Portugal vs Spain: R&D personnel by sector of performance and region — R&D Personnel

Portugal
163,630 Persons
in 2024
Spain
431,848 Persons
in 2023
Portugal rank
6th
Spain rank
4th

R&D personnel by sector of performance and region — R&D Personnel over time

  • Portugal
  • Spain
0100.0k200.0k300.0k400.0k198220032024

How they compare

Spain currently reports 431,848 Persons against 163,630 Persons in Portugal, a difference of 268,218 Persons.

That makes Spain's figure about 2.6 times Portugal's.

Across all 33 years both countries report, Spain has been ahead every year.

Portugal ranks 6th and Spain ranks 4th of 17 countries.

Spain has averaged higher in every one of the 5 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade Portugal Spain Difference Ahead
1980s 17,375 Persons 93,808 Persons 76,433 Persons Spain
1990s 24,854 Persons 135,059 Persons 110,205 Persons Spain
2000s 56,246 Persons 288,249 Persons 232,003 Persons Spain
2010s 102,737 Persons 350,452 Persons 247,715 Persons Spain
2020s 143,052 Persons 407,114 Persons 264,061 Persons Spain

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher r&d personnel by sector of performance and region — r&d personnel, Portugal or Spain?
Spain, at 431,848 Persons against 163,630 Persons in Portugal as of 2023.
What is the difference in r&d personnel by sector of performance and region — r&d personnel between Portugal and Spain?
268,218 Persons, with Spain ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Portugal and Spain?
33 years are reported by both, from 1988 to 2023.
How do Portugal and Spain rank globally for r&d personnel by sector of performance and region — r&d personnel?
Portugal ranks 6th and Spain ranks 4th of 17 countries.
Where does this data come from?
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as R&D personnel by sector of performance and region — R&D Personnel (total economy). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Portugal vs Spain: R&D personnel by sector of performance and region — R&D Personnel. Statizoid, drawing on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 17 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/compare/r-and-d-personnel-by-sector-of-performance-and-region-r-and-d-personnel-total-economy/portugal/spain/

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About this data

Indicator
R&D personnel by sector of performance and region — R&D Personnel (total economy)
Unit
Persons
Source
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Licence
OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage
224 places, 4,038 data points, 1982–2024
Last refreshed

This table contains research and development (R&D) personnel statistics. Number of R&D personnel is provided in both headcounts and full-time equivalent on R&D by sex, sector of employment (business enterprise, government, higher education, and private non-profit) and by large regions (territorial level 2 or TL2). Definition of regions: Regions are subnational units below national boundaries. OECD countries have two regional levels: large regions (territorial level 2 or TL2) and small regions (territorial level 3 or TL3). TL2 regions are used in this dataset. See the OECD Territorial Correspondence Table (xls) and the OECD Territorial grid (pdf).