Share of government consumption in GDP vs. GDP per capita in Belgium
Belgium: Share of government consumption in GDP vs. GDP per capita was 20.6% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
20.6%
Change on year
up 0.8%
World rank
75th
of 184 countries
All-time high
22.0%
in 1981
All-time low
11.6%
in 1950
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Share of government consumption in GDP vs. GDP per capita in Belgium, 1950–2023
Source: Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2023, share of government consumption in gdp vs. gdp per capita in Belgium stood at 20.6%.
The figure is up 0.8% on the previous year and up 6.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of government consumption in gdp vs. gdp per capita in Belgium peaked at 22.0% in 1981 and was at its lowest, 11.6%, in 1950.
Belgium ranks 75th of 184 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Share of government consumption in GDP vs. GDP per capita in Belgium, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 11.6% | — |
| 1951 | 12.5% | +7.7% |
| 1952 | 12.9% | +3.2% |
| 1953 | 13.9% | +7.7% |
| 1954 | 13.6% | -2.2% |
| 1955 | 13.0% | -4.7% |
| 1956 | 12.9% | -0.4% |
| 1957 | 13.0% | +0.2% |
| 1958 | 14.2% | +9.2% |
| 1959 | 14.5% | +2.2% |
| 1960 | 15.2% | +5.2% |
| 1961 | 14.9% | -1.9% |
| 1962 | 15.0% | +0.5% |
| 1963 | 16.1% | +7.2% |
| 1964 | 15.8% | -1.8% |
| 1965 | 16.5% | +4.3% |
| 1966 | 17.0% | +2.8% |
| 1967 | 17.5% | +2.9% |
| 1968 | 17.6% | +0.6% |
| 1969 | 17.8% | +1.1% |
| 1970 | 17.4% | -2.1% |
| 1971 | 17.5% | +0.5% |
| 1972 | 17.3% | -1.3% |
| 1973 | 16.7% | -3.4% |
| 1974 | 16.9% | +1.3% |
| 1975 | 17.6% | +4.4% |
| 1976 | 17.6% | -0.2% |
| 1977 | 18.5% | +5.0% |
| 1978 | 19.4% | +4.9% |
| 1979 | 19.9% | +2.7% |
| 1980 | 20.4% | +2.7% |
| 1981 | 22.0% | +7.9% |
| 1982 | 21.9% | -0.4% |
| 1983 | 21.7% | -0.9% |
| 1984 | 21.2% | -2.6% |
| 1985 | 21.8% | +2.8% |
| 1986 | 21.4% | -1.5% |
| 1987 | 21.3% | -0.5% |
| 1988 | 19.7% | -7.8% |
| 1989 | 19.4% | -1.5% |
| 1990 | 17.8% | -8.0% |
| 1991 | 18.0% | +1.1% |
| 1992 | 17.7% | -2.0% |
| 1993 | 17.8% | +0.5% |
| 1994 | 17.3% | -2.5% |
| 1995 | 16.9% | -2.6% |
| 1996 | 16.9% | -0.1% |
| 1997 | 17.3% | +2.6% |
| 1998 | 17.6% | +1.9% |
| 1999 | 17.5% | -0.9% |
| 2000 | 17.9% | +2.4% |
| 2001 | 18.5% | +3.4% |
| 2002 | 19.6% | +6.2% |
| 2003 | 19.3% | -1.8% |
| 2004 | 17.2% | -10.8% |
| 2005 | 15.8% | -8.3% |
| 2006 | 16.8% | +6.8% |
| 2007 | 16.9% | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 18.4% | +8.7% |
| 2009 | 18.9% | +2.7% |
| 2010 | 18.9% | -0.0% |
| 2011 | 18.9% | +0.4% |
| 2012 | 18.9% | -0.3% |
| 2013 | 19.3% | +2.3% |
| 2014 | 20.1% | +4.1% |
| 2015 | 19.5% | -3.0% |
| 2016 | 19.3% | -1.3% |
| 2017 | 19.6% | +1.6% |
| 2018 | 19.7% | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 19.9% | +1.0% |
| 2020 | 20.6% | +3.7% |
| 2021 | 20.5% | -0.5% |
| 2022 | 20.5% | -0.3% |
| 2023 | 20.6% | +0.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 13.2% | 11.6% | 14.5% | 10 |
| 1960s | 16.3% | 14.9% | 17.8% | 10 |
| 1970s | 17.9% | 16.7% | 19.9% | 10 |
| 1980s | 21.1% | 19.4% | 22.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 17.5% | 16.9% | 18.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 17.9% | 15.8% | 19.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 19.4% | 18.9% | 20.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 20.6% | 20.5% | 20.6% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Belgium
More economy & growth data for Belgium
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 1.04 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 1.25 Percent per annum (2029)
- Final consumption expenditure (constant 2015 US$), per capita 33,727 constant 2015 US$ per person (2025)
- Gross national expenditure (current US$), annual growth rate 9.88 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross national expenditure (current US$), per unit of GDP 1.02 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Gross national expenditure (current US$), per capita 61,976 current US$ per person (2025)
- Gross national expenditure (current LCU), annual growth rate 5.25 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross national expenditure (current LCU), per unit of GDP 0.9028 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Gross national expenditure (current LCU), per capita 54,847 current LCU per person (2025)
- Gross national expenditure (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 1.33 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of government consumption in gdp vs. gdp per capita in Belgium?
- Share of government consumption in gdp vs. gdp per capita in Belgium was 20.6% in 2023, according to Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of government consumption in gdp vs. gdp per capita recorded in Belgium?
- The highest recorded value was 22.0% in 1981.
- What is the lowest share of government consumption in gdp vs. gdp per capita recorded in Belgium?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.6% in 1950.
- How does Belgium rank for share of government consumption in gdp vs. gdp per capita?
- Belgium ranks 75th out of 184 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of government consumption in gdp vs. gdp per capita rising or falling in Belgium?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Belgium data come from?
- The figures come from Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of government consumption in GDP vs. GDP per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Government consumption divided by gross domestic product, expressed as a percentage.