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Reporters Without Borders

World Press Freedom Index

The freedom journalists have to work and report, scored from a survey of press-freedom specialists plus a count of abuses against journalists, across political, legal, economic, sociocultural and safety conditions.

All world rankings
India’s rank
157 / 180
2026 World Press Freedom Index
Ahead of
13%
of the field
Index score
31.96
Published 2 May 2026
India’s rank, 20132026best 133, worst 161
130140150160better20132015201720192021202320252026
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World Press Freedom Index: 2013 ranked 140 of 179; 2014 ranked 140 of 180; 2015 ranked 136 of 180; 2016 ranked 133 of 180; 2017 ranked 136 of 180; 2018 ranked 138 of 180; 2019 ranked 140 of 180; 2020 ranked 142 of 180; 2021 ranked 142 of 180; 2022 ranked 150 of 180; 2023 ranked 161 of 180; 2024 ranked 159 of 180; 2025 ranked 151 of 180; 2026 ranked 157 of 180.

What the publisher changed

  • 2013: RSF overhauled the method in 2013.
  • 2022: RSF rebuilt the index in 2022 around five contextual indicators. RSF itself warns against comparing 2022 onward with earlier editions.

Coverage

180 countries, 2013-2026. Scores stored from 2022 only.

Limitations

Built substantially from expert opinion, so it measures assessed conditions rather than counted events. The two method overhauls make the full line a sequence of three separate series.

Every stored edition

India’s rank and score in the World Press Freedom Index by edition year
YearRankFieldIndex score
202615718031.96
202515118032.96
202415918031.28
202316118036.62
202215018041
2021142180
2020142180
2019140180
2018138180
2017136180
2016133180
2015136180
2014140180
2013140179
Edition published
2 May 2026

Data provenance

Edition published
2 May 2026
Coverage
180 countries, 2013-2026. Scores stored from 2022 only.
Limitations
Built substantially from expert opinion, so it measures assessed conditions rather than counted events. The two method overhauls make the full line a sequence of three separate series.
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