Iceland vs Netherlands: Public social spending as share of GDP
Iceland
19.2%
in 2024
Netherlands
18.9%
in 2024
Iceland rank
26th
Netherlands rank
27th
Public social spending as share of GDP over time
- Iceland
- Netherlands
How they compare
Iceland currently reports 19.2% against 18.9% in Netherlands, a difference of 0.3%.
The two have swapped places 3 times across 35 shared years of data; in 1990 it was Netherlands ahead.
Iceland ranks 26th and Netherlands ranks 27th of 42 countries.
Across the 4 decades both report, Iceland averaged higher in 1 and Netherlands in 3.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Iceland | Netherlands | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 14.2% | 23.3% | 9.1% | Netherlands |
| 2000s | 15.9% | 19.0% | 3.1% | Netherlands |
| 2010s | 17.6% | 18.4% | 0.8% | Netherlands |
| 2020s | 20.6% | 19.2% | 1.5% | Iceland |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher public social spending as share of gdp, Iceland or Netherlands?
- Iceland, at 19.2% against 18.9% in Netherlands as of 2024.
- What is the difference in public social spending as share of gdp between Iceland and Netherlands?
- 0.3%, with Iceland ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Iceland and Netherlands?
- 35 years are reported by both, from 1990 to 2024.
- How do Iceland and Netherlands rank globally for public social spending as share of gdp?
- Iceland ranks 26th and Netherlands ranks 27th of 42 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- OECD (2025); OECD (1985); Lindert (2004) – 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.