Social protection spending as share of total government spending in Sweden
Sweden: Social protection spending as share of total government spending was 37.8% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Social protection spending as share of total government spending in Sweden, 2007–2023
Source: OECD (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of government expenditure.
Analysis
In 2023, social protection spending as share of total government spending in Sweden stood at 37.8%. That is the lowest value across all 17 years on record.
The figure is down 1.9% on the previous year and down 8.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, social protection spending as share of total government spending in Sweden peaked at 42.0% in 2016 and was at its lowest, 37.8%, in 2023.
Sweden ranks 12th of 37 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 17 years of available data.
Social protection spending as share of total government spending in Sweden, year by year
| Year | % of government expenditure | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 41.7% | — |
| 2008 | 40.8% | -2.0% |
| 2009 | 41.8% | +2.4% |
| 2010 | 41.3% | -1.2% |
| 2011 | 40.4% | -2.1% |
| 2012 | 41.0% | +1.4% |
| 2013 | 41.3% | +0.7% |
| 2014 | 41.1% | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 41.4% | +0.7% |
| 2016 | 42.0% | +1.3% |
| 2017 | 41.3% | -1.5% |
| 2018 | 40.1% | -3.0% |
| 2019 | 39.5% | -1.6% |
| 2020 | 38.4% | -2.8% |
| 2021 | 38.4% | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 38.5% | +0.2% |
| 2023 | 37.8% | -1.9% |
Sweden compared with similar countries
- Sweden's 37.8% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 37.5%, 1.0× the median. (29 countries reporting)
- Sweden's 37.8% is above the median for high income countries, which is 36.4%, 1.0× the median. (36 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 41.4% | 40.8% | 41.8% | 3 |
| 2010s | 40.9% | 39.5% | 42.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 38.3% | 37.8% | 38.5% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Sweden
More reference data data for Sweden
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.4328 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.2237 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.68 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.2063 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 1.68 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.45 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.9766 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.13 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 8.03 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.12 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is social protection spending as share of total government spending in Sweden?
- Social protection spending as share of total government spending in Sweden was 37.8% in 2023, according to OECD (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest social protection spending as share of total government spending recorded in Sweden?
- The highest recorded value was 42.0% in 2016.
- What is the lowest social protection spending as share of total government spending recorded in Sweden?
- The lowest recorded value was 37.8% in 2023.
- How does Sweden rank for social protection spending as share of total government spending?
- Sweden ranks 12th out of 37 countries with data for 2023.
- Is social protection spending as share of total government spending rising or falling in Sweden?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sweden data come from?
- The figures come from OECD (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Social protection spending as share of total government spending. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 17 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
General government expenditure on social protection. This data is divided by total government expenditure, expressed as a percentage.