Freedom in North America
18 countries and territories, on every statistic this site carries. Each row shows the region’s best and worst on that measure and the median between them.
Countries in North America
Personal
What a person may say, believe, publish, join and where they may go.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freedom of expression | Canada 0.933 | Nicaragua 0.018 | 0.826 | 14 |
| Freedom of association | Costa Rica 0.922 | Cuba 0.022 | 0.868 | 14 |
| Civil liberties | Costa Rica 0.931 | Nicaragua 0.077 | 0.823 | 14 |
| Freedom from political violence | Costa Rica 0.964 | Nicaragua 0.059 | 0.786 | 14 |
| Equal protection of rights | Costa Rica 0.917 | Haiti 0.069 | 0.475 | 14 |
| Academic freedom | Jamaica 0.939 | Nicaragua 0.019 | 0.795 | 14 |
| Media censorship effort | Canada 3.016 | Nicaragua -2.207 | 1.135 | 14 |
| Harassment of journalists | Trinidad and Tobago 2.563 | Nicaragua -3.327 | 0.976 | 14 |
| Media self-censorship | Guatemala 1.830 | Nicaragua -2.780 | 0.969 | 14 |
| Universal right to vote | Bahamas 1.000 | Haiti 0.000 | 1.000 | 16 |
| Legal rights for women | Canada 100.0 | Haiti 61.3 | 83.1 | 16 |
| Women can get a passport as men do | Bahamas 1.000 | Trinidad and Tobago 0.000 | 1.000 | 16 |
| Access to justice for women | Costa Rica 1.000 | United States 0.000 | 0.000 | 14 |
| Access to justice for men | Canada 1.000 | El Salvador 0.000 | 0.000 | 14 |
| Civil liberties score | Canada 58.0 | Cuba 9.0 | 43.5 | 16 |
| Political rights score | Canada 39.0 | Cuba 0.0 | 29.5 | 16 |
Economic
What a person may own, trade, earn and keep.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trade openness | Nicaragua 96.5% | Haiti 15.9% | 75.7% | 10 |
| Tax revenue as a share of GDP | Panama 7.2% | El Salvador 21.8% | 14.2% | 10 |
| Government spending as a share of GDP | Guatemala 13.5% | Costa Rica 28.6% | 20.3% | 9 |
| Foreign investment inflows | Costa Rica 5.4% | Trinidad and Tobago -3.1% | 2.2% | 10 |
| Regulatory quality | Greenland 78.6 | Haiti 31.8 | 52.6 | 18 |
| GDP per capita | United States $76.9K | Haiti $2,678 | $21.9K | 15 |
| GDP growth | Nicaragua 4.9% | Haiti -2.7% | 2.2% | 15 |
| Inflation | Haiti 28.6% | Panama -0.2% | 2.1% | 13 |
| Unemployment | Cuba 1.7% | Haiti 14.9% | 5.0% | 17 |
| Income inequality | Panama 48.900 | Dominican Republic 38.400 | 45.200 | 7 |
| Extreme poverty | United States 1.2% | Honduras 17.0% | 3.7% | 7 |
| Government debt | United States 115.8% | Mexico 50.3% | 71.5% | 5 |
Digital
What a person may read, send and encrypt online, and who is watching.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Internet use | United States 94.7% | Haiti 47.9% | 81.1% | 16 |
| Fixed broadband subscriptions | Canada 42.5 | Cuba 3.1 | 18.9 | 14 |
| Mobile subscriptions | El Salvador 176.5 | Honduras 70.9 | 112.9 | 14 |
Government
How power is held, checked and abused.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electoral democracy | Costa Rica 0.862 | Nicaragua 0.151 | 0.683 | 14 |
| Liberal democracy | Costa Rica 0.809 | Nicaragua 0.019 | 0.514 | 14 |
| Rule of law | Canada 0.963 | Nicaragua 0.008 | 0.628 | 14 |
| Judicial checks on government | Guatemala 0.954 | Nicaragua 0.003 | 0.785 | 14 |
| Legislative checks on government | Costa Rica 0.956 | Nicaragua 0.026 | 0.553 | 14 |
| Political corruption | Canada 0.026 | Nicaragua 0.942 | 0.581 | 14 |
| Civil society participation | United States 0.963 | Cuba 0.094 | 0.758 | 14 |
| Women’s political empowerment | Jamaica 0.929 | Haiti 0.403 | 0.795 | 14 |
| Voice and accountability | Canada 83.2 | Nicaragua 26.8 | 61.9 | 18 |
| Control of corruption | Canada 80.9 | Haiti 16.7 | 42.9 | 18 |
| Government effectiveness | Canada 85.5 | Haiti 12.1 | 50.8 | 18 |
| Political stability | Greenland 87.1 | Haiti 45.4 | 71.7 | 18 |
Society
Health, schooling, safety and who takes part.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Human Development Index | Canada 0.939 | Haiti 0.554 | 0.769 | 16 |
| Life expectancy | Canada 82.1 | Haiti 65.1 | 74.3 | 18 |
| Adult literacy | Panama 96.2% | Guatemala 82.1% | 91.9% | 6 |
| Secondary school enrolment | Costa Rica 121.8% | Guatemala 49.6% | 83.0% | 12 |
| Government spending on education | Jamaica 5.7% | Haiti 1.0% | 3.2% | 13 |
| Health spending | United States 16.7% | Haiti 3.2% | 7.6% | 16 |
| Health costs paid out of pocket | United States 10.9% | Guatemala 57.2% | 30.0% | 16 |
| Maternal mortality | Puerto Rico 11.0 | Haiti 328.0 | 47.0 | 17 |
| Women in parliament | Cuba 55.7% | Belize 12.5% | 30.2% | 15 |
| Women in the workforce | Bahamas 70.7% | Puerto Rico 36.9% | 49.1% | 17 |
| Fertility rate | Haiti 2.63 | Puerto Rico 0.92 | 1.74 | 18 |
| Urban population | Puerto Rico 94.3% | Belize 41.6% | 74.0% | 18 |
| Refugees who left | Puerto Rico 0.0 | Haiti 1,259.3 | 31.4 | 17 |
| Population | United States 341.8M | Greenland 56.8K | 6.7M | 18 |
Environment
Energy, emissions and access to power.
| Statistic | Highest | Lowest | Median | Countries |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CO₂ emissions per person | Haiti 0.30 | Trinidad and Tobago 19.58 | 2.79 | 18 |
| Renewable energy use | Haiti 76.7% | Trinidad and Tobago 0.5% | 21.4% | 18 |
| Access to electricity | Bahamas 100.0% | Haiti 53.9% | 99.7% | 18 |
Overlapping regions
These groupings share countries with North America. A country can belong to several at once — Turkey is in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, the Balkans and the Mediterranean.