Democracy in Iran
Iran: Democracy was 2 in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Democracy in Iran, 1789–2025
Source: Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for democracy in Iran is 2, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 237 years on record.
That represents a change of unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, democracy in Iran peaked at 2 in 1906 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1789.
Iran ranks 153rd of 197 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1780s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 1790s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1800s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1810s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1820s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1830s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1840s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1850s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1860s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1870s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1880s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1890s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1900s | 0.5 | 0 | 2 | 10 |
| 1910s | 0.4 | 0 | 2 | 10 |
| 1920s | 1.6 | 0 | 2 | 10 |
| 1930s | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 1940s | 1.7 | 1 | 2 | 10 |
| 1950s | 1.6 | 0 | 2 | 10 |
| 1960s | 1.2 | 0 | 2 | 10 |
| 1970s | 1.4 | 0 | 2 | 10 |
| 1980s | 2 | 2 | 2 | 10 |
| 1990s | 2 | 2 | 2 | 10 |
| 2000s | 2 | 2 | 2 | 10 |
| 2010s | 2 | 2 | 2 | 10 |
| 2020s | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Iran
More reference data data for Iran
- Spring temperature anomalies 0.0713 °C (2026)
- Summer temperature anomalies 1.08 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month 0.2419 °C (2026)
- Universal right to vote in practice 0 (2025)
- Autumn temperature anomalies 1.27 °C (2025)
- Winter temperature anomalies 1.14 °C (2025)
- Consumer price index 4,030 2010 = 100 (2025)
- Universal right to vote 2 (2025)
- Competitive elections 0 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 1 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is democracy in Iran?
- Democracy in Iran was 2 in 2025, according to Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest democracy recorded in Iran?
- The highest recorded value was 2 in 1906.
- What is the lowest democracy recorded in Iran?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1789.
- How does Iran rank for democracy?
- Iran ranks 153rd out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
- Is democracy rising or falling in Iran?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Iran data come from?
- The figures come from Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Democracy. 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
Identifies the political regime of a country. It distinguishes between non-electoral autocracies (score 0), one-party autocracies (score 1), multi-party autocracies without elected executive (score 2), multi-party autocracies (score 3), exclusive democracies (score 4), male democracies (score 5), electoral democracies (score 6), and full democracies (score 7).