Annual patent applications in Singapore
Singapore: Annual patent applications was 2,024 in 2021. ◆ Volatile
Annual patent applications in Singapore, 1980–2021
Source: World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Singapore recorded 2,024 for annual patent applications in 2021. That is the highest value across all 32 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 13.8% on the previous year and up 91.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, annual patent applications in Singapore peaked at 2,024 in 2021 and was at its lowest, 2, in 1980.
Singapore ranks 19th of 135 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Annual patent applications in Singapore, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 2 | — |
| 1981 | 4 | +100.0% |
| 1983 | 5 | +25.0% |
| 1984 | 4 | -20.0% |
| 1985 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 145 | +3525.0% |
| 1996 | 224 | +54.5% |
| 1997 | 288 | +28.6% |
| 1998 | 311 | +8.0% |
| 1999 | 374 | +20.3% |
| 2000 | 516 | +38.0% |
| 2001 | 524 | +1.6% |
| 2002 | 624 | +19.1% |
| 2003 | 626 | +0.3% |
| 2004 | 641 | +2.4% |
| 2005 | 569 | -11.2% |
| 2006 | 626 | +10.0% |
| 2007 | 696 | +11.2% |
| 2008 | 793 | +13.9% |
| 2009 | 750 | -5.4% |
| 2010 | 895 | +19.3% |
| 2011 | 1,056 | +18.0% |
| 2012 | 1,081 | +2.4% |
| 2013 | 1,143 | +5.7% |
| 2014 | 1,303 | +14.0% |
| 2015 | 1,469 | +12.7% |
| 2016 | 1,601 | +9.0% |
| 2017 | 1,609 | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 1,575 | -2.1% |
| 2019 | 1,727 | +9.7% |
| 2020 | 1,778 | +3.0% |
| 2021 | 2,024 | +13.8% |
Singapore compared with similar countries
- Singapore's 2,024 is above the median for high income countries, which is 397.5, 5.1× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Singapore's 2,024 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 875, 2.3× the median. (18 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Annual patent applications in Singapore changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | +3525.0% | 4 | 145 |
| 1981 | +100.0% | 2 | 4 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 3.8 | 2 | 5 | 5 |
| 1990s | 268.4 | 145 | 374 | 5 |
| 2000s | 636.5 | 516 | 793 | 10 |
| 2010s | 1,346 | 895 | 1,727 | 10 |
| 2020s | 1,901 | 1,778 | 2,024 | 2 |
Countries ranked near Singapore
More science & technology data for Singapore
- Mobile landline subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Mobile landline subscriptions, gaps filled 170.78 (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per capita 1.65 units per person (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, gaps filled 9.96 million (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per square kilometre 13,965 units per square kilometre (2023)
- Mobile landline subscriptions, annual growth rate -1.4 % change on previous year (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, annual growth rate -0.6582 % change on previous year (2024)
- Scientific and technical journal articles 11,894 (2023)
- Scientific and technical journal articles, per capita 0.002 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is annual patent applications in Singapore?
- Annual patent applications in Singapore was 2,024 in 2021, according to World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest annual patent applications recorded in Singapore?
- The highest recorded value was 2,024 in 2021.
- What is the lowest annual patent applications recorded in Singapore?
- The lowest recorded value was 2 in 1980.
- How does Singapore rank for annual patent applications?
- Singapore ranks 19th out of 135 countries with data for 2021.
- Is annual patent applications rising or falling in Singapore?
- Over the last ten years it is up 91.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Singapore data come from?
- The figures come from World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual patent applications. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 32 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).