Denmark vs Norway: Government expenditure on tertiary education as % of GDP

Denmark
2.5%
in 2017
Norway
2.1%
in 2017
Denmark rank
5th
Norway rank
8th

Government expenditure on tertiary education as % of GDP over time

  • Denmark
  • Norway
0.511.522.5197019932017

How they compare

Denmark currently reports 2.5% against 2.1% in Norway, a difference of 0.4%.

That makes Denmark's figure about 1.2 times Norway's.

The two have swapped places 4 times across 33 shared years of data; in 1972 it was Denmark ahead.

Denmark ranks 5th and Norway ranks 8th of 160 countries.

Across the 5 decades both report, Denmark averaged higher in 4 and Norway in 1.

Head to head by decade

Decade Denmark Norway Difference Ahead
1970s 1.2% 0.8% 0.5% Denmark
1980s 1.2% 0.9% 0.4% Denmark
1990s 1.9% 1.9% 0.0% Norway
2000s 2.4% 2.1% 0.3% Denmark
2010s 2.4% 2.0% 0.3% Denmark

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher government expenditure on tertiary education as % of gdp, Denmark or Norway?
Denmark, at 2.5% against 2.1% in Norway as of 2017.
What is the difference in government expenditure on tertiary education as % of gdp between Denmark and Norway?
0.4%, with Denmark ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Denmark and Norway?
33 years are reported by both, from 1972 to 2017.
How do Denmark and Norway rank globally for government expenditure on tertiary education as % of gdp?
Denmark ranks 5th and Norway ranks 8th of 160 countries.
Where does this data come from?
UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as Government expenditure on tertiary education as % of GDP (%). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Denmark vs Norway: Government expenditure on tertiary education as % of GDP. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 06 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/compare/government-expenditure-on-tertiary-education-as-percent-of-gdp-percent/denmark/norway/

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About this data

Indicator
Government expenditure on tertiary education as % of GDP (%)
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
160 places, 3,221 data points, 1970–2019
Last refreshed

Total general (local, regional and central) government expenditure on tertiary education (current, capital, and transfers), expressed as a percentage of GDP. It includes expenditure funded by transfers from international sources to government. Divide total government expenditure for a given level of education (ex. primary, secondary, or all levels combined) by the GDP, and multiply by 100. A higher percentage of GDP spent on education shows a higher government priority for education, but also a higher capacity of the government to raise revenues for public spending, in relation to the size of the country's economy. When interpreting this indicator however, one should keep in mind in some countries, the private sector and/or households may fund a higher proportion of total funding for education, thus making government expenditure appear lower than in other countries. Limitations: In some instances data on total public expenditure on education refers only to the Ministry of Education, excluding other ministries which may also spend a part of their budget on educational activities. For more information, consult the UNESCO Institute of Statistics website: http://www.uis.unesco.org/Education/