The term “tigers” refers to a group of four to five East Asian countries that joined the rich Western countries after less than 50 years of “miraculous” growth. Controversies surround the attempt to explain how the successes were achieved. This paper surveys the discussion and uses the economic freedom index to address the main controversy, which is the role of the state in the rapid growth that took place. After a discussion of likely biases, the data are considered. Three of the five countries have a level of regulation much like other rich countries, while two have been as close to laissez faire as any country in the world. All are much more “market-friendly” than the LDCs that they left behind. The extent of laissez faire can, however, be only one aspect of the miracle.