Annual patent applications per million people in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka: Annual patent applications per million people was 12.01 applications per million people in 2021. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2021)
12.01 applications per million people
Change on year
down 25.5%
World rank
70th
of 135 countries
All-time high
16.33 applications per million people
in 2019
All-time low
0.3974 applications per million people
in 1981
Years of data
40
1980–2021

Annual patent applications per million people in Sri Lanka, 1980–2021

0510151980200020211980: 0.741 applications per million people1981: 0.397 applications per million people1982: 0.785 applications per million people1983: 1 applications per million people1984: 1 applications per million people1985: 1.8 applications per million people1986: 1.7 applications per million people1987: 2.6 applications per million people1988: 1.6 applications per million people1989: 1.7 applications per million people1990: 1.4 applications per million people1991: 2 applications per million people1992: 2.2 applications per million people1993: 2.9 applications per million people1994: 2.1 applications per million people1995: 4.3 applications per million people1996: 2.8 applications per million people1997: 4.4 applications per million people1998: 2.9 applications per million people1999: 6.3 applications per million people2000: 3.7 applications per million people2001: 6.1 applications per million people2002: 6.2 applications per million people2003: 4.8 applications per million people2004: 6 applications per million people2005: 7.4 applications per million people2006: 7.5 applications per million people2007: 7.4 applications per million people2008: 9.7 applications per million people2009: 9.7 applications per million people2010: 10.8 applications per million people2011: 9.2 applications per million people2013: 15.9 applications per million people2015: 10.4 applications per million people2016: 13.2 applications per million people2017: 12.9 applications per million people2018: 15.8 applications per million people2019: 16.3 applications per million people2020: 16.1 applications per million people2021: 12 applications per million people

Source: World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), via World Bank (2026); United Nations Population Division, national statistical offices, and Eurostat, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World i. Measured in applications per million people.

Analysis

In 2021, annual patent applications per million people in Sri Lanka stood at 12.01 applications per million people.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 25.5% on the previous year and up 30.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, annual patent applications per million people in Sri Lanka peaked at 16.33 applications per million people in 2019 and was at its lowest, 0.3974 applications per million people, in 1981.

That places Sri Lanka 70th out of 135 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the middle of the range.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 1.34 applications per million people 0.3974 applications per million people 2.58 applications per million people 10
1990s 3.13 applications per million people 1.41 applications per million people 6.28 applications per million people 10
2000s 6.85 applications per million people 3.68 applications per million people 9.74 applications per million people 10
2010s 13.08 applications per million people 9.23 applications per million people 16.33 applications per million people 8
2020s 14.06 applications per million people 12.01 applications per million people 16.1 applications per million people 2

Countries ranked near Sri Lanka

  1. 67 Kyrgyzstan 12.11 applications per million people compare
  2. 68 Thailand 12.09 applications per million people compare
  3. 69 Uzbekistan 12.06 applications per million people compare
  4. 71 Azerbaijan 11.74 applications per million people compare
  5. 72 Vietnam 10.77 applications per million people compare
  6. 73 Bahamas 10.24 applications per million people compare

See the full ranking of 135 places →

More science & technology data for Sri Lanka

All data for Sri Lanka →

Frequently asked questions

What is annual patent applications per million people in Sri Lanka?
Annual patent applications per million people in Sri Lanka was 12.01 applications per million people in 2021, according to World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), via World Bank (2026); United Nations Population Division, national statistical offices, and Eurostat, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World i.
What is the highest annual patent applications per million people recorded in Sri Lanka?
The highest recorded value was 16.33 applications per million people in 2019.
What is the lowest annual patent applications per million people recorded in Sri Lanka?
The lowest recorded value was 0.3974 applications per million people in 1981.
How does Sri Lanka rank for annual patent applications per million people?
Sri Lanka ranks 70th out of 135 countries with data for 2021.
Is annual patent applications per million people rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
Over the last ten years it is up 30.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Sri Lanka data come from?
The figures come from World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), via World Bank (2026); United Nations Population Division, national statistical offices, and Eurostat, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World i, published as part of Annual patent applications per million people. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 40 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Annual patent applications per million people
Unit
applications per million people
Source
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), via World Bank (2026); United Nations Population Division, national statistical offices, and Eurostat, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World i
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
135 places, 3,804 data points, 1980–2021
Last refreshed