Freedom in Australia
Where Australia sits on every statistic this site carries, each against the countries the same source covers. Australia has a figure for 53 of 60 indicators.
Personal
What a person may say, believe, publish, join and where they may go.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freedom of expression | 0.915 | 2025 | 22 of 163 |
| Freedom of association | 0.876 | 2025 | 29 of 163 |
| Civil liberties | 0.906 | 2025 | 29 of 163 |
| Freedom from political violence | 0.954 | 2025 | 26 of 163 |
| Equal protection of rights | 0.859 | 2025 | 24 of 163 |
| Academic freedom | 0.864 | 2025 | 25 of 163 |
| Media censorship effort | 2.216 | 2025 | 18 of 163 |
| Harassment of journalists | 1.567 | 2025 | 35 of 163 |
| Media self-censorship | 1.509 | 2025 | 25 of 163 |
| Universal right to vote | 1.000 | 2025 | 5 of 167 |
| Legal rights for women | 96.9 | 2023 | 21 of 164 |
| Women can get a passport as men do | 1.000 | 2023 | 7 of 164 |
| Access to justice for women | 1.000 | 2025 | 3 of 163 |
| Access to justice for men | 1.000 | 2025 | 3 of 163 |
| Civil liberties score | 55.0 | 2025 | 21 of 167 |
| Political rights score | 39.0 | 2025 | 9 of 167 |
Economic
What a person may own, trade, earn and keep.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trade openness | 45.9% | 2025 | 101 of 125 |
| Foreign investment inflows | 2.0% | 2025 | 38 of 87 |
| Regulatory quality | 82.0 | 2024 | 7 of 169 |
| GDP per capita | $60.2K | 2025 | 17 of 157 |
| GDP growth | 1.4% | 2025 | — |
| Inflation | 2.9% | 2025 | — |
| Unemployment | 4.1% | 2025 | 62 of 163 |
Digital
What a person may read, send and encrypt online, and who is watching.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Internet use | 96.1% | 2024 | 15 of 154 |
| Fixed broadband subscriptions | 36.5 | 2024 | 25 of 134 |
| Mobile subscriptions | 112.6 | 2024 | 85 of 134 |
Government
How power is held, checked and abused.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electoral democracy | 0.844 | 2025 | 15 of 163 |
| Liberal democracy | 0.793 | 2025 | 12 of 163 |
| Rule of law | 0.990 | 2025 | 4 of 163 |
| Judicial checks on government | 0.988 | 2025 | 1 of 163 |
| Legislative checks on government | 0.940 | 2025 | 13 of 157 |
| Political corruption | 0.029 | 2025 | 12 of 163 |
| Civil society participation | 0.928 | 2025 | 14 of 163 |
| Women’s political empowerment | 0.906 | 2025 | 23 of 163 |
| Voice and accountability | 83.3 | 2024 | 11 of 170 |
| Control of corruption | 85.3 | 2024 | 9 of 170 |
| Government effectiveness | 86.5 | 2024 | 8 of 169 |
| Political stability | 79.4 | 2024 | 20 of 170 |
Society
Health, schooling, safety and who takes part.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Human Development Index | 0.958 | 2023 | 7 of 165 |
| Life expectancy | 83.1 | 2024 | 12 of 170 |
| Secondary school enrolment | 131.9% | 2024 | 3 of 85 |
| Health spending | 10.4% | 2023 | — |
| Health costs paid out of pocket | 15.8% | 2023 | 43 of 164 |
| Maternal mortality | 2.0 | 2023 | 3 of 167 |
| Women in parliament | 46.0% | 2025 | 9 of 156 |
| Women in the workforce | 62.5% | 2025 | — |
| Fertility rate | 1.48 | 2024 | — |
| Urban population | 87.7% | 2025 | — |
| Refugees who left | 0.1 | 2024 | 8 of 168 |
| Population | 27.6M | 2025 | — |
Environment
Energy, emissions and access to power.
| Statistic | Value | Year | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| CO₂ emissions per person | 14.10 | 2024 | 157 of 165 |
| Renewable energy use | 12.3% | 2021 | 124 of 169 |
| Access to electricity | 100.0% | 2024 | 4 of 169 |
What is missing
7 of the 60 statistics here have no figure for Australia in the year they were last ranked. Coverage differs by source: an indicator missing here is one its producer does not publish for Australia, not a zero. Who publishes what