Germany vs Norway: Government spending by function as a share of GDP
Germany
19.5%
in 2023
Norway
18.5%
in 2024
Germany rank
8th
Norway rank
11th
Government spending by function as a share of GDP over time
- Germany
- Norway
How they compare
Germany currently reports 19.5% against 18.5% in Norway, a difference of 1.0%.
That makes Germany's figure about 1.1 times Norway's.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 17 shared years of data; in 2007 it was Germany ahead.
Germany ranks 8th and Norway ranks 11th of 37 countries.
Germany has averaged higher in every one of the 3 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Germany | Norway | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 19.1% | 16.1% | 3.0% | Germany |
| 2010s | 18.9% | 18.6% | 0.3% | Germany |
| 2020s | 20.3% | 18.0% | 2.3% | Germany |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher government spending by function as a share of gdp, Germany or Norway?
- Germany, at 19.5% against 18.5% in Norway as of 2023.
- What is the difference in government spending by function as a share of gdp between Germany and Norway?
- 1.0%, with Germany ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Germany and Norway?
- 17 years are reported by both, from 2007 to 2023.
- How do Germany and Norway rank globally for government spending by function as a share of gdp?
- Germany ranks 8th and Norway ranks 11th of 37 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- OECD (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Government spending by function as a share of GDP. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
General government expenditure on social protection. This data is divided by gross domestic product, expressed as a percentage.