The US's Economic Freedom Score Continues to Plummet

The latest Index of Economic Freedom from The Heritage Foundation shows the United States continuing to decline and barely remaining in the “mostly free” category.

With a score of 70.1, the U.S. has reached its lowest point in the Index’s 30-year history making it the 25^th freest in the world. The year prior America stood at 70.6.

“The Biden administration's misguided anti-growth economic and entrepreneurial policies and mounting deficit spending fueled this decline,” a summary of the report states.

The Index, which was launched in 1995, looks at four broad policy areas that affect economic freedom when evaluating 184 sovereign countries: rule of law, size of government, regulatory efficiency, and open markets.

Tied at 70.1, the U.S. and Israel at 25^th and 26^th place, respectively, are the last two countries listed in the “mostly free” category, behind Luxembourg, New Zealand, Denmark, Estonia, Sweden, Norway, Netherlands, Finland, Australia, South Korea, Lithuania, Canada, Cyprus, Germany, Mauritius, Latvia, Chile, UAE, Iceland, and the Czech Republic. The only four countries in the “free” category are Singapore, Switzerland, Ireland, and Taiwan.

As shown in the ranking table below, only four countries (down from seven in the 2022 Index) recorded economic freedom scores of 80 or more, putting them in the ranks of the economically “free;” 22 countries earned a designation of “mostly free” by recording scores of 70.0 to 79.9; and an additional 55 countries were considered at least “moderately free” with scores of 60.0 to 69.9. Thus, a total of 81 countries, or slightly less than half of the 176 countries graded in the 2024 Index, have institutional environments in which individuals and private enterprises benefit from at least a moderate degree of economic freedom in the pursuit of greater economic development and prosperity.
On the opposite side of the spectrum, more than 50 percent of the countries graded in the 2024 Index (95 economies) have registered economic freedom scores below 60. Of those, 62 are considered “mostly unfree” (scores of 50.0 to 59.9), and 33, including China and Iran, are in the economically “repressed” category.
Within the top 10 rankings, a notable reshuffling has taken place. Singapore has maintained its status as the world’s freest economy, demonstrating a high level of economic resilience. Switzerland is the world’s second freest economy, followed by Ireland, and Taiwan has moved up to the fourth slot, the highest rank the country has ever achieved in the Index of Economic Freedom. Both New Zealand and Australia have lost their top-tier economic freedom status, with Australia no longer among the world’s 10 freest economies.
Especially notable is the continuing decline within the “mostly free” category of the United States, whose score plummeted to 70.1, its lowest level ever in the 30-year history of the Index. The U.S. is now the world’s 25th freest economy. The major causative factor in the erosion of America’s economic freedom is excessive government spending, which has resulted in mounting deficit and debt burdens. (Index of Economic Freedom)

“We know from history that human flourishing comes in part from economic fairness, opportunity, and liberty," said Heritage Foundation president. "We also know, however, that the enemies of freedom are persistently pursuing collectivism, equity, and social justice. Conservatives know that these false idols produce disastrous results—such as economic stagnation, poverty, deprivation, and oppression—but too often we forget the source of their appeal. Now is the time for choosing and correcting the course."