South Africa vs United Kingdom: Democracy
South Africa
7
in 2025
United Kingdom
7
in 2025
South Africa rank
1st
United Kingdom rank
1st
Democracy over time
- South Africa
- United Kingdom
How they compare
South Africa currently reports 7 against 7 in United Kingdom, a difference of 0.
Across all 126 years both countries report, United Kingdom has been ahead every year.
South Africa ranks 1st and United Kingdom ranks 1st of 198 countries.
United Kingdom has averaged higher in every one of the 13 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | South Africa | United Kingdom | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 0 | 4 | 4 | United Kingdom |
| 1910s | 4 | 4.2 | 0.2 | United Kingdom |
| 1920s | 4 | 5.4 | 1.4 | United Kingdom |
| 1930s | 4 | 6.9 | 2.9 | United Kingdom |
| 1940s | 4 | 6.4 | 2.4 | United Kingdom |
| 1950s | 3 | 7 | 4 | United Kingdom |
| 1960s | 3 | 7 | 4 | United Kingdom |
| 1970s | 3 | 7 | 4 | United Kingdom |
| 1980s | 3 | 7 | 4 | United Kingdom |
| 1990s | 5.4 | 7 | 1.6 | United Kingdom |
| 2000s | 7 | 7 | 0 | — |
| 2010s | 7 | 7 | 0 | — |
| 2020s | 7 | 7 | 0 | — |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher democracy, South Africa or United Kingdom?
- South Africa, at 7 against 7 in United Kingdom as of 2025.
- What is the difference in democracy between South Africa and United Kingdom?
- 0, with South Africa ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for South Africa and United Kingdom?
- 126 years are reported by both, from 1900 to 2025.
- How do South Africa and United Kingdom rank globally for democracy?
- South Africa ranks 1st and United Kingdom ranks 1st of 198 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Democracy. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
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).