 South Africa 2 compare
  73. 1 Spain 2 compare
  74. 1 Suriname 2 compare
  75. 1 Sweden 2 compare
  76. 1 Switzerland 2 compare
  77. 1 Taiwan 2 compare
  78. 1 Tonga 2 compare
  79. 1 Trinidad and Tobago 2 compare
  80. 1 Tuvalu 2 compare
  81. 1 United Kingdom 2 compare
  82. 1 United States 2 compare
  83. 1 Uruguay 2 compare
  84. 1 Vanuatu 2 compare

See the full ranking of 199 places →

More reference data data for South Korea

All data for South Korea →

Frequently asked questions

What is free country in South Korea?
Free country in South Korea was 2 in 2025, according to Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest free country recorded in South Korea?
The highest recorded value was 2 in 1988.
What is the lowest free country recorded in South Korea?
The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1972.
How does South Korea rank for free country?
South Korea ranks 1st out of 198 countries with data for 2025.
Is free country rising or falling in South Korea?
Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this South Korea data come from?
The figures come from Freedom House (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Free country. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 53 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Free country
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

The variable identifies the political regime of a country. It distinguishes between free countries (score 2), partly free countries (score 1), and not free countries (score 0).