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The scatter plot above maps each country's government revenue against spending as a share of GDP. Countries above the diagonal balance line run a surplus; those below run a deficit. Bubble size reflects population. Use the Countries panel below the chart to filter countries, or click a bubble to track it through time in Journey Mode.

Fiscal Balance (share of GDP):

The fiscal balance — revenue minus spending — is a core indicator of government sustainability. Persistent deficits require borrowing, adding to public debt. Surpluses, while rare, can build buffers for downturns. During crises like the 2008 financial crash or the 2020 pandemic, nearly all countries swing into deep deficit as spending surges and tax receipts collapse.

Spending vs Revenue (share of GDP):

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Government Revenue (share of GDP):

Revenue as a share of GDP varies widely across Europe. Nordic countries like Finland and France typically collect over 50% of GDP in revenue, while Ireland and the Baltic states sit well below 40%. These differences reflect fundamentally different social contracts about the size and role of government.

Government Spending (share of GDP):

Spending patterns tell a parallel story but diverge from revenue in important ways. Countries with ageing populations and generous pension systems — France, Italy, Greece — tend to spend more than they collect. The gap between revenue and spending is the fiscal balance, shown above.

Home ›Government revenue and spending by country

Government revenue and spending by country

Every country in the dataset has its own page with the full year-by-year record of general government revenue, spending and fiscal balance as a share of GDP. The table below shows each country's most recent year.

Latest available year for each country. Source: OECD, ONS, GERS.
Country	Revenue, % GDP	Spending, % GDP	Balance, % GDP	Years covered
Australia	35.7	39.6	-4.0	1998–2024
Austria	50.9	55.0	-4.2	1998–2025
Belgium	49.0	54.2	-5.2	1998–2025
Canada	43.1	44.7	-1.7	1998–2025
Chile	25.0	27.5	-2.5	2007–2024
Colombia	33.3	38.6	-5.3	2005–2024
Costa Rica	39.7	38.1	+1.5	2000–2024
Czechia	41.0	43.2	-2.1	1998–2025
Denmark	50.1	47.2	+2.9	1998–2025
Estonia	43.4	45.4	-2.0	1998–2025
Finland	53.7	57.5	-3.8	1998–2025
France	52.2	57.3	-5.1	1998–2025
Germany	47.9	50.5	-2.7	1998–2025
Greece	50.0	48.3	+1.7	1998–2025
Hungary	42.6	47.3	-4.7	1998–2025
Iceland	42.6	45.0	-2.4	1998–2025
Ireland	24.2	22.3	+1.9	1998–2025
Israel	36.2	44.3	-8.1	1998–2024
Italy	48.1	51.2	-3.1	1998–2025
Japan	37.1	38.7	-1.7	2005–2024
Latvia	43.6	46.1	-2.5	1998–2025
Lithuania	39.4	41.2	-1.8	1998–2025
Luxembourg	47.1	49.1	-2.0	1998–2025
Mexico	22.9	29.2	-6.3	2003–2024
Netherlands	43.6	45.2	-1.6	1998–2025
New Zealand	41.4	45.2	-3.9	1998–2024
Norway	59.9	49.4	+10.5	1998–2025
Poland	43.6	50.9	-7.3	1998–2025
Portugal	43.4	42.7	+0.7	1998–2025
Scotland	41.3	54.2	-12.8	1998–2025
Scotland (Excluding Oil)	43.3	57.5	-14.3	1998–2025
Scotland (Per Capita Oil)	43.0	57.1	-14.1	1998–2025
Slovakia	43.5	47.9	-4.5	1998–2025
Slovenia	47.1	49.6	-2.5	1998–2025
South Korea	33.6	35.1	-1.5	1998–2024
Spain	42.9	45.3	-2.4	1998–2025
Sweden	47.9	49.2	-1.3	1998–2025
Switzerland	33.0	32.5	+0.5	1998–2024
United Kingdom	41.1	46.3	-5.2	1998–2025
United States	31.5	39.6	-8.0	1998–2024

Scotland appears on three bases reflecting different North Sea revenue allocations: a geographic share, a per-capita share, and excluding oil entirely.

Compare across countries

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