Government spending as share of GDP vs. GDP per capita in United States
United States: Government spending as share of GDP vs. GDP per capita was 37.9% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
37.9%
Change on year
up 0.7%
World rank
49th
of 151 countries
All-time high
44.7%
in 2020
All-time low
8.3%
in 1929
Years of data
96
1929–2024
Government spending as share of GDP vs. GDP per capita in United States, 1929–2024
Source: International Monetary Fund (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita in United States is 37.9%, measured in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.7% on the previous year and up 7.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita in United States peaked at 44.7% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 8.3%, in 1929.
United States ranks 49th of 151 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 96 years of available data.
Government spending as share of GDP vs. GDP per capita in United States, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1929 | 8.3% | — |
| 1930 | 9.9% | +19.2% |
| 1931 | 13.8% | +39.7% |
| 1932 | 16.0% | +15.9% |
| 1933 | 17.9% | +11.6% |
| 1934 | 19.4% | +8.7% |
| 1935 | 18.4% | -5.4% |
| 1936 | 16.9% | -8.1% |
| 1937 | 14.6% | -13.5% |
| 1938 | 16.9% | +15.9% |
| 1939 | 17.3% | +2.2% |
| 1940 | 16.5% | -4.6% |
| 1941 | 17.4% | +5.4% |
| 1942 | 25.7% | +47.4% |
| 1943 | 31.9% | +24.4% |
| 1944 | 35.2% | +10.2% |
| 1945 | 36.6% | +4.1% |
| 1946 | 26.0% | -28.9% |
| 1947 | 21.8% | -16.2% |
| 1948 | 21.0% | -3.7% |
| 1949 | 23.5% | +11.8% |
| 1950 | 22.2% | -5.7% |
| 1951 | 22.7% | +2.3% |
| 1952 | 24.4% | +7.6% |
| 1953 | 24.6% | +0.9% |
| 1954 | 24.4% | -0.9% |
| 1955 | 23.2% | -4.9% |
| 1956 | 23.1% | -0.5% |
| 1957 | 24.1% | +4.4% |
| 1958 | 25.7% | +6.9% |
| 1959 | 24.7% | -4.0% |
| 1960 | 24.9% | +0.8% |
| 1961 | 25.9% | +3.8% |
| 1962 | 26.0% | +0.6% |
| 1963 | 26.0% | -0.1% |
| 1964 | 25.6% | -1.7% |
| 1965 | 25.4% | -0.9% |
| 1966 | 26.3% | +3.7% |
| 1967 | 28.3% | +7.7% |
| 1968 | 29.1% | +2.7% |
| 1969 | 29.3% | +0.8% |
| 1970 | 31.5% | +7.3% |
| 1971 | 32.3% | +2.8% |
| 1972 | 32.8% | +1.3% |
| 1973 | 31.9% | -2.6% |
| 1974 | 32.9% | +3.2% |
| 1975 | 35.2% | +7.0% |
| 1976 | 34.2% | -3.0% |
| 1977 | 33.4% | -2.3% |
| 1978 | 32.6% | -2.3% |
| 1979 | 32.0% | -1.7% |
| 1980 | 33.7% | +5.3% |
| 1981 | 33.9% | +0.4% |
| 1982 | 35.8% | +5.7% |
| 1983 | 35.7% | -0.4% |
| 1984 | 34.3% | -3.9% |
| 1985 | 34.5% | +0.5% |
| 1986 | 34.8% | +1.1% |
| 1987 | 34.3% | -1.5% |
| 1988 | 33.7% | -1.8% |
| 1989 | 33.7% | +0.1% |
| 1990 | 34.5% | +2.3% |
| 1991 | 35.7% | +3.4% |
| 1992 | 36.7% | +3.0% |
| 1993 | 36.4% | -1.0% |
| 1994 | 35.5% | -2.5% |
| 1995 | 35.5% | +0.1% |
| 1996 | 34.7% | -2.1% |
| 1997 | 33.7% | -3.0% |
| 1998 | 32.8% | -2.7% |
| 1999 | 32.2% | -1.8% |
| 2000 | 31.7% | -1.4% |
| 2001 | 32.8% | +3.4% |
| 2002 | 33.7% | +2.7% |
| 2003 | 34.0% | +1.0% |
| 2004 | 33.7% | -0.9% |
| 2005 | 33.9% | +0.6% |
| 2006 | 33.7% | -0.7% |
| 2007 | 34.6% | +2.6% |
| 2008 | 37.1% | +7.5% |
| 2009 | 41.4% | +11.5% |
| 2010 | 39.8% | -4.0% |
| 2011 | 38.8% | -2.4% |
| 2012 | 37.2% | -4.1% |
| 2013 | 35.8% | -3.9% |
| 2014 | 35.3% | -1.3% |
| 2015 | 35.0% | -0.8% |
| 2016 | 35.3% | +0.9% |
| 2017 | 35.2% | -0.4% |
| 2018 | 35.3% | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 35.8% | +1.3% |
| 2020 | 44.7% | +24.9% |
| 2021 | 43.2% | -3.4% |
| 2022 | 36.8% | -14.8% |
| 2023 | 37.6% | +2.3% |
| 2024 | 37.9% | +0.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920s | 8.3% | 8.3% | 8.3% | 1 |
| 1930s | 16.1% | 9.9% | 19.4% | 10 |
| 1940s | 25.6% | 16.5% | 36.6% | 10 |
| 1950s | 23.9% | 22.2% | 25.7% | 10 |
| 1960s | 26.7% | 24.9% | 29.3% | 10 |
| 1970s | 32.9% | 31.5% | 35.2% | 10 |
| 1980s | 34.4% | 33.7% | 35.8% | 10 |
| 1990s | 34.8% | 32.2% | 36.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 34.7% | 31.7% | 41.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 36.4% | 35.0% | 39.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 40.1% | 36.8% | 44.7% | 5 |
Countries ranked near United States
More economy & growth data for United States
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 1.63 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 2.12 Percent per annum (2029)
- Gross value added at basic prices (GVA) (current US$), annual growth 10.53 % change on previous year (2021)
- Gross value added at basic prices (GVA) (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.9477 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2021)
- Gross value added at basic prices (GVA) (current US$), per capita 67,708 current US$ per person (2021)
- Gross value added at basic prices (GVA) (current LCU), annual growth 10.53 % change on previous year (2021)
- Gross value added at basic prices (GVA) (current LCU), per unit of GDP 0.9477 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2021)
- Gross value added at basic prices (GVA) (current LCU), per capita 67,708 current LCU per person (2021)
- GDP (current US$), annual growth rate 5.02 % change on previous year (2025)
- GDP (current US$), per capita 90,026 current US$ per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita in United States?
- Government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita in United States was 37.9% in 2024, according to International Monetary Fund (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 44.7% in 2020.
- What is the lowest government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 8.3% in 1929.
- How does United States rank for government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita?
- United States ranks 49th out of 151 countries with data for 2024.
- Is government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United States data come from?
- The figures come from International Monetary Fund (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Government spending as share of GDP vs. GDP per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 96 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
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.