Japan vs Switzerland: Research & development spending as a share of GDP
Japan
3.4%
in 2023
Switzerland
3.2%
in 2023
Japan rank
5th
Switzerland rank
8th
Research & development spending as a share of GDP over time
- Japan
- Switzerland
How they compare
Japan currently reports 3.4% against 3.2% in Switzerland, a difference of 0.2%.
That makes Japan's figure about 1.1 times Switzerland's.
Across all 10 years both countries report, Japan has been ahead every year.
Japan ranks 5th and Switzerland ranks 8th of 116 countries.
Japan has averaged higher in every one of the 4 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Japan | Switzerland | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 2.6% | 2.4% | 0.3% | Japan |
| 2000s | 3.0% | 2.5% | 0.5% | Japan |
| 2010s | 3.2% | 3.0% | 0.2% | Japan |
| 2020s | 3.4% | 3.2% | 0.1% | Japan |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher research & development spending as a share of gdp, Japan or Switzerland?
- Japan, at 3.4% against 3.2% in Switzerland as of 2023.
- What is the difference in research & development spending as a share of gdp between Japan and Switzerland?
- 0.2%, with Japan ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and Switzerland?
- 10 years are reported by both, from 1996 to 2023.
- How do Japan and Switzerland rank globally for research & development spending as a share of gdp?
- Japan ranks 5th and Switzerland ranks 8th 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.