Data / Rankings / R&D expenditure share of GDP / EU countries

EU countries by R&D expenditure share of GDP

Sweden had the highest R&D expenditure share of GDP of 27 EU countries in 2015, at 3.24% of GDP. Cyprus had the lowest, at 0.48% of GDP. The median was 1.25% of GDP and the figure for the European Union (27) was 2.1% of GDP. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

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Highest3.24Sweden
Lowest0.48Cyprus
Median1.2527 EU countries
European Union (27)2.1History

Map of EU countries, 2015

Austria: 3.07 % of GDPBelgium: 2.43 % of GDPBulgaria: 0.95 % of GDPCyprus: 0.48 % of GDPCzechia: 1.91 % of GDPGermany: 2.87 % of GDPDenmark: 3.06 % of GDPEstonia: 1.44 % of GDPSpain: 1.21 % of GDPFinland: 2.89 % of GDPFrance: 2.22 % of GDPGreece: 0.97 % of GDPCroatia: 0.82 % of GDPHungary: 1.34 % of GDPIreland: 1.14 % of GDPItaly: 1.33 % of GDPLithuania: 1.04 % of GDPLuxembourg: 1.25 % of GDPLatvia: 0.64 % of GDPMalta: 0.7 % of GDPNetherlands: 2.12 % of GDPPoland: 1 % of GDPPortugal: 1.25 % of GDPRomania: 0.49 % of GDPSweden: 3.24 % of GDPSlovenia: 2.22 % of GDPSlovakia: 1.15 % of GDP
  • Under 0.95
  • 0.95 to 1.2
  • 1.2 to 1.4
  • 1.4 to 2.4
  • 2.4 and over
% of GDP, 2015. Source: Eurostat, Gross domestic expenditure on R&D (GERD), all sectors, percentage of GDP (rd_e_gerdtot). Boundaries: Natural Earth (public domain).

All EU countries, 2015

Sweden: 3.24 % of GDPSweden3.24Austria: 3.07 % of GDPAustria3.07Denmark: 3.06 % of GDPDenmark3.06Finland: 2.89 % of GDPFinland2.89Germany: 2.87 % of GDPGermany2.87Belgium: 2.43 % of GDPBelgium2.43France: 2.22 % of GDPFrance2.22Slovenia: 2.22 % of GDPSlovenia2.22Netherlands: 2.12 % of GDPNetherlands2.12Czechia: 1.91 % of GDPCzechia1.91Estonia: 1.44 % of GDPEstonia1.44Hungary: 1.34 % of GDPHungary1.34Italy: 1.33 % of GDPItaly1.33Luxembourg: 1.25 % of GDPLuxembourg1.25Portugal: 1.25 % of GDPPortugal1.25Spain: 1.21 % of GDPSpain1.21Slovakia: 1.15 % of GDPSlovakia1.15Ireland: 1.14 % of GDPIreland1.14Lithuania: 1.04 % of GDPLithuania1.04Poland: 1 % of GDPPoland1Greece: 0.97 % of GDPGreece0.97Bulgaria: 0.95 % of GDPBulgaria0.95Croatia: 0.82 % of GDPCroatia0.82Malta: 0.7 % of GDPMalta0.7Latvia: 0.64 % of GDPLatvia0.64Romania: 0.49 % of GDPRomania0.49Cyprus: 0.48 % of GDPCyprus0.48Sweden: 3.24 % of GDPSweden3.24Austria: 3.07 % of GDPAustria3.07Denmark: 3.06 % of GDPDenmark3.06Finland: 2.89 % of GDPFinland2.89Germany: 2.87 % of GDPGermany2.87Belgium: 2.43 % of GDPBelgium2.43France: 2.22 % of GDPFrance2.22Slovenia: 2.22 % of GDPSlovenia2.22Netherlands: 2.12 % of GDPNetherlands2.12Czechia: 1.91 % of GDPCzechia1.91Estonia: 1.44 % of GDPEstonia1.44Hungary: 1.34 % of GDPHungary1.34Italy: 1.33 % of GDPItaly1.33Luxembourg: 1.25 % of GDPLuxembourg1.25Portugal: 1.25 % of GDPPortugal1.25Spain: 1.21 % of GDPSpain1.21Slovakia: 1.15 % of GDPSlovakia1.15Ireland: 1.14 % of GDPIreland1.14Lithuania: 1.04 % of GDPLithuania1.04Poland: 1 % of GDPPoland1Greece: 0.97 % of GDPGreece0.97Bulgaria: 0.95 % of GDPBulgaria0.95Croatia: 0.82 % of GDPCroatia0.82Malta: 0.7 % of GDPMalta0.7Latvia: 0.64 % of GDPLatvia0.64Romania: 0.49 % of GDPRomania0.49Cyprus: 0.48 % of GDPCyprus0.48
% of GDP. Source: Eurostat, Gross domestic expenditure on R&D (GERD), all sectors, percentage of GDP (rd_e_gerdtot). Retrieved 2026-10-18.

Full ranking

RankEU countries2015
% of GDP		Change on 2014
1Sweden3.24+0.12 pts
2Austria3.07-0.04 pts
3Denmark3.06+0.14 pts
4Finland2.89-0.27 pts
5Germany2.87+0.05 pts
6Belgium2.43+0.07 pts
7France2.220 pts
7Slovenia2.22-0.17 pts
9Netherlands2.12-0.03 pts
10Czechia1.91-0.03 pts
11Estonia1.44+0.03 pts
12Hungary1.340 pts
13Italy1.330 pts
14Luxembourg1.25+0.03 pts
14Portugal1.25-0.04 pts
16Spain1.21-0.02 pts
17Slovakia1.15+0.28 pts
18Ireland1.14-0.34 pts
19Lithuania1.04+0.01 pts
20Poland1+0.05 pts
21Greece0.97+0.12 pts
22Bulgaria0.95+0.16 pts
23Croatia0.82+0.05 pts
24Malta0.7+0.02 pts
25Latvia0.64-0.07 pts
26Romania0.49+0.11 pts
27Cyprus0.48-0.03 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Gross domestic expenditure on research and experimental development (GERD) by all sectors (businesses, government, higher education and private non-profit institutions) as a percentage of gross domestic product. Regions are measured against their own regional GDP.

Measured following the OECD Frascati Manual. The EU set a target of 3% of GDP. Eurostat estimates the EU total, and some national years are estimated or provisional.

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. Gross domestic expenditure on R&D (GERD), all sectors, percentage of GDP (rd_e_gerdtot). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/rd_e_gerdtot/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-18.

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). Gross domestic expenditure on R&D (GERD), all sectors, percentage of GDP (rd_e_gerdtot) (EU countries by R&D expenditure share of GDP, 2015) [Data set]. Retrieved October 18, 2026, from https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/rd_e_gerdtot/default/table

MLA 9

Gross domestic expenditure on R&D (GERD), all sectors, percentage of GDP (rd_e_gerdtot), EU countries by R&D expenditure share of GDP, 2015. Eurostat, European Commission, 29 Sept. 2026, https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/rd_e_gerdtot/default/table. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/rd-expenditure-gdp-share/eu-countries?period=2015. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

Eurostat, European Commission. 2026. Gross domestic expenditure on R&D (GERD), all sectors, percentage of GDP (rd_e_gerdtot). EU countries by R&D expenditure share of GDP, 2015. Dataset. Accessed October 18, 2026. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/rd_e_gerdtot/default/table. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/rd-expenditure-gdp-share/eu-countries?period=2015.

Harvard

Eurostat, European Commission (2026) Gross domestic expenditure on R&D (GERD), all sectors, percentage of GDP (rd_e_gerdtot), EU countries by R&D expenditure share of GDP, 2015 [Dataset]. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/rd_e_gerdtot/default/table, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/rd-expenditure-gdp-share/eu-countries?period=2015 (Accessed: 18 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{eurostat_eu_countries_by_r_2015,
  author = {{Eurostat, European Commission}},
  title = {{Gross domestic expenditure on R\&D (GERD), all sectors, percentage of GDP (rd\_e\_gerdtot): EU countries by R\&D expenditure share of GDP, 2015}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/rd_e_gerdtot/default/table},
  urldate = {2026-10-18},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/rd-expenditure-gdp-share/eu-countries?period=2015. Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Gross domestic expenditure on R\&D (GERD), all sectors, percentage of GDP (rd\_e\_gerdtot). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/rd\_e\_gerdtot/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-18.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - Eurostat, European Commission
TI  - Gross domestic expenditure on R&D (GERD), all sectors, percentage of GDP (rd_e_gerdtot): EU countries by R&D expenditure share of GDP, 2015
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/29
PB  - Eurostat, European Commission
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/rd_e_gerdtot/default/table
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/rd-expenditure-gdp-share/eu-countries?period=2015
Y2  - 2026/10/18
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/rd-expenditure-gdp-share/eu-countries?period=2015.
N1  - Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Gross domestic expenditure on R&D (GERD), all sectors, percentage of GDP (rd_e_gerdtot). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/rd_e_gerdtot/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-18.
ER  -
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Questions

Which EU country has the highest R&D expenditure share of GDP?

Sweden, with 3.24% of GDP in 2015, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

Which EU country has the lowest R&D expenditure share of GDP?

Cyprus, with 0.48% of GDP in 2015.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Eurostat, European Commission, Gross domestic expenditure on R&D (GERD), all sectors, percentage of GDP (rd_e_gerdtot). Retrieved 2026-10-18.

R&D expenditure share of GDP: other rankings

EU countries: more rankings