Government expenditure on tertiary education as % of GDP in Denmark

Denmark: Government expenditure on tertiary education as % of GDP was 2.5% in 2017. ▲ Rising

Latest (2017)
2.5%
Change on year
up 4.7%
World rank
5th
of 160 countries
All-time high
2.6%
in 2001
All-time low
0.9%
in 1979
Years of data
37
1970–2017

Government expenditure on tertiary education as % of GDP in Denmark, 1970–2017

01231970199320171970: 1.2 %1971: 1.1 %1972: 1.2 %1973: 1.3 %1974: 1.4 %1975: 1.5 %1977: 1.1 %1978: 1 %1979: 0.929 %1980: 1 %1986: 1.4 %1987: 1.3 %1988: 1.5 %1989: 1 %1991: 1.2 %1993: 2 %1994: 1.9 %1995: 1.8 %1996: 1.9 %1998: 2.1 %1999: 2.3 %2000: 2.4 %2001: 2.6 %2002: 2.6 %2003: 2.4 %2004: 2.4 %2005: 2.3 %2006: 2.2 %2007: 2.2 %2008: 2.1 %2009: 2.3 %2010: 2.3 %2011: 2.4 %2012: 2.2 %2013: 2.3 %2014: 2.3 %2017: 2.5 %

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.

Analysis

In 2017, government expenditure on tertiary education as % of gdp in Denmark stood at 2.5%.

The figure is up 4.7% on the previous year and up 10.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, government expenditure on tertiary education as % of gdp in Denmark peaked at 2.6% in 2001 and was at its lowest, 0.9%, in 1979.

That places Denmark 5th out of 160 countries with data for 2017, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 37 years of available data.

Government expenditure on tertiary education as % of GDP in Denmark, year by year

Annual values for Government expenditure on tertiary education as % of GDP (%) in Denmark, 1970 to 2017.
Year % Change
1970 1.2%
1971 1.1% -7.4%
1972 1.2% +5.5%
1973 1.3% +10.0%
1974 1.4% +3.2%
1975 1.5% +7.2%
1977 1.1% -24.6%
1978 1.0% -6.7%
1979 0.9% -9.7%
1980 1.0% +10.8%
1986 1.4% +32.6%
1987 1.3% -2.7%
1988 1.5% +11.2%
1989 1.0% -29.4%
1991 1.2% +14.1%
1993 2.0% +69.8%
1994 1.9% -4.3%
1995 1.8% -6.4%
1996 1.9% +3.3%
1998 2.1% +13.1%
1999 2.3% +8.6%
2000 2.4% +5.5%
2001 2.6% +8.7%
2002 2.6% -0.4%
2003 2.4% -7.2%
2004 2.4% +0.5%
2005 2.3% -5.3%
2006 2.2% -5.4%
2007 2.2% +1.4%
2008 2.1% -4.8%
2009 2.3% +10.4%
2010 2.3% +0.2%
2011 2.4% +1.2%
2012 2.2% -8.3%
2013 2.3% +5.2%
2014 2.3% +2.5%
2017 2.5% +4.7%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 1.2% 0.9% 1.5% 9
1980s 1.2% 1.0% 1.5% 5
1990s 1.9% 1.2% 2.3% 7
2000s 2.4% 2.1% 2.6% 10
2010s 2.3% 2.2% 2.5% 6

Countries ranked near Denmark

  1. 2 Botswana 4.0% compare
  2. 3 Sierra Leone 3.1% compare
  3. 4 Cuba 3.0% compare
  4. 6 Ethiopia 2.3% compare
  5. 7 Puerto Rico 2.2% compare
  6. 8 Norway 2.1% compare

See the full ranking of 160 places →

More reference data data for Denmark

All data for Denmark →

Frequently asked questions

What is government expenditure on tertiary education as % of gdp in Denmark?
Government expenditure on tertiary education as % of gdp in Denmark was 2.5% in 2017, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest government expenditure on tertiary education as % of gdp recorded in Denmark?
The highest recorded value was 2.6% in 2001.
What is the lowest government expenditure on tertiary education as % of gdp recorded in Denmark?
The lowest recorded value was 0.9% in 1979.
How does Denmark rank for government expenditure on tertiary education as % of gdp?
Denmark ranks 5th out of 160 countries with data for 2017.
Is government expenditure on tertiary education as % of gdp rising or falling in Denmark?
Over the last ten years it is up 10.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Denmark data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Government expenditure on tertiary education as % of GDP (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 37 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Government expenditure on tertiary education as % of GDP in Denmark. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 02 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/government-expenditure-on-tertiary-education-as-percent-of-gdp-percent/denmark/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/government-expenditure-on-tertiary-education-as-percent-of-gdp-percent/denmark/">Government expenditure on tertiary education as % of GDP in Denmark</a> — Statizoid

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/