Data / Rankings / Government spending on education (COFOG) / EU countries

EU countries by government spending on education (COFOG)

Sweden had the highest government spending on education (COFOG) of 27 EU countries in 2017, at 7.5% of GDP. Romania had the lowest, at 2.9% of GDP. The median was 4.8% of GDP and the figure for the European Union (27) was 4.6% of GDP. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

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Highest7.5Sweden
Lowest2.9Romania
Median4.827 EU countries
European Union (27)4.6History

Map of EU countries, 2017

Austria: 4.9 % of GDPBelgium: 6.2 % of GDPBulgaria: 3.5 % of GDPCyprus: 5.2 % of GDPCzechia: 3.8 % of GDPGermany: 4.1 % of GDPDenmark: 6.4 % of GDPEstonia: 5.6 % of GDPSpain: 4 % of GDPFinland: 5.8 % of GDPFrance: 5.2 % of GDPGreece: 3.9 % of GDPCroatia: 4.8 % of GDPHungary: 5.1 % of GDPIreland: 3.1 % of GDPItaly: 4 % of GDPLithuania: 4.5 % of GDPLuxembourg: 4.4 % of GDPLatvia: 6 % of GDPMalta: 4.1 % of GDPNetherlands: 5 % of GDPPoland: 4.9 % of GDPPortugal: 4.6 % of GDPRomania: 2.9 % of GDPSweden: 7.5 % of GDPSlovenia: 5.5 % of GDPSlovakia: 3.9 % of GDP
  • Under 3.9
  • 3.9 to 4.4
  • 4.4 to 5
  • 5 to 5.6
  • 5.6 and over
% of GDP, 2017. Source: Eurostat, General government expenditure by function (COFOG), education, total general government expenditure, percentage of GDP (gov_10a_exp). Boundaries: Natural Earth (public domain).

All EU countries, 2017

Sweden: 7.5 % of GDPSweden7.5Denmark: 6.4 % of GDPDenmark6.4Belgium: 6.2 % of GDPBelgium6.2Latvia: 6 % of GDPLatvia6Finland: 5.8 % of GDPFinland5.8Estonia: 5.6 % of GDPEstonia5.6Slovenia: 5.5 % of GDPSlovenia5.5Cyprus: 5.2 % of GDPCyprus5.2France: 5.2 % of GDPFrance5.2Hungary: 5.1 % of GDPHungary5.1Netherlands: 5 % of GDPNetherlands5Austria: 4.9 % of GDPAustria4.9Poland: 4.9 % of GDPPoland4.9Croatia: 4.8 % of GDPCroatia4.8Portugal: 4.6 % of GDPPortugal4.6Lithuania: 4.5 % of GDPLithuania4.5Luxembourg: 4.4 % of GDPLuxembourg4.4Germany: 4.1 % of GDPGermany4.1Malta: 4.1 % of GDPMalta4.1Italy: 4 % of GDPItaly4Spain: 4 % of GDPSpain4Greece: 3.9 % of GDPGreece3.9Slovakia: 3.9 % of GDPSlovakia3.9Czechia: 3.8 % of GDPCzechia3.8Bulgaria: 3.5 % of GDPBulgaria3.5Ireland: 3.1 % of GDPIreland3.1Romania: 2.9 % of GDPRomania2.9Sweden: 7.5 % of GDPSweden7.5Denmark: 6.4 % of GDPDenmark6.4Belgium: 6.2 % of GDPBelgium6.2Latvia: 6 % of GDPLatvia6Finland: 5.8 % of GDPFinland5.8Estonia: 5.6 % of GDPEstonia5.6Slovenia: 5.5 % of GDPSlovenia5.5Cyprus: 5.2 % of GDPCyprus5.2France: 5.2 % of GDPFrance5.2Hungary: 5.1 % of GDPHungary5.1Netherlands: 5 % of GDPNetherlands5Austria: 4.9 % of GDPAustria4.9Poland: 4.9 % of GDPPoland4.9Croatia: 4.8 % of GDPCroatia4.8Portugal: 4.6 % of GDPPortugal4.6Lithuania: 4.5 % of GDPLithuania4.5Luxembourg: 4.4 % of GDPLuxembourg4.4Germany: 4.1 % of GDPGermany4.1Malta: 4.1 % of GDPMalta4.1Italy: 4 % of GDPItaly4Spain: 4 % of GDPSpain4Greece: 3.9 % of GDPGreece3.9Slovakia: 3.9 % of GDPSlovakia3.9Czechia: 3.8 % of GDPCzechia3.8Bulgaria: 3.5 % of GDPBulgaria3.5Ireland: 3.1 % of GDPIreland3.1Romania: 2.9 % of GDPRomania2.9
% of GDP. Source: Eurostat, General government expenditure by function (COFOG), education, total general government expenditure, percentage of GDP (gov_10a_exp). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankEU countries2017
% of GDP		Change on 2016
1Sweden7.5+0.2 pts
2Denmark6.4-0.4 pts
3Belgium6.2-0.1 pts
4Latvia6+0.3 pts
5Finland5.8-0.4 pts
6Estonia5.6+0.1 pts
7Slovenia5.5-0.1 pts
8Cyprus5.2-0.3 pts
8France5.20 pts
10Hungary5.1+0.2 pts
11Netherlands5-0.2 pts
12Austria4.90 pts
12Poland4.9-0.1 pts
14Croatia4.80 pts
15Portugal4.6-0.2 pts
16Lithuania4.5-0.3 pts
17Luxembourg4.4+0.1 pts
18Germany4.10 pts
18Malta4.1-0.6 pts
20Italy4+0.1 pts
20Spain40 pts
22Greece3.9-0.1 pts
22Slovakia Provisional3.90 pts
24Czechia3.8+0.1 pts
25Bulgaria3.5+0.1 pts
26Ireland3.1-0.2 pts
27Romania2.9-0.4 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Total expenditure of general government on education (COFOG division 09: pre-primary to tertiary education, education not definable by level, subsidiary services, research and development and other education spending) as a percentage of GDP, from the government accounts by function (ESA 2010).

A national accounts measure of all government education spending, transfers included. UNESCO and OECD education finance statistics count spending on educational institutions by a different method, so their figures differ.

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

Eurostat. General government expenditure by function (COFOG), education, total general government expenditure, percentage of GDP (gov_10a_exp). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/gov_10a_exp/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

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

Eurostat, European Commission. (2026). General government expenditure by function (COFOG), education, total general government expenditure, percentage of GDP (gov_10a_exp) (EU countries by government spending on education (COFOG), 2017) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/gov_10a_exp/default/table

MLA 9

General government expenditure by function (COFOG), education, total general government expenditure, percentage of GDP (gov_10a_exp), EU countries by government spending on education (COFOG), 2017. Eurostat, European Commission, 16 Sept. 2026, https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/gov_10a_exp/default/table. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-education-spending-cofog/eu-countries?period=2017. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

Eurostat, European Commission. 2026. General government expenditure by function (COFOG), education, total general government expenditure, percentage of GDP (gov_10a_exp). EU countries by government spending on education (COFOG), 2017. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/gov_10a_exp/default/table. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-education-spending-cofog/eu-countries?period=2017.

Harvard

Eurostat, European Commission (2026) General government expenditure by function (COFOG), education, total general government expenditure, percentage of GDP (gov_10a_exp), EU countries by government spending on education (COFOG), 2017 [Dataset]. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/gov_10a_exp/default/table, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-education-spending-cofog/eu-countries?period=2017 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{eurostat_eu_countries_by_government_2017,
  author = {{Eurostat, European Commission}},
  title = {{General government expenditure by function (COFOG), education, total general government expenditure, percentage of GDP (gov\_10a\_exp): EU countries by government spending on education (COFOG), 2017}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/gov_10a_exp/default/table},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-education-spending-cofog/eu-countries?period=2017. Publisher attribution: Eurostat. General government expenditure by function (COFOG), education, total general government expenditure, percentage of GDP (gov\_10a\_exp). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/gov\_10a\_exp/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - Eurostat, European Commission
TI  - General government expenditure by function (COFOG), education, total general government expenditure, percentage of GDP (gov_10a_exp): EU countries by government spending on education (COFOG), 2017
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/16
PB  - Eurostat, European Commission
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/gov_10a_exp/default/table
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-education-spending-cofog/eu-countries?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/government-education-spending-cofog/eu-countries?period=2017.
N1  - Publisher attribution: Eurostat. General government expenditure by function (COFOG), education, total general government expenditure, percentage of GDP (gov_10a_exp). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/gov_10a_exp/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which EU country has the highest government spending on education (COFOG)?

Sweden, with 7.5% of GDP in 2017, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

Which EU country has the lowest government spending on education (COFOG)?

Romania, with 2.9% of GDP in 2017.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Eurostat, European Commission, General government expenditure by function (COFOG), education, total general government expenditure, percentage of GDP (gov_10a_exp). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

EU countries: more rankings