Research and development expenditure in European Union
European Union: Research and development expenditure was 2.3% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Research and development expenditure in European Union, 1996–2023
Source: Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2023, research and development expenditure in European Union stood at 2.3%.
That represents a change of up 1.6% on the previous year and up 8.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, research and development expenditure in European Union peaked at 2.3% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 1.7%, in 1996.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 28 years of available data.
Research and development expenditure in European Union, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 1.7% | — |
| 1997 | 1.7% | +1.9% |
| 1998 | 1.7% | -1.8% |
| 1999 | 1.8% | +4.9% |
| 2000 | 1.8% | -1.3% |
| 2001 | 1.8% | +3.4% |
| 2002 | 1.8% | -1.8% |
| 2003 | 1.8% | +2.0% |
| 2004 | 1.8% | -1.8% |
| 2005 | 1.8% | -0.8% |
| 2006 | 1.8% | +1.1% |
| 2007 | 1.8% | -0.3% |
| 2008 | 1.9% | +4.3% |
| 2009 | 2.0% | +4.9% |
| 2010 | 2.0% | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 2.0% | +2.3% |
| 2012 | 2.1% | +3.1% |
| 2013 | 2.1% | +0.9% |
| 2014 | 2.1% | +1.0% |
| 2015 | 2.1% | -0.0% |
| 2016 | 2.1% | -0.0% |
| 2017 | 2.1% | +1.7% |
| 2018 | 2.2% | +1.5% |
| 2019 | 2.2% | +1.7% |
| 2020 | 2.3% | +3.3% |
| 2021 | 2.2% | -1.8% |
| 2022 | 2.2% | -0.5% |
| 2023 | 2.3% | +1.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 1.7% | 1.7% | 1.8% | 4 |
| 2000s | 1.8% | 1.8% | 2.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.1% | 2.0% | 2.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.3% | 2.2% | 2.3% | 4 |
Countries ranked near European Union
- 1 Israel 6.3% compare
- 2 Republic of Korea 4.9% compare
- 3 Sweden 3.6% compare
- 4 United States 3.4% compare
- 5 Japan 3.4% compare
More science & technology data for European Union
- Scientific and technical journal articles 558,077 (2023)
- Scientific and technical journal articles, per capita 0.0012 units per person (2023)
- Scientific and technical journal articles, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Scientific and technical journal articles, per square kilometre 0.1399 units per square kilometre (2023)
- Digital connectivity composite index 0.6534 standard deviations from the yearly mean (2022)
- Scientific and technical journal articles, annual growth rate -1.87 % change on previous year (2023)
- Researchers in R&D 4,741 per million people (2023)
- Composition of General Services Support Estimate — Agricultural 54.36 Percentage of general services support estimate (2024)
- Technicians in R&D 1,421 per million people (2017)
Frequently asked questions
- What is research and development expenditure in European Union?
- Research and development expenditure in European Union was 2.3% in 2023, according to Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest research and development expenditure recorded in European Union?
- The highest recorded value was 2.3% in 2020.
- What is the lowest research and development expenditure recorded in European Union?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.7% in 1996.
- How does European Union rank for research and development expenditure?
- European Union ranks 2nd out of 2 groups with data for 2023.
- Is research and development expenditure rising or falling in European Union?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this European Union data come from?
- The figures come from Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Research and development expenditure (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Gross domestic expenditures on research and development (R&D), expressed as a percent of GDP. They include both capital and current expenditures in the four main sectors: Business enterprise, Government, Higher education and Private non-profit. R&D covers basic research, applied research, and experimental development.