Italy vs Spain: Research & development spending as a share of GDP

Italy

1.4%

in 2023

Spain

1.5%

in 2023

Italy rank

33rd

Spain rank

30th

Research & development spending as a share of GDP over time

Spain currently reports 1.5% against 1.4% in Italy, a difference of 0.1%.

That makes Spain's figure about 1.1 times Italy's.

The two have swapped places 3 times across 28 shared years of data; in 1996 it was Italy ahead.

Italy ranks 33rd and Spain ranks 30th of 116 countries.

Indicator: Research & development spending as a share of GDP
Unit: % of GDP
Source: UNESCO UIS Stat Bulk Data Download Service, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 116 places, 2,375 data points, 1996–2024
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

Includes basic research, applied research, and experimental development.