Statizoid

Democracy in North Korea

North Korea: Democracy was 0 in 2025. ▬ Flat

Latest (2025)
0
World rank
142nd
of 176 countries
All-time high
0
in 1789
All-time low
0
in 1789
Years of data
203
1789–2025

Democracy in North Korea, 1789–2025

00.20.40.60.81178919072025

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

Analysis

The most recent figure for democracy in North Korea is 0, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 203 years on record.

Over the whole period, democracy in North Korea peaked at 0 in 1789 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1789.

That places North Korea 142nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest 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 0 0 10
1910s 0 0 0 1
1940s 0 0 0 5
1950s 0 0 0 10
1960s 0 0 0 10
1970s 0 0 0 10
1980s 0 0 0 10
1990s 0 0 0 10
2000s 0 0 0 10
2010s 0 0 0 10
2020s 0 0 0 6

Countries ranked near North Korea

  1. 142 Afghanistan 0 compare
  2. 142 Bahrain 0 compare
  3. 142 Bangladesh 0 compare
  4. 142 Belarus 0 compare
  5. 142 Burkina Faso 0 compare
  6. 142 China 0 compare
  7. 142 Cuba 0 compare
  8. 142 Eritrea 0 compare
  9. 142 Eswatini 0 compare
  10. 142 Guinea 0 compare
  11. 142 Guinea-Bissau 0 compare
  12. 142 Haiti 0 compare
  13. 142 Jordan 0 compare
  14. 142 Kuwait 0 compare
  15. 142 Laos 0 compare
  16. 142 Libya 0 compare
  17. 142 Madagascar 0 compare
  18. 142 Mali 0 compare
  19. 142 Morocco 0 compare
  20. 142 Myanmar 0 compare
  21. 142 Niger 0 compare
  22. 142 Oman 0 compare
  23. 142 Palestine 0 compare
  24. 142 Qatar 0 compare
  25. 142 Saudi Arabia 0 compare
  26. 142 Somalia 0 compare
  27. 142 South Sudan 0 compare
  28. 142 Sudan 0 compare
  29. 142 Syria 0 compare
  30. 142 United Arab Emirates 0 compare
  31. 142 Vatican 0 compare
  32. 142 Vietnam 0 compare
  33. 142 Yemen 0 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More reference data data for North Korea

All data for North Korea →

Frequently asked questions

What is democracy in North Korea?
Democracy in North Korea was 0 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest democracy recorded in North Korea?
The highest recorded value was 0 in 1789.
What is the lowest democracy recorded in North Korea?
The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1789.
How does North Korea rank for democracy?
North Korea ranks 142nd out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Where does this North Korea data come from?
The figures come from V-Dem (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 — 203 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Democracy
Source
V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
176 places, 29,594 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed

Identifies the political regime of a country by distinguishing between closed autocracies, electoral autocracies, electoral democracies, and liberal democracies.