Methods

How the rankings are made

Every index of freedom or governance is someone's choice of what to count and how to weigh it. Here each one is described the same way: who makes it, what it says it measures, how, what it is made of, and whether its data may be shown here, with the questions worth asking of it. Nothing about a publisher's method is filled in from memory: what has not been read is listed as not read.

  • Worldwide Governance IndicatorsWorld Bank · Combines other sources, Surveys of perceptionIts data here: May be shownSix broad dimensions of governance for more than 200 economies since 1996, as estimates and 0–100 scores.Open
  • Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem)V-Dem Institute, University of Gothenburg · Experts score countriesIts data here: May not be shownIndicators of democracy and civil liberties, including freedom of movement, country by country and year by year.Open
  • Economic Freedom of the WorldFraser Institute · Combines other sourcesIts data here: Needs permissionHow far a country's policies and institutions support economic freedom, in five areas, for up to 165 jurisdictions back to 1970.Open
  • Human Freedom IndexCato Institute and Fraser Institute · Combines other sourcesIts data here: May not be shownPersonal, civil and economic freedom together, the economic half being Economic Freedom of the World.Open
  • Index of Economic FreedomThe Heritage Foundation · Combines other sourcesIts data here: Needs permissionEconomic freedom in twelve factors grouped as rule of law, government size, regulatory efficiency and open markets, for 184 countries.Open
  • Freedom in the WorldFreedom House · Experts score countriesIts data here: May not be shownPolitical rights and civil liberties, country by country, each year.Open
  • World Press Freedom IndexReporters Without Borders (RSF) · Experts score countriesIts data here: May not be shownThe freedom of journalists in 180 countries, as a score and five context scores.Open
  • Regional Authority IndexLiesbet Hooghe, Gary Marks and colleagues · Experts score countries, Coded from the lawIts data here: Needs permissionHow much authority regional governments hold, as self rule and shared rule, for 96 countries from 1950 to 2018.Open
  • Fiscal Decentralisation DatabaseOECD · Official statisticsIts data here: Licence unclearHow revenue, spending, tax autonomy and debt are shared between central and sub-central government in OECD countries.Open

Solon's own measures

Solon's dimensions keep the law, practice and results apart and code features of the law on written scales, every coding showing its article, its confidence and whether a second person has checked it.