Singapore vs South Africa: Annual patent applications

Singapore
2,024
in 2021
South Africa
1,804
in 2021
Singapore rank
19th
South Africa rank
21st

Annual patent applications over time

  • Singapore
  • South Africa
02.0k4.0k6.0k198020002021

How they compare

Singapore currently reports 2,024 against 1,804 in South Africa, a difference of 220.

That makes Singapore's figure about 1.1 times South Africa's.

The two have swapped places 3 times across 32 shared years of data; in 1980 it was South Africa ahead.

Singapore ranks 19th and South Africa ranks 21st of 135 countries.

Across the 5 decades both report, Singapore averaged higher in 2 and South Africa in 3.

Head to head by decade

Decade Singapore South Africa Difference Ahead
1980s 3.8 3,719 3,716 South Africa
1990s 268.4 466.6 198.2 South Africa
2000s 636.5 918.8 282.3 South Africa
2010s 1,346 707 638.9 Singapore
2020s 1,901 1,173 728 Singapore

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher annual patent applications, Singapore or South Africa?
Singapore, at 2,024 against 1,804 in South Africa as of 2021.
What is the difference in annual patent applications between Singapore and South Africa?
220, with Singapore ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Singapore and South Africa?
32 years are reported by both, from 1980 to 2021.
How do Singapore and South Africa rank globally for annual patent applications?
Singapore ranks 19th and South Africa ranks 21st of 135 countries.
Where does this data come from?
Our World in Data, published as Annual patent applications. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Individual pages

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Singapore vs South Africa: Annual patent applications. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 24 August 2026, from https://science-tech.statizoid.com/compare/annual-patent-applications/singapore/south-africa/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://science-tech.statizoid.com/compare/annual-patent-applications/singapore/south-africa/">Singapore vs South Africa: Annual patent applications</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Annual patent applications
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
135 places, 3,804 data points, 1980–2021
Last refreshed