Bulgaria vs Latvia: Public social spending as share of GDP
Bulgaria
20.5%
in 2021
Latvia
19.7%
in 2023
Bulgaria rank
21st
Latvia rank
23rd
Public social spending as share of GDP over time
- Bulgaria
- Latvia
How they compare
Bulgaria currently reports 20.5% against 19.7% in Latvia, a difference of 0.8%.
The two have swapped places 5 times across 17 shared years of data; in 2005 it was Bulgaria ahead.
Bulgaria ranks 21st and Latvia ranks 23rd of 42 countries.
Across the 3 decades both report, Bulgaria averaged higher in 2 and Latvia in 1.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Bulgaria | Latvia | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 14.3% | 13.8% | 0.5% | Bulgaria |
| 2010s | 16.9% | 16.8% | 0.1% | Bulgaria |
| 2020s | 20.0% | 20.5% | 0.4% | Latvia |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher public social spending as share of gdp, Bulgaria or Latvia?
- Bulgaria, at 20.5% against 19.7% in Latvia as of 2021.
- What is the difference in public social spending as share of gdp between Bulgaria and Latvia?
- 0.8%, with Bulgaria ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Bulgaria and Latvia?
- 17 years are reported by both, from 2005 to 2021.
- How do Bulgaria and Latvia rank globally for public social spending as share of gdp?
- Bulgaria ranks 21st and Latvia ranks 23rd 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.