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V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · Academic Freedom Index
Academic freedom by country
How free are universities and scholars to research, teach and publish?
Czechia placed first of the 176 countries compared in 2025, at 0.978, and Nicaragua last, at 0.019. In the middle country the figure was 0.619. Among the 161 countries measured in every edition since 1990, the middle one moved from 0.552 to 0.609.
Academic freedom · 2025
Context statistic
Highest of 176Czechia
0.978012025 · position · derived
Who leads
The three countries at the highest end of 176 compared, the three at the other end, and the first on each continent.
1Photo: john mcsporran from Trossachs, Scotland · CC BY 2.0, greyscale
2Photo: Andrus Uuetalu derivative work: Jjtkk · CC BY-SA 3.0 ee, greyscale
3Photo: Gf uip · CC BY-SA 3.0, greyscale
02Every measured country
Academic freedom on a map
Each country is shaded by its value, in five groups holding the same number of countries. Hover a country for its value, or select it to open its profile. Below the map, each continent’s middle country.
Darker is a higher value — the better end.
- 0.019–0.207
- 0.215–0.515
- 0.519–0.709
- 0.718–0.850
- 0.854–0.978
- No reading in 2025
- Oceania
0.857
the middle country, of 6 measured · 21 members
Vanuatu0.909
Fiji0.636Highest and lowest reading in Oceania.
- Europe
0.820
the middle country, of 40 measured · 49 members
Czechia0.978
Belarus0.060Highest and lowest reading in Europe.
- Americas
0.761
the middle country, of 27 measured · 48 members
Jamaica0.939
Nicaragua0.019Highest and lowest reading in Americas.
- Africa
0.506
the middle country, of 55 measured · 55 members
Seychelles0.931
Eritrea0.034Highest and lowest reading in Africa.
- Asia
0.278
the middle country, of 48 measured · 52 members
Cyprus0.889
Myanmar0.023Highest and lowest reading in Asia.
- Every region
20 sub-regions, highest middle country first
- Caribbean
0.884
the middle country, of 6 measured · 24 members
Jamaica0.939
Cuba0.084Highest and lowest reading in Caribbean.
- Western Europe
0.877
the middle country, of 7 measured · 9 members
Belgium0.946
Netherlands0.763Highest and lowest reading in Western Europe.
- Northern Europe
0.865
the middle country, of 10 measured · 13 members
Estonia0.974
United Kingdom0.668Highest and lowest reading in Northern Europe.
- Southern Europe
0.811
the middle country, of 13 measured · 17 members
Slovenia0.937
Serbia0.598Highest and lowest reading in Southern Europe.
- Central America
0.736
the middle country, of 7 measured · 8 members
Honduras0.931Nicaragua0.019Highest and lowest reading in Central America.
- South America
0.732
the middle country, of 12 measured · 12 members
Chile0.918
Venezuela0.129Highest and lowest reading in South America.
- Eastern Europe
0.722
the middle country, of 10 measured · 10 members
Czechia0.978Belarus0.060Highest and lowest reading in Eastern Europe.
- Southern Africa
0.718
the middle country, of 5 measured · 5 members
Botswana0.834
Eswatini0.179Highest and lowest reading in Southern Africa.
- Eastern Asia
0.671
the middle country, of 7 measured · 8 members
South Korea0.850
North Korea0.036Highest and lowest reading in Eastern Asia.
- Western Africa
0.640
the middle country, of 16 measured · 16 members
Nigeria0.876
Mauritania0.253Highest and lowest reading in Western Africa.
- Eastern Africa
0.408
the middle country, of 19 measured · 19 members
Seychelles0.931Eritrea0.034Highest and lowest reading in Eastern Africa.
- Southern Asia
0.401
the middle country, of 9 measured · 9 members
Nepal0.831
Iran0.060Highest and lowest reading in Southern Asia.
- Middle Africa
0.326
the middle country, of 9 measured · 9 members
São Tomé and Príncipe0.636
Equatorial Guinea0.108Highest and lowest reading in Middle Africa.
- South-eastern Asia
0.310
the middle country, of 10 measured · 11 members
Timor-Leste0.731Myanmar0.023Highest and lowest reading in South-eastern Asia.
- Central Asia
0.248
the middle country, of 5 measured · 5 members
Kyrgyzstan0.378
Turkmenistan0.064Highest and lowest reading in Central Asia.
- Northern Africa
0.244
the middle country, of 6 measured · 6 members
Tunisia0.558
Egypt0.075Highest and lowest reading in Northern Africa.
- Western Asia
0.215
the middle country, of 17 measured · 19 members
Cyprus0.889
Saudi Arabia0.066Highest and lowest reading in Western Asia.
- Australia and New Zealand
2 of 2 measured — too few for a middle: Australia, New Zealand.
Australia0.864
New Zealand0.847Highest and lowest reading in Australia and New Zealand.
- Melanesia
4 of 5 measured — too few for a middle: Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu.
Vanuatu0.909Fiji0.636Highest and lowest reading in Melanesia.
- Northern America
2 of 4 measured — too few for a middle: Canada, United States.
Canada0.854
United States0.397Highest and lowest reading in Northern America.
03The whole field at once
The spread
176 countries, one dot each, on one scale — further right is a higher value. Half the countries are above 0.619; a quarter are above 0.831, and a quarter below 0.265. The bar in each row marks that continent’s middle country.
04All 176 ever measured
Every country
In order, highest value first. “=” marks a position shared with another country. V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg ranks nobody on this measure; the position is derived here by ordering the published values. It measures freedom as it is practised, from expert assessments, not what the law promises — a constitutional guarantee does not raise a country's reading on its own. It says nothing about the quality or funding of a country's universities.
Showing 25 of 176 countries
Values for 2025. The change column compares 2025 with 2024 only; the sparkline covers the recent editions.
051990–2025 · 36 reference years
Over time
Each point is one year from 1990, all of them re-estimated together in V-Dem's v16 release. Academic freedom can fall alongside wider restrictions on speech, or be targeted on its own through control of university governance.
- the middle country
- the middle half of countries
- the middle of the 161 countries measured every time
- each continent’s middle country
The same, year by year
| Year | Countries | Middle country | Middle half | Measured every time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 176 | 0.619 | 0.265 – 0.831 | 0.609 |
| 2024 | 176 | 0.679 | 0.285 – 0.832 | 0.680 |
| 2023 | 176 | 0.694 | 0.296 – 0.839 | 0.695 |
| 2022 | 176 | 0.734 | 0.301 – 0.859 | 0.732 |
| 2021 | 176 | 0.736 | 0.345 – 0.867 | 0.737 |
| 2020 | 176 | 0.738 | 0.376 – 0.880 | 0.745 |
| 2019 | 176 | 0.742 | 0.391 – 0.881 | 0.743 |
| 2018 | 176 | 0.745 | 0.380 – 0.887 | 0.756 |
| 2017 | 176 | 0.745 | 0.377 – 0.880 | 0.762 |
| 2016 | 176 | 0.727 | 0.383 – 0.882 | 0.744 |
| 2015 | 176 | 0.727 | 0.382 – 0.887 | 0.744 |
| 2014 | 176 | 0.728 | 0.386 – 0.887 | 0.739 |
| 2013 | 176 | 0.725 | 0.397 – 0.891 | 0.746 |
| 2012 | 176 | 0.734 | 0.422 – 0.891 | 0.746 |
| 2011 | 176 | 0.734 | 0.407 – 0.889 | 0.745 |
| 2010 | 174 | 0.734 | 0.405 – 0.892 | 0.745 |
| 2009 | 174 | 0.730 | 0.412 – 0.893 | 0.735 |
| 2008 | 173 | 0.728 | 0.412 – 0.899 | 0.730 |
| 2007 | 173 | 0.728 | 0.394 – 0.899 | 0.730 |
| 2006 | 173 | 0.728 | 0.394 – 0.899 | 0.730 |
| 2005 | 172 | 0.730 | 0.413 – 0.900 | 0.730 |
| 2004 | 172 | 0.725 | 0.414 – 0.896 | 0.730 |
| 2003 | 172 | 0.730 | 0.404 – 0.900 | 0.730 |
| 2002 | 170 | 0.730 | 0.391 – 0.903 | 0.730 |
| 2001 | 170 | 0.730 | 0.368 – 0.903 | 0.730 |
| 2000 | 170 | 0.730 | 0.365 – 0.894 | 0.731 |
| 1999 | 170 | 0.693 | 0.351 – 0.884 | 0.697 |
| 1998 | 169 | 0.688 | 0.350 – 0.880 | 0.689 |
| 1997 | 168 | 0.688 | 0.337 – 0.881 | 0.688 |
| 1996 | 168 | 0.686 | 0.348 – 0.882 | 0.685 |
| 1995 | 168 | 0.685 | 0.349 – 0.881 | 0.682 |
| 1994 | 167 | 0.686 | 0.352 – 0.881 | 0.682 |
| 1993 | 167 | 0.675 | 0.317 – 0.878 | 0.673 |
| 1992 | 166 | 0.658 | 0.310 – 0.876 | 0.639 |
| 1991 | 164 | 0.634 | 0.284 – 0.871 | 0.629 |
| 1990 | 161 | 0.552 | 0.270 – 0.869 | 0.552 |
062024 → 2025
Who rose and fell
The biggest changes in value between the two newest editions — reference years recalculated in one report, not two separate publications. Places are shown second, because they also move when other countries do.
Improved most
before → after
Mauritius0.346 → 0.592 · 120th → 95th+0.246
Bangladesh0.286 → 0.519 · 131st → 105th+0.233
Iraq0.412 → 0.604 · 116th → 92nd+0.192- Somaliland0.567 → 0.709 · 104th → 71st+0.142
Portugal0.715 → 0.826 · 80th → 49th+0.111
Declined most
before → after
Ecuador0.731 → 0.433 · 74th → 111th−0.298- United States0.677 → 0.397 · 89th → 117th−0.280
Burkina Faso0.840 → 0.562 · 41st → 101st−0.278
Kosovo0.821 → 0.621 · 55th → 88th−0.200
Uganda0.375 → 0.196 · 119th → 146th−0.179
176 countries were measured in both 2024 and 2025.
07Across every edition
Academic freedom in records
The extremes of the statistic. A record reached by more than one country names none of them.
Highest reading on record
0.979
Academic freedom index (0–1)
Lowest reading on record
0.010
Academic freedom index (0–1)
Biggest improvement between editions
+0.518
0.340 → 0.858
Biggest decline between editions
−0.383
0.812 → 0.429
Most improved since first measured
+0.635
0.125 → 0.760
At the top most often
12 of 36
editions, alone at the first-listed end
08The measure
About academic freedom
V-Dem's Academic Freedom Index asks how free scholars and universities are in practice: to research and teach, to share and publish findings, to govern their own institutions, to work without surveillance or intimidation on campus, and to express themselves academically and culturally. It runs from 0 to 1, and a higher figure means more freedom.
What the number is: Academic freedom index (0–1).
What it does not measure
It measures freedom in practice, not the quality, funding or legal protection of universities.
09Where it fits
Connections
Its part in the Country Index, the statistics whose values line up most closely with it across countries, and others on the same subject.
In the Country Index
Context, with no vote
This statistic is published in full under Education & Knowledge and Democracy & Civil Liberties, but does not help decide any Country Index standing.
Education & KnowledgeDemocracy & Civil LibertiesWhich statistics vote, and why
Moves with
Where academic freedom is higher, these tend to be higher too.
- Freedom of Expression and Alternative Sources of Information IndexV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 176 countries in commonρ 0.91
- Liberal Democracy IndexV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 176 countries in commonρ 0.88
- V-Dem Electoral Democracy IndexKeyV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 176 countries in commonρ 0.87
Moves against
Where academic freedom is higher, these tend to be lower.
- Political Corruption IndexV-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · 176 countries in commonρ −0.62
- Refugees by Country of OriginUNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency · 173 countries in commonρ −0.54
- Social Institutions and Gender IndexKeyOECD · 138 countries in commonρ −0.53
Rank correlation (ρ, from −1 to 1) across countries, on each statistic’s newest edition, out of 187 statistics sharing at least 80 countries with this one. Two statistics that move together do not cause each other.
10Keep reading
Explore further
More from V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg
11Questions
Academic freedom: questions and answers
Which country has the highest academic freedom?
Czechia, at 0.978, among the 176 countries compared in 2025.
Which country has the lowest academic freedom?
Nicaragua, at 0.019, among the 176 countries compared in 2025.
How many countries does the Academic Freedom Index cover?
176 in 2025. The number measured varies from 161 to 176 between editions.
What is the world average academic freedom?
This site does not calculate a world average, which would depend on how countries are weighted. In the middle country of the 176 compared in 2025, the figure was 0.619.
Is this V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg’s own ranking?
No. V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg publishes the values but ranks nobody; the position on this page is derived by Nations Inquiry by ordering the published values, and equal values share a position.
How often is the Academic Freedom Index published?
This site holds 36 reference years, 1990–2025, all recalculated in V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg’s 2026 report on one method — not 36 separate publications.
Where does the data come from, and can I download it?
From V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg, under CC BY-SA 4.0. From the V-Dem Institute's Country-Year Core dataset (v16), University of Gothenburg, published under CC BY-SA 4.0. V-Dem's data runs back to 1789; the series here starts in 1990 so that every row belongs to a present-day country. Every edition is on this site’s Datasets pages as a full table, and downloads as a CSV file with every value unrounded.
12Method
Sources, method and citation
Source
Academic Freedom Index — V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg
From the V-Dem Institute's Country-Year Core dataset (v16), University of Gothenburg, published under CC BY-SA 4.0. V-Dem's data runs back to 1789; the series here starts in 1990 so that every row belongs to a present-day country.
Newest edition
Report year 2025Data year 2025
Cite the source as: Coppedge, M. et al. V-Dem Country-Year Dataset v16. Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) Project, University of Gothenburg.
Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0, checked 2026-09-26.
How this page reads the numbers
- V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg ranks nobody on this measure. The position is derived by Nations Inquiry by ordering the published values; equal values share a position.
- Which end is better follows the publisher’s own reading of the measure.
- A country is named at an end only when it holds that value alone. Where several share it, the page says how many and names none first.
- Values are stored exactly as published and trimmed only for display. “The middle country” is the median of the countries measured, not a world average.
The file itself, column by column — where it came from, what each column holds, and every edition as a CSV — is on its dataset page.
Photographs
The countries at the top of this statistic, from their profiles: Wikimedia Commons, shown in greyscale, each used under the licence named.
- Czechia — john mcsporran from Trossachs, Scotland, CC BY 2.0
- Estonia — Andrus Uuetalu derivative work: Jjtkk, CC BY-SA 3.0 ee
- Belgium — Gf uip, CC BY-SA 3.0
Cite this page
Nations Inquiry (2026). Academic freedom by country: Academic Freedom Index, data from V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg. https://nationsinquiry.com/statistics/academic-freedom