Government spending as share of GDP in India
India: Government spending as share of GDP was 28.4% in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2024)
28.4%
Change on year
up 1.8%
World rank
86th
of 151 countries
All-time high
31.0%
in 2020
All-time low
4.1%
in 1924
Years of data
164
1861–2024
Government spending as share of GDP in India, 1861–2024
Source: International Monetary Fund (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2024, government spending as share of gdp in India stood at 28.4%.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.8% on the previous year and up 8.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending as share of gdp in India peaked at 31.0% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 4.1%, in 1924.
India ranks 86th of 151 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Government spending as share of GDP in India, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1861 | 6.6% | — |
| 1862 | 6.4% | -2.5% |
| 1863 | 6.2% | -3.6% |
| 1864 | 6.5% | +4.4% |
| 1865 | 6.2% | -5.0% |
| 1866 | 5.5% | -9.9% |
| 1867 | 6.0% | +7.9% |
| 1868 | 7.0% | +16.9% |
| 1869 | 6.0% | -14.6% |
| 1870 | 6.3% | +4.7% |
| 1871 | 6.4% | +2.9% |
| 1872 | 6.0% | -7.2% |
| 1873 | 6.6% | +11.2% |
| 1874 | 5.9% | -11.5% |
| 1875 | 7.0% | +19.5% |
| 1876 | 7.2% | +3.1% |
| 1877 | 6.4% | -11.7% |
| 1878 | 5.5% | -13.4% |
| 1879 | 6.2% | +12.9% |
| 1880 | 7.3% | +17.5% |
| 1881 | 7.3% | -0.1% |
| 1882 | 7.3% | +0.1% |
| 1883 | 8.1% | +10.7% |
| 1884 | 7.2% | -12.0% |
| 1885 | 7.3% | +2.7% |
| 1886 | 6.9% | -6.3% |
| 1887 | 7.5% | +8.7% |
| 1888 | 8.1% | +8.5% |
| 1889 | 6.4% | -21.3% |
| 1890 | 6.9% | +7.5% |
| 1891 | 6.9% | +0.0% |
| 1892 | 6.0% | -13.1% |
| 1893 | 6.0% | +0.9% |
| 1894 | 6.2% | +3.3% |
| 1895 | 6.6% | +5.5% |
| 1896 | 7.0% | +6.7% |
| 1897 | 6.0% | -14.3% |
| 1898 | 6.3% | +4.7% |
| 1899 | 6.8% | +8.3% |
| 1900 | 7.2% | +5.7% |
| 1901 | 6.3% | -12.0% |
| 1902 | 6.4% | +1.7% |
| 1903 | 7.2% | +12.1% |
| 1904 | 6.6% | -7.7% |
| 1905 | 7.3% | +10.0% |
| 1906 | 5.8% | -20.9% |
| 1907 | 6.0% | +3.1% |
| 1908 | 5.9% | -1.8% |
| 1909 | 5.3% | -9.1% |
| 1910 | 6.0% | +11.9% |
| 1911 | 5.4% | -9.1% |
| 1912 | 5.5% | +1.0% |
| 1913 | 5.6% | +1.7% |
| 1914 | 5.0% | -9.4% |
| 1915 | 4.8% | -5.6% |
| 1916 | 4.6% | -2.7% |
| 1917 | 11.2% | +141.6% |
| 1918 | 5.3% | -52.8% |
| 1919 | 5.4% | +2.2% |
| 1920 | 6.4% | +19.2% |
| 1921 | 4.6% | -28.3% |
| 1922 | 4.5% | -2.3% |
| 1923 | 4.7% | +4.5% |
| 1924 | 4.1% | -14.1% |
| 1925 | 4.3% | +6.8% |
| 1926 | 4.5% | +4.2% |
| 1927 | 4.5% | +0.5% |
| 1928 | 4.5% | -1.1% |
| 1929 | 4.7% | +5.8% |
| 1930 | 5.5% | +16.8% |
| 1931 | 5.8% | +5.1% |
| 1932 | 5.3% | -8.7% |
| 1933 | 5.3% | +0.7% |
| 1934 | 5.3% | -1.0% |
| 1935 | 5.6% | +5.6% |
| 1936 | 5.3% | -6.0% |
| 1937 | 5.0% | -4.7% |
| 1938 | 5.0% | -0.6% |
| 1939 | 4.8% | -3.9% |
| 1940 | 5.3% | +11.3% |
| 1941 | 5.1% | -4.6% |
| 1942 | 8.1% | +59.4% |
| 1943 | 7.6% | -5.9% |
| 1944 | 8.8% | +15.2% |
| 1945 | 13.6% | +54.6% |
| 1946 | 11.1% | -18.7% |
| 1947 | 6.7% | -39.8% |
| 1948 | 6.2% | -7.5% |
| 1949 | 5.5% | -10.2% |
| 1950 | 5.3% | -3.9% |
| 1951 | 5.5% | +4.4% |
| 1952 | 6.3% | +13.7% |
| 1953 | 6.7% | +6.0% |
| 1954 | 7.9% | +17.6% |
| 1955 | 8.2% | +4.3% |
| 1956 | 8.5% | +4.1% |
| 1957 | 9.7% | +14.1% |
| 1958 | 12.0% | +22.9% |
| 1959 | 12.2% | +1.8% |
| 1960 | 11.2% | -7.8% |
| 1961 | 11.8% | +4.9% |
| 1962 | 11.5% | -2.6% |
| 1963 | 12.3% | +7.4% |
| 1964 | 13.2% | +7.4% |
| 1965 | 13.7% | +3.5% |
| 1966 | 13.8% | +0.8% |
| 1967 | 13.8% | -0.1% |
| 1968 | 12.6% | -8.8% |
| 1969 | 11.5% | -8.4% |
| 1970 | 11.7% | +1.7% |
| 1971 | 12.4% | +5.6% |
| 1972 | 13.5% | +8.8% |
| 1973 | 12.9% | -4.1% |
| 1974 | 11.3% | -12.2% |
| 1975 | 12.7% | +11.8% |
| 1976 | 14.4% | +13.9% |
| 1977 | 13.9% | -3.5% |
| 1978 | 15.0% | +7.7% |
| 1979 | 15.6% | +3.6% |
| 1980 | 17.5% | +12.3% |
| 1981 | 16.6% | -4.9% |
| 1982 | 17.8% | +6.8% |
| 1983 | 17.8% | +0.4% |
| 1984 | 19.8% | +11.1% |
| 1985 | 21.6% | +8.8% |
| 1986 | 23.2% | +7.8% |
| 1987 | 22.5% | -3.0% |
| 1988 | 24.9% | +10.5% |
| 1989 | 25.7% | +3.2% |
| 1990 | 25.8% | +0.5% |
| 1991 | 27.3% | +5.6% |
| 1992 | 26.7% | -2.1% |
| 1993 | 26.2% | -1.9% |
| 1994 | 26.2% | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 25.0% | -4.7% |
| 1996 | 24.4% | -2.5% |
| 1997 | 25.2% | +3.6% |
| 1998 | 26.0% | +3.2% |
| 1999 | 25.8% | -0.7% |
| 2000 | 26.1% | +0.9% |
| 2001 | 28.3% | +8.4% |
| 2002 | 29.1% | +3.0% |
| 2003 | 29.9% | +2.8% |
| 2004 | 28.4% | -5.0% |
| 2005 | 26.9% | -5.5% |
| 2006 | 26.9% | +0.1% |
| 2007 | 26.9% | +0.1% |
| 2008 | 29.3% | +8.7% |
| 2009 | 28.5% | -2.6% |
| 2010 | 28.0% | -2.0% |
| 2011 | 27.6% | -1.2% |
| 2012 | 27.4% | -1.0% |
| 2013 | 26.6% | -2.8% |
| 2014 | 26.2% | -1.4% |
| 2015 | 27.1% | +3.2% |
| 2016 | 27.2% | +0.6% |
| 2017 | 26.2% | -3.7% |
| 2018 | 26.3% | +0.2% |
| 2019 | 26.8% | +2.1% |
| 2020 | 31.0% | +15.5% |
| 2021 | 29.9% | -3.7% |
| 2022 | 29.1% | -2.6% |
| 2023 | 27.9% | -4.2% |
| 2024 | 28.4% | +1.8% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 28.4% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 23.3%, 1.2× the median. (37 countries reporting)
- India's 28.4% is above the median for South Asia, which is 27.1%, 1.0× the median. (5 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Government spending as share of GDP in India changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1917 | +141.6% | 4.6% | 11.2% |
| 1942 | +59.4% | 5.1% | 8.1% |
| 1918 | -52.8% | 11.2% | 5.3% |
| 1945 | +54.6% | 8.8% | 13.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1860s | 6.3% | 5.5% | 7.0% | 9 |
| 1870s | 6.4% | 5.5% | 7.2% | 10 |
| 1880s | 7.4% | 6.4% | 8.1% | 10 |
| 1890s | 6.5% | 6.0% | 7.0% | 10 |
| 1900s | 6.4% | 5.3% | 7.3% | 10 |
| 1910s | 5.9% | 4.6% | 11.2% | 10 |
| 1920s | 4.7% | 4.1% | 6.4% | 10 |
| 1930s | 5.3% | 4.8% | 5.8% | 10 |
| 1940s | 7.8% | 5.1% | 13.6% | 10 |
| 1950s | 8.2% | 5.3% | 12.2% | 10 |
| 1960s | 12.6% | 11.2% | 13.8% | 10 |
| 1970s | 13.3% | 11.3% | 15.6% | 10 |
| 1980s | 20.7% | 16.6% | 25.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 25.9% | 24.4% | 27.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 28.0% | 26.1% | 29.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 26.9% | 26.2% | 28.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 29.3% | 27.9% | 31.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near India
- 83 Albania 28.9% compare
- 84 Rwanda 28.8% compare
- 85 Oman 28.7% compare
- 87 Burkina Faso 27.8% compare
- 88 Tajikistan 27.7% compare
- 89 Uzbekistan 27.6% compare
More economy & growth data for India
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 5.66 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 6.5 Percent per annum (2029)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), gaps 35.69 billion BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.009 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 24.38 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), gaps filled 39.10 billion BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), annual 44.06 % change on previous year (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.0099 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 26.71 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), annual growth rate 8.87 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending as share of gdp in India?
- Government spending as share of gdp in India was 28.4% 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 recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 31.0% in 2020.
- What is the lowest government spending as share of gdp recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.1% in 1924.
- How does India rank for government spending as share of gdp?
- India ranks 86th out of 151 countries with data for 2024.
- Is government spending as share of gdp rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this India 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. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 164 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.