Current health expenditure in United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: Current health expenditure was 5.0% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Current health expenditure in United Arab Emirates, 2000–2023
Source: Global Health Expenditure Database, updated December 12th, 2025, World Health Organization (WHO). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for current health expenditure in United Arab Emirates is 5.0%, measured in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 8.9% on the previous year and up 41.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, current health expenditure in United Arab Emirates peaked at 5.8% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 2.3%, in 2005.
That places United Arab Emirates 127th out of 193 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.
Current health expenditure in United Arab Emirates, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 2.4% | — |
| 2001 | 2.5% | +3.7% |
| 2002 | 2.7% | +9.4% |
| 2003 | 2.6% | -2.6% |
| 2004 | 2.5% | -7.0% |
| 2005 | 2.3% | -5.8% |
| 2006 | 2.3% | +0.2% |
| 2007 | 2.6% | +10.3% |
| 2008 | 2.9% | +14.1% |
| 2009 | 4.0% | +38.3% |
| 2010 | 3.7% | -7.5% |
| 2011 | 3.6% | -4.7% |
| 2012 | 3.3% | -6.5% |
| 2013 | 3.5% | +5.0% |
| 2014 | 3.5% | +0.9% |
| 2015 | 3.5% | -1.9% |
| 2016 | 3.9% | +12.4% |
| 2017 | 4.0% | +2.9% |
| 2018 | 4.1% | +2.2% |
| 2019 | 4.4% | +7.4% |
| 2020 | 5.8% | +32.3% |
| 2021 | 5.3% | -8.9% |
| 2022 | 4.6% | -13.9% |
| 2023 | 5.0% | +8.9% |
United Arab Emirates compared with similar countries
- United Arab Emirates's 5.0% is below the median for high income countries, which is 8.0%, 62% of the median. (64 countries reporting)
- United Arab Emirates's 5.0% is below the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 5.6%, 89% of the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 2.7% | 2.3% | 4.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.8% | 3.3% | 4.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.2% | 4.6% | 5.8% | 4 |
Countries ranked near United Arab Emirates
More health data for United Arab Emirates
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -0.3472 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 2.97 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 308.9 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 287 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 0 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 6.22 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0264 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 3.35 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is current health expenditure in United Arab Emirates?
- Current health expenditure in United Arab Emirates was 5.0% in 2023, according to Global Health Expenditure Database, updated December 12th, 2025, World Health Organization (WHO).
- What is the highest current health expenditure recorded in United Arab Emirates?
- The highest recorded value was 5.8% in 2020.
- What is the lowest current health expenditure recorded in United Arab Emirates?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.3% in 2005.
- How does United Arab Emirates rank for current health expenditure?
- United Arab Emirates ranks 127th out of 193 countries with data for 2023.
- Is current health expenditure rising or falling in United Arab Emirates?
- Over the last ten years it is up 41.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United Arab Emirates data come from?
- The figures come from Global Health Expenditure Database, updated December 12th, 2025, World Health Organization (WHO), published as part of Current health expenditure (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Level of current health expenditure expressed as a percentage of GDP. Estimates of current health expenditures include healthcare goods and services consumed during each year. This indicator does not include capital health expenditures such as buildings, machinery, IT and stocks of vaccines for emergency or outbreaks.