Public social spending as share of GDP in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Public social spending as share of GDP was 23.0% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Public social spending as share of GDP in United Kingdom, 1880–2023
Source: OECD (2025); OECD (1985); Lindert (2004) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
United Kingdom recorded 23.0% for public social spending as share of gdp in 2023.
The figure is up 1.0% on the previous year and down 6.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, public social spending as share of gdp in United Kingdom peaked at 25.6% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.8%, in 1890.
That places United Kingdom 18th out of 42 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 70 years of available data.
Public social spending as share of GDP in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1880 | 0.9% | — |
| 1890 | 0.8% | -3.5% |
| 1900 | 1.0% | +20.5% |
| 1910 | 1.4% | +38.0% |
| 1920 | 1.4% | +0.7% |
| 1930 | 2.2% | +61.2% |
| 1960 | 10.5% | +368.4% |
| 1961 | 10.8% | +2.5% |
| 1962 | 11.0% | +1.9% |
| 1963 | 11.5% | +4.9% |
| 1964 | 11.3% | -1.7% |
| 1965 | 12.0% | +6.0% |
| 1966 | 12.2% | +1.9% |
| 1967 | 12.9% | +5.6% |
| 1968 | 13.4% | +3.9% |
| 1969 | 13.4% | -0.0% |
| 1970 | 13.6% | +1.3% |
| 1971 | 13.4% | -1.0% |
| 1972 | 14.3% | +6.2% |
| 1973 | 13.8% | -2.9% |
| 1974 | 15.3% | +10.7% |
| 1975 | 16.1% | +4.8% |
| 1976 | 16.6% | +3.6% |
| 1977 | 16.6% | -0.4% |
| 1978 | 16.9% | +2.0% |
| 1979 | 16.8% | -0.5% |
| 1980 | 16.9% | +0.3% |
| 1981 | 18.3% | +8.6% |
| 1982 | 18.8% | +2.8% |
| 1983 | 19.6% | +4.2% |
| 1984 | 19.6% | -0.2% |
| 1985 | 19.6% | +0.2% |
| 1986 | 19.6% | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 18.8% | -4.2% |
| 1988 | 17.5% | -7.0% |
| 1989 | 16.8% | -3.6% |
| 1990 | 17.2% | +2.4% |
| 1991 | 18.9% | +9.5% |
| 1992 | 20.5% | +8.5% |
| 1993 | 21.1% | +2.8% |
| 1994 | 20.3% | -3.6% |
| 1995 | 19.0% | -6.7% |
| 1996 | 18.8% | -1.0% |
| 1997 | 18.9% | +0.9% |
| 1998 | 19.1% | +1.1% |
| 1999 | 18.9% | -1.2% |
| 2000 | 19.3% | +1.9% |
| 2001 | 19.8% | +2.8% |
| 2002 | 19.8% | +0.3% |
| 2003 | 20.7% | +4.2% |
| 2004 | 21.2% | +2.6% |
| 2005 | 21.3% | +0.2% |
| 2006 | 21.3% | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 21.5% | +1.0% |
| 2008 | 22.8% | +6.1% |
| 2009 | 25.1% | +10.1% |
| 2010 | 25.2% | +0.6% |
| 2011 | 25.1% | -0.6% |
| 2012 | 25.3% | +0.8% |
| 2013 | 24.6% | -2.8% |
| 2014 | 24.0% | -2.3% |
| 2015 | 23.7% | -1.4% |
| 2016 | 22.9% | -3.4% |
| 2017 | 22.6% | -1.1% |
| 2018 | 22.2% | -1.9% |
| 2019 | 22.3% | +0.1% |
| 2020 | 25.6% | +15.1% |
| 2021 | 24.4% | -4.7% |
| 2022 | 22.7% | -6.8% |
| 2023 | 23.0% | +1.0% |
United Kingdom compared with similar countries
- United Kingdom's 23.0% is above the median for high income countries, which is 22.3%, 1.0× the median. (38 countries reporting)
- United Kingdom's 23.0% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 23.0%, 100% of the median. (30 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Public social spending as share of GDP in United Kingdom changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | +368.4% | 2.2% | 10.5% |
| 1930 | +61.2% | 1.4% | 2.2% |
| 1910 | +38.0% | 1.0% | 1.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 0.9% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 1 |
| 1890s | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.8% | 1 |
| 1900s | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1 |
| 1910s | 1.4% | 1.4% | 1.4% | 1 |
| 1920s | 1.4% | 1.4% | 1.4% | 1 |
| 1930s | 2.2% | 2.2% | 2.2% | 1 |
| 1960s | 11.9% | 10.5% | 13.4% | 10 |
| 1970s | 15.3% | 13.4% | 16.9% | 10 |
| 1980s | 18.6% | 16.8% | 19.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 19.3% | 17.2% | 21.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 21.3% | 19.3% | 25.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 23.8% | 22.2% | 25.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 23.9% | 22.7% | 25.6% | 4 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
More reference data data for United Kingdom
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 3.13 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 3.97 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 13.26 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.01 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 13.26 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 10.5 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 6.51 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 15.81 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 59.34 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 5.48 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is public social spending as share of gdp in United Kingdom?
- Public social spending as share of gdp in United Kingdom was 23.0% in 2023, according to OECD (2025); OECD (1985); Lindert (2004) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest public social spending as share of gdp recorded in United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 25.6% in 2020.
- What is the lowest public social spending as share of gdp recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.8% in 1890.
- How does United Kingdom rank for public social spending as share of gdp?
- United Kingdom ranks 18th out of 42 countries with data for 2023.
- Is public social spending as share of gdp rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
- The figures come from OECD (2025); OECD (1985); Lindert (2004) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Public social spending as share of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 70 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Public social expenditure divided bt gross domestic product, expressed as a percentage.