Israel vs United States: Research & development spending as a share of GDP
Israel
6.3%
in 2023
United States
3.4%
in 2023
Israel rank
1st
United States rank
4th
Research & development spending as a share of GDP over time
- Israel
- United States
How they compare
Israel currently reports 6.3% against 3.4% in United States, a difference of 2.9%.
That makes Israel's figure about 1.8 times United States's.
Across all 28 years both countries report, Israel has been ahead every year.
Israel ranks 1st and United States ranks 4th of 116 countries.
Israel has averaged higher in every one of the 4 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Israel | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 2.8% | 2.5% | 0.3% | Israel |
| 2000s | 4.0% | 2.6% | 1.4% | Israel |
| 2010s | 4.4% | 2.8% | 1.6% | Israel |
| 2020s | 6.0% | 3.5% | 2.6% | Israel |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher research & development spending as a share of gdp, Israel or United States?
- Israel, at 6.3% against 3.4% in United States as of 2023.
- What is the difference in research & development spending as a share of gdp between Israel and United States?
- 2.9%, with Israel ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Israel and United States?
- 28 years are reported by both, from 1996 to 2023.
- How do Israel and United States rank globally for research & development spending as a share of gdp?
- Israel ranks 1st and United States ranks 4th of 116 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- UNESCO UIS Stat Bulk Data Download Service, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Research & development spending as a share of GDP. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Includes basic research, applied research, and experimental development.