Germany vs Sweden: Government spending as share of GDP vs. GDP per capita
Germany
49.4%
in 2024
Sweden
49.3%
in 2024
Germany rank
13th
Sweden rank
15th
Government spending as share of GDP vs. GDP per capita over time
- Germany
- Sweden
How they compare
Germany currently reports 49.4% against 49.3% in Sweden, a difference of 0.1%.
The two have swapped places 12 times across 119 shared years of data; in 1880 it was Germany ahead.
Germany ranks 13th and Sweden ranks 15th of 151 countries.
Across the 14 decades both report, Germany averaged higher in 11 and Sweden in 3.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Germany | Sweden | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 13.1% | 6.8% | 6.3% | Germany |
| 1890s | 16.8% | 6.9% | 9.9% | Germany |
| 1900s | 18.1% | 8.3% | 9.8% | Germany |
| 1910s | 23.4% | 7.7% | 15.8% | Germany |
| 1920s | 13.5% | 9.1% | 4.4% | Germany |
| 1930s | 13.1% | 10.9% | 2.2% | Germany |
| 1950s | 29.5% | 21.1% | 8.4% | Germany |
| 1960s | 28.3% | 25.5% | 2.8% | Germany |
| 1970s | 45.5% | 33.0% | 12.5% | Germany |
| 1980s | 47.0% | 43.3% | 3.6% | Germany |
| 1990s | 48.2% | 55.6% | 7.4% | Sweden |
| 2000s | 46.4% | 52.1% | 5.6% | Sweden |
| 2010s | 45.2% | 49.8% | 4.7% | Sweden |
| 2020s | 49.6% | 49.6% | 0.0% | Germany |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita, Germany or Sweden?
- Germany, at 49.4% against 49.3% in Sweden as of 2024.
- What is the difference in government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita between Germany and Sweden?
- 0.1%, with Germany ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Germany and Sweden?
- 119 years are reported by both, from 1880 to 2024.
- How do Germany and Sweden rank globally for government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita?
- Germany ranks 13th and Sweden ranks 15th of 151 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- International Monetary Fund (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Government spending as share of GDP vs. GDP per capita. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Sum of all the money spent by the government on goods and services, as a percentage of GDP. It includes interest paid on government debt.