Belgium vs France: Public social spending as share of GDP
Belgium
28.6%
in 2024
France
30.6%
in 2024
Belgium rank
4th
France rank
3rd
Public social spending as share of GDP over time
- Belgium
- France
How they compare
France currently reports 30.6% against 28.6% in Belgium, a difference of 2.0%.
That makes France's figure about 1.1 times Belgium's.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 56 shared years of data; in 1880 it was France ahead.
Belgium ranks 4th and France ranks 3rd of 42 countries.
Across the 12 decades both report, Belgium averaged higher in 2 and France in 10.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Belgium | France | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 0.2% | 0.5% | 0.3% | France |
| 1890s | 0.2% | 0.5% | 0.3% | France |
| 1900s | 0.3% | 0.6% | 0.3% | France |
| 1910s | 0.4% | 0.8% | 0.4% | France |
| 1920s | 0.5% | 0.6% | 0.1% | France |
| 1930s | 0.6% | 1.1% | 0.5% | France |
| 1970s | 22.4% | 18.6% | 3.9% | Belgium |
| 1980s | 25.3% | 18.7% | 6.6% | Belgium |
| 1990s | 25.4% | 27.5% | 2.1% | France |
| 2000s | 25.1% | 28.7% | 3.6% | France |
| 2010s | 28.2% | 31.3% | 3.1% | France |
| 2020s | 29.1% | 32.0% | 2.9% | France |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher public social spending as share of gdp, Belgium or France?
- France, at 30.6% against 28.6% in Belgium as of 2024.
- What is the difference in public social spending as share of gdp between Belgium and France?
- 2.0%, with France ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Belgium and France?
- 56 years are reported by both, from 1880 to 2024.
- How do Belgium and France rank globally for public social spending as share of gdp?
- Belgium ranks 4th and France ranks 3rd of 42 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- OECD (2025); OECD (1985); Lindert (2004) β with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Public social spending as share of GDP. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Public social expenditure divided bt gross domestic product, expressed as a percentage.