Total factor productivity in Bulgaria
Bulgaria: Total factor productivity was 1.04 in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
1.04
Change on year
up 2.4%
World rank
20th
of 120 countries
All-time high
2.3
in 1975
All-time low
0.9374
in 2020
Years of data
48
1974–2023
Total factor productivity in Bulgaria, 1974–2023
Source: Feenstra et al. – Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Bulgaria recorded 1.04 for total factor productivity in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.4% on the previous year and up 7.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, total factor productivity in Bulgaria peaked at 2.3 in 1975 and was at its lowest, 0.9374, in 2020.
Bulgaria ranks 20th of 120 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 48 years of available data.
Total factor productivity in Bulgaria, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | 2.29 | — |
| 1975 | 2.3 | +0.3% |
| 1976 | 2.27 | -1.3% |
| 1977 | 2.24 | -1.2% |
| 1978 | 2.21 | -1.6% |
| 1979 | 2.22 | +0.5% |
| 1980 | 2.2 | -0.6% |
| 1981 | 2.18 | -0.8% |
| 1982 | 2.13 | -2.6% |
| 1983 | 2.1 | -1.4% |
| 1984 | 2.08 | -0.8% |
| 1985 | 2.05 | -1.4% |
| 1986 | 2.06 | +0.3% |
| 1987 | 2.09 | +1.6% |
| 1988 | 2.21 | +5.8% |
| 1989 | 2.07 | -6.6% |
| 1990 | 1.92 | -7.2% |
| 1993 | 1.73 | -9.7% |
| 1994 | 1.66 | -4.1% |
| 1995 | 1.6 | -3.4% |
| 1996 | 1.71 | +6.9% |
| 1997 | 1.42 | -17.0% |
| 1998 | 1.42 | -0.3% |
| 1999 | 1.22 | -13.6% |
| 2000 | 1.22 | -0.0% |
| 2001 | 1.2 | -1.8% |
| 2002 | 1.18 | -1.8% |
| 2003 | 1.15 | -2.3% |
| 2004 | 1.13 | -2.1% |
| 2005 | 1.12 | -0.8% |
| 2006 | 1.09 | -2.4% |
| 2007 | 1.06 | -3.2% |
| 2008 | 1.01 | -4.3% |
| 2009 | 0.9699 | -4.4% |
| 2010 | 0.985 | +1.5% |
| 2011 | 0.9974 | +1.3% |
| 2012 | 0.9864 | -1.1% |
| 2013 | 0.9597 | -2.7% |
| 2014 | 0.9405 | -2.0% |
| 2015 | 0.9434 | +0.3% |
| 2016 | 0.9594 | +1.7% |
| 2017 | 0.9473 | -1.3% |
| 2018 | 0.9526 | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 0.9562 | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 0.9374 | -2.0% |
| 2021 | 1 | +6.7% |
| 2022 | 1.01 | +1.1% |
| 2023 | 1.04 | +2.4% |
Bulgaria compared with similar countries
- Bulgaria's 1.04 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.994, 1.0× the median. (52 countries reporting)
- Bulgaria's 1.04 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.9969, 1.0× the median. (40 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 2.25 | 2.21 | 2.3 | 6 |
| 1980s | 2.12 | 2.05 | 2.21 | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.59 | 1.22 | 1.92 | 8 |
| 2000s | 1.12 | 0.9699 | 1.22 | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.9628 | 0.9405 | 0.9974 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.9959 | 0.9374 | 1.04 | 4 |
Countries ranked near Bulgaria
More economy & growth data for Bulgaria
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 3.48 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 2.58 Percent per annum (2029)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), gaps 1.51 billion BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.0116 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 234.99 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), gaps filled 4.88 billion BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), annual 60.06 % change on previous year (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.0373 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 759.02 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), annual growth rate 7.89 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is total factor productivity in Bulgaria?
- Total factor productivity in Bulgaria was 1.04 in 2023, according to Feenstra et al. – Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest total factor productivity recorded in Bulgaria?
- The highest recorded value was 2.3 in 1975.
- What is the lowest total factor productivity recorded in Bulgaria?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.9374 in 2020.
- How does Bulgaria rank for total factor productivity?
- Bulgaria ranks 20th out of 120 countries with data for 2023.
- Is total factor productivity rising or falling in Bulgaria?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Bulgaria 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 Total factor productivity. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 48 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
This is the level of total factor productivity, relative to each country's value in 2021 (which is set to 1). This data is adjusted for inflation and differences in living costs between countries.