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 2017, at 3.4% of GDP. Romania had the lowest, at 0.51% of GDP. The median was 1.25% of GDP and the figure for the European Union (27) was 2.14% of GDP. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

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Highest3.4Sweden
Lowest0.51Romania
Median1.2527 EU countries
European Union (27)2.14History

Map of EU countries, 2017

Austria: 3.07 % of GDPBelgium: 2.68 % of GDPBulgaria: 0.74 % of GDPCyprus: 0.54 % of GDPCzechia: 1.75 % of GDPGermany: 2.98 % of GDPDenmark: 2.94 % of GDPEstonia: 1.25 % of GDPSpain: 1.2 % of GDPFinland: 2.75 % of GDPFrance: 2.2 % of GDPGreece: 1.15 % of GDPCroatia: 0.84 % of GDPHungary: 1.31 % of GDPIreland: 1.21 % of GDPItaly: 1.36 % of GDPLithuania: 0.9 % of GDPLuxembourg: 1.24 % of GDPLatvia: 0.53 % of GDPMalta: 0.53 % of GDPNetherlands: 2.14 % of GDPPoland: 1.03 % of GDPPortugal: 1.32 % of GDPRomania: 0.51 % of GDPSweden: 3.4 % of GDPSlovenia: 1.88 % of GDPSlovakia: 0.88 % of GDP
  • Under 0.85
  • 0.85 to 1.2
  • 1.2 to 1.3
  • 1.3 to 2.6
  • 2.6 and over
% of GDP, 2017. 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, 2017

Sweden: 3.4 % of GDPSweden3.4Austria: 3.07 % of GDPAustria3.07Germany: 2.98 % of GDPGermany2.98Denmark: 2.94 % of GDPDenmark2.94Finland: 2.75 % of GDPFinland2.75Belgium: 2.68 % of GDPBelgium2.68France: 2.2 % of GDPFrance2.2Netherlands: 2.14 % of GDPNetherlands2.14Slovenia: 1.88 % of GDPSlovenia1.88Czechia: 1.75 % of GDPCzechia1.75Italy: 1.36 % of GDPItaly1.36Portugal: 1.32 % of GDPPortugal1.32Hungary: 1.31 % of GDPHungary1.31Estonia: 1.25 % of GDPEstonia1.25Luxembourg: 1.24 % of GDPLuxembourg1.24Ireland: 1.21 % of GDPIreland1.21Spain: 1.2 % of GDPSpain1.2Greece: 1.15 % of GDPGreece1.15Poland: 1.03 % of GDPPoland1.03Lithuania: 0.9 % of GDPLithuania0.9Slovakia: 0.88 % of GDPSlovakia0.88Croatia: 0.84 % of GDPCroatia0.84Bulgaria: 0.74 % of GDPBulgaria0.74Cyprus: 0.54 % of GDPCyprus0.54Latvia: 0.53 % of GDPLatvia0.53Malta: 0.53 % of GDPMalta0.53Romania: 0.51 % of GDPRomania0.51Sweden: 3.4 % of GDPSweden3.4Austria: 3.07 % of GDPAustria3.07Germany: 2.98 % of GDPGermany2.98Denmark: 2.94 % of GDPDenmark2.94Finland: 2.75 % of GDPFinland2.75Belgium: 2.68 % of GDPBelgium2.68France: 2.2 % of GDPFrance2.2Netherlands: 2.14 % of GDPNetherlands2.14Slovenia: 1.88 % of GDPSlovenia1.88Czechia: 1.75 % of GDPCzechia1.75Italy: 1.36 % of GDPItaly1.36Portugal: 1.32 % of GDPPortugal1.32Hungary: 1.31 % of GDPHungary1.31Estonia: 1.25 % of GDPEstonia1.25Luxembourg: 1.24 % of GDPLuxembourg1.24Ireland: 1.21 % of GDPIreland1.21Spain: 1.2 % of GDPSpain1.2Greece: 1.15 % of GDPGreece1.15Poland: 1.03 % of GDPPoland1.03Lithuania: 0.9 % of GDPLithuania0.9Slovakia: 0.88 % of GDPSlovakia0.88Croatia: 0.84 % of GDPCroatia0.84Bulgaria: 0.74 % of GDPBulgaria0.74Cyprus: 0.54 % of GDPCyprus0.54Latvia: 0.53 % of GDPLatvia0.53Malta: 0.53 % of GDPMalta0.53Romania: 0.51 % of GDPRomania0.51
% 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 countries2017
% of GDP		Change on 2016
1Sweden3.4+0.14 pts
2Austria3.07-0.06 pts
3Germany2.98+0.1 pts
4Denmark2.94-0.16 pts
5Finland2.750 pts
6Belgium2.68+0.15 pts
7France2.2-0.02 pts
8Netherlands2.14+0.02 pts
9Slovenia1.88-0.15 pts
10Czechia1.75+0.1 pts
11Italy1.360 pts
12Portugal1.32+0.04 pts
13Hungary1.31+0.13 pts
14Estonia1.25+0.03 pts
15Luxembourg1.24-0.03 pts
16Ireland1.21+0.06 pts
17Spain1.2+0.02 pts
18Greece1.15+0.14 pts
19Poland1.03+0.07 pts
20Lithuania0.9+0.06 pts
21Slovakia0.88+0.09 pts
22Croatia0.84-0.01 pts
23Bulgaria0.74-0.03 pts
24Cyprus0.54+0.02 pts
25Latvia0.53+0.08 pts
25Malta0.53-0.01 pts
27Romania0.51+0.02 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, 2017) [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, 2017. 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=2017. 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, 2017. 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=2017.

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, 2017 [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=2017 (Accessed: 18 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{eurostat_eu_countries_by_r_2017,
  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, 2017}},
  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=2017. 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, 2017
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=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/18
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/rd-expenditure-gdp-share/eu-countries?period=2017.
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 3.4% of GDP in 2017, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

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

Romania, with 0.51% 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, 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