Spain vs United Kingdom: Refugees by country of asylum
Spain
429,333 people
in 2024
United Kingdom
515,677 people
in 2024
Spain rank
19th
United Kingdom rank
16th
Refugees by country of asylum over time
- Spain
- United Kingdom
How they compare
United Kingdom currently reports 515,677 people against 429,333 people in Spain, a difference of 86,344 people.
That makes United Kingdom's figure about 1.2 times Spain's.
Across all 66 years both countries report, United Kingdom has been ahead every year.
Spain ranks 19th and United Kingdom ranks 16th of 183 countries.
United Kingdom has averaged higher in every one of the 8 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Spain | United Kingdom | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 2,000 people | 195,000 people | 193,000 people | United Kingdom |
| 1960s | 12,667 people | 162,778 people | 150,111 people | United Kingdom |
| 1970s | 24,000 people | 151,750 people | 127,750 people | United Kingdom |
| 1980s | 14,617 people | 113,277 people | 98,660 people | United Kingdom |
| 1990s | 5,634 people | 88,515 people | 82,881 people | United Kingdom |
| 2000s | 5,656 people | 272,145 people | 266,489 people | United Kingdom |
| 2010s | 13,813 people | 144,830 people | 131,016 people | United Kingdom |
| 2020s | 271,137 people | 312,534 people | 41,396 people | United Kingdom |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher refugees by country of asylum, Spain or United Kingdom?
- United Kingdom, at 515,677 people against 429,333 people in Spain as of 2024.
- What is the difference in refugees by country of asylum between Spain and United Kingdom?
- 86,344 people, with United Kingdom ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Spain and United Kingdom?
- 66 years are reported by both, from 1951 to 2024.
- How do Spain and United Kingdom rank globally for refugees by country of asylum?
- Spain ranks 19th and United Kingdom ranks 16th of 183 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- UNHCR (2025) β with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Refugees by country of asylum. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
People who fled their country of origin and are in need of international protection. Refugees are those who have already been granted asylum status in the country they moved to. This includes all refugees who live in this country, not just those who arrived that year.