Data / Rankings / General government final consumption expenditure, share of GDP / EU countries

EU countries by general government final consumption expenditure, share of GDP

Sweden had the highest general government final consumption expenditure, share of GDP of 27 EU countries in 2015, at 25.9% of GDP. Ireland had the lowest, at 12.1% of GDP. The median was 19.2% of GDP. Source: the World Bank.

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Highest25.9Sweden
Lowest12.1Ireland
Median19.227 EU countries

Map of EU countries, 2015

Austria: 20.1 % of GDPBelgium: 23.7 % of GDPBulgaria: 16.1 % of GDPCyprus: 16.6 % of GDPCzechia: 18.9 % of GDPGermany: 19.6 % of GDPDenmark: 25.6 % of GDPEstonia: 19.2 % of GDPSpain: 19.3 % of GDPFinland: 24.6 % of GDPFrance: 24.1 % of GDPGreece: 20.8 % of GDPCroatia: 22.5 % of GDPHungary: 19.7 % of GDPIreland: 12.1 % of GDPItaly: 19.2 % of GDPLithuania: 17.1 % of GDPLuxembourg: 16 % of GDPLatvia: 18.2 % of GDPMalta: 16.9 % of GDPNetherlands: 24.9 % of GDPPoland: 17.9 % of GDPPortugal: 17.9 % of GDPRomania: 13.9 % of GDPSweden: 25.9 % of GDPSlovenia: 19 % of GDPSlovakia: 19 % of GDP
  • Under 17
  • 17 to 19
  • 19 to 23
  • 23 and over
% of GDP, 2015. Source: World Bank, General government final consumption expenditure (% of GDP) (NE.CON.GOVT.ZS). Boundaries: Natural Earth (public domain).

All EU countries, 2015

Sweden: 25.9 % of GDPSweden25.9Denmark: 25.6 % of GDPDenmark25.6Netherlands: 24.9 % of GDPNetherlands24.9Finland: 24.6 % of GDPFinland24.6France: 24.1 % of GDPFrance24.1Belgium: 23.7 % of GDPBelgium23.7Croatia: 22.5 % of GDPCroatia22.5Greece: 20.8 % of GDPGreece20.8Austria: 20.1 % of GDPAustria20.1Hungary: 19.7 % of GDPHungary19.7Germany: 19.6 % of GDPGermany19.6Spain: 19.3 % of GDPSpain19.3Estonia: 19.2 % of GDPEstonia19.2Italy: 19.2 % of GDPItaly19.2Slovakia: 19 % of GDPSlovakia19Slovenia: 19 % of GDPSlovenia19Czechia: 18.9 % of GDPCzechia18.9Latvia: 18.2 % of GDPLatvia18.2Poland: 17.9 % of GDPPoland17.9Portugal: 17.9 % of GDPPortugal17.9Lithuania: 17.1 % of GDPLithuania17.1Malta: 16.9 % of GDPMalta16.9Cyprus: 16.6 % of GDPCyprus16.6Bulgaria: 16.1 % of GDPBulgaria16.1Luxembourg: 16 % of GDPLuxembourg16Romania: 13.9 % of GDPRomania13.9Ireland: 12.1 % of GDPIreland12.1Sweden: 25.9 % of GDPSweden25.9Denmark: 25.6 % of GDPDenmark25.6Netherlands: 24.9 % of GDPNetherlands24.9Finland: 24.6 % of GDPFinland24.6France: 24.1 % of GDPFrance24.1Belgium: 23.7 % of GDPBelgium23.7Croatia: 22.5 % of GDPCroatia22.5Greece: 20.8 % of GDPGreece20.8Austria: 20.1 % of GDPAustria20.1Hungary: 19.7 % of GDPHungary19.7Germany: 19.6 % of GDPGermany19.6Spain: 19.3 % of GDPSpain19.3Estonia: 19.2 % of GDPEstonia19.2Italy: 19.2 % of GDPItaly19.2Slovakia: 19 % of GDPSlovakia19Slovenia: 19 % of GDPSlovenia19Czechia: 18.9 % of GDPCzechia18.9Latvia: 18.2 % of GDPLatvia18.2Poland: 17.9 % of GDPPoland17.9Portugal: 17.9 % of GDPPortugal17.9Lithuania: 17.1 % of GDPLithuania17.1Malta: 16.9 % of GDPMalta16.9Cyprus: 16.6 % of GDPCyprus16.6Bulgaria: 16.1 % of GDPBulgaria16.1Luxembourg: 16 % of GDPLuxembourg16Romania: 13.9 % of GDPRomania13.9Ireland: 12.1 % of GDPIreland12.1
% of GDP. Source: World Bank, General government final consumption expenditure (% of GDP) (NE.CON.GOVT.ZS). Retrieved 2026-10-18.

Full ranking

RankEU countries2015
% of GDP		Change on 2014
1Sweden25.9-0.4 pts
2Denmark25.6-0.3 pts
3Netherlands24.9-0.8 pts
4Finland24.6-0.1 pts
5France24.1-0.3 pts
6Belgium23.7-0.4 pts
7Croatia22.5-0.6 pts
8Greece20.8-0 pts
9Austria20.1-0 pts
10Hungary19.7-0.3 pts
11Germany19.6+0.1 pts
12Spain19.3-0.2 pts
13Estonia19.2+0.8 pts
14Italy19.2-0.5 pts
15Slovakia19+0.2 pts
16Slovenia19-0.1 pts
17Czechia18.9-0.4 pts
18Latvia18.2+0.1 pts
19Poland17.9-0.3 pts
20Portugal17.9-0.5 pts
21Lithuania17.1+0.5 pts
22Malta16.9-0.9 pts
23Cyprus16.6-0.5 pts
24Bulgaria16.1-0.7 pts
25Luxembourg16-0.1 pts
26Romania13.9-0.2 pts
27Ireland12.1-3.9 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Government current spending on goods and services, including the pay of public employees and most defence spending, as a percentage of GDP. Government investment and transfers such as pensions are not included. World Bank national accounts data, compiled from national statistical offices and central banks and from OECD national accounts files.

Much smaller than total government spending, which also counts investment, interest and social transfers. Current prices, so the share moves with relative prices as well as volumes. Countries that rebase their national accounts can shift it by several points. The latest year varies by country.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the EU countries are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

World Bank, World Development Indicators. General government final consumption expenditure (% of GDP) (NE.CON.GOVT.ZS). https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NE.CON.GOVT.ZS. Retrieved 2026-10-18. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

World Bank. (2026). General government final consumption expenditure (% of GDP) (NE.CON.GOVT.ZS) (EU countries by general government final consumption expenditure, share of GDP, 2015) [Data set]. Retrieved October 18, 2026, from https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NE.CON.GOVT.ZS

MLA 9

General government final consumption expenditure (% of GDP) (NE.CON.GOVT.ZS), EU countries by general government final consumption expenditure, share of GDP, 2015. World Bank, 8 Oct. 2026, https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NE.CON.GOVT.ZS. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-consumption-gdp/eu-countries?period=2015. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

World Bank. 2026. General government final consumption expenditure (% of GDP) (NE.CON.GOVT.ZS). EU countries by general government final consumption expenditure, share of GDP, 2015. Dataset. Accessed October 18, 2026. https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NE.CON.GOVT.ZS. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-consumption-gdp/eu-countries?period=2015.

Harvard

World Bank (2026) General government final consumption expenditure (% of GDP) (NE.CON.GOVT.ZS), EU countries by general government final consumption expenditure, share of GDP, 2015 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NE.CON.GOVT.ZS, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-consumption-gdp/eu-countries?period=2015 (Accessed: 18 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{world_eu_countries_by_general_2015,
  author = {{World Bank}},
  title = {{General government final consumption expenditure (\% of GDP) (NE.CON.GOVT.ZS): EU countries by general government final consumption expenditure, share of GDP, 2015}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NE.CON.GOVT.ZS},
  urldate = {2026-10-18},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-consumption-gdp/eu-countries?period=2015. Publisher attribution: World Bank, World Development Indicators. General government final consumption expenditure (\% of GDP) (NE.CON.GOVT.ZS). https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NE.CON.GOVT.ZS. Retrieved 2026-10-18. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - World Bank
TI  - General government final consumption expenditure (% of GDP) (NE.CON.GOVT.ZS): EU countries by general government final consumption expenditure, share of GDP, 2015
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/08
PB  - World Bank
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NE.CON.GOVT.ZS
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-consumption-gdp/eu-countries?period=2015
Y2  - 2026/10/18
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-consumption-gdp/eu-countries?period=2015.
N1  - Publisher attribution: World Bank, World Development Indicators. General government final consumption expenditure (% of GDP) (NE.CON.GOVT.ZS). https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NE.CON.GOVT.ZS. Retrieved 2026-10-18. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
ER  -
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Questions

Which EU country has the highest general government final consumption expenditure, share of GDP?

Sweden, with 25.9% of GDP in 2015, according to the World Bank.

Which EU country has the lowest general government final consumption expenditure, share of GDP?

Ireland, with 12.1% of GDP in 2015.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: World Bank, General government final consumption expenditure (% of GDP) (NE.CON.GOVT.ZS). Retrieved 2026-10-18.

General government final consumption expenditure, share of GDP: other rankings

EU countries: more rankings