Social spending as share of GDP in Spain
Spain: Social spending as share of GDP was 0.4% in 2021. ◆ Volatile
Social spending as share of GDP in Spain, 1980–2021
Source: OECD (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2021, social spending as share of gdp in Spain stood at 0.4%. That is the highest value across all 42 years on record.
That represents a change of up 39.0% on the previous year and up 105.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, social spending as share of gdp in Spain peaked at 0.4% in 2021 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1989.
Spain ranks 23rd of 42 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.
Social spending as share of GDP in Spain, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 0.0% | — |
| 1981 | 0.0% | +5.1% |
| 1982 | 0.0% | -4.9% |
| 1983 | 0.0% | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 0.0% | -2.6% |
| 1985 | 0.0% | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 0.0% | -2.6% |
| 1987 | 0.0% | -2.7% |
| 1988 | 0.0% | -2.8% |
| 1989 | 0.0% | -2.9% |
| 1990 | 0.1% | +94.1% |
| 1991 | 0.1% | +13.6% |
| 1992 | 0.1% | +9.3% |
| 1993 | 0.1% | +34.1% |
| 1994 | 0.1% | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 0.1% | +3.6% |
| 1996 | 0.2% | +36.0% |
| 1997 | 0.2% | +0.6% |
| 1998 | 0.1% | -16.7% |
| 1999 | 0.1% | +10.8% |
| 2000 | 0.1% | -28.5% |
| 2001 | 0.1% | +11.7% |
| 2002 | 0.2% | +33.0% |
| 2003 | 0.2% | +2.0% |
| 2004 | 0.2% | +1.9% |
| 2005 | 0.2% | +24.5% |
| 2006 | 0.2% | +10.1% |
| 2007 | 0.2% | +6.4% |
| 2008 | 0.2% | -10.3% |
| 2009 | 0.2% | +3.8% |
| 2010 | 0.2% | -12.5% |
| 2011 | 0.2% | +2.6% |
| 2012 | 0.2% | +2.6% |
| 2013 | 0.2% | +4.5% |
| 2014 | 0.2% | +3.4% |
| 2015 | 0.2% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 0.2% | -9.3% |
| 2017 | 0.2% | +2.6% |
| 2018 | 0.2% | +1.0% |
| 2019 | 0.2% | +2.0% |
| 2020 | 0.3% | +39.3% |
| 2021 | 0.4% | +39.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.4% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Spain
More economy & growth data for Spain
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 1.77 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 1.62 Percent per annum (2029)
- Gross capital formation (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 5.78 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross capital formation (constant 2015 US$), per unit of GDP 0.1624 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Gross capital formation (constant 2015 US$), per capita 6,273 constant 2015 US$ per person (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (current US$), annual growth rate 10.2 % change on previous year (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.3281 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (current US$), per capita 12,675 current US$ per person (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (current LCU), annual growth rate 5.56 % change on previous year (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (current LCU), per unit of GDP 0.2904 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is social spending as share of gdp in Spain?
- Social spending as share of gdp in Spain was 0.4% in 2021, according to OECD (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest social spending as share of gdp recorded in Spain?
- The highest recorded value was 0.4% in 2021.
- What is the lowest social spending as share of gdp recorded in Spain?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1989.
- How does Spain rank for social spending as share of gdp?
- Spain ranks 23rd out of 42 countries with data for 2021.
- Is social spending as share of gdp rising or falling in Spain?
- Over the last ten years it is up 105.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Spain data come from?
- The figures come from OECD (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Social spending as share of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 42 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Public social expenditure divided by gross domestic product, expressed as a percentage. Includes both in-cash and in-kind benefits in other social policy programs.