Government health spending as a share of GDP in Ireland
Ireland: Government health spending as a share of GDP was 4.7% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Government health spending as a share of GDP in Ireland, 1930–2025
Source: OECD (2026); OECD (1993); Lindert (1994) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for government health spending as a share of gdp in Ireland is 4.7%, measured in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 5.6% on the previous year and down 7.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government health spending as a share of gdp in Ireland peaked at 8.1% in 2009 and was at its lowest, 0.6%, in 1930.
That places Ireland 44th out of 59 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 67 years of available data.
Government health spending as a share of GDP in Ireland, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1930 | 0.6% | — |
| 1960 | 2.5% | +297.6% |
| 1961 | 2.4% | -2.3% |
| 1962 | 2.4% | +1.6% |
| 1963 | 2.6% | +5.7% |
| 1964 | 2.7% | +5.3% |
| 1965 | 2.7% | +0.2% |
| 1966 | 3.0% | +9.8% |
| 1967 | 3.3% | +8.8% |
| 1968 | 3.0% | -7.3% |
| 1969 | 3.2% | +5.4% |
| 1970 | 3.7% | +17.3% |
| 1971 | 4.0% | +6.4% |
| 1972 | 4.2% | +5.8% |
| 1973 | 4.5% | +8.0% |
| 1974 | 5.0% | +10.0% |
| 1975 | 5.5% | +10.3% |
| 1976 | 5.3% | -4.1% |
| 1977 | 4.9% | -6.6% |
| 1978 | 5.2% | +5.5% |
| 1979 | 5.6% | +7.4% |
| 1980 | 6.1% | +8.3% |
| 1981 | 5.8% | -3.9% |
| 1982 | 5.7% | -2.2% |
| 1983 | 5.6% | -1.7% |
| 1984 | 5.3% | -5.3% |
| 1985 | 5.2% | -1.2% |
| 1986 | 5.1% | -2.7% |
| 1987 | 4.8% | -6.7% |
| 1988 | 4.4% | -6.6% |
| 1989 | 4.3% | -3.9% |
| 1990 | 4.1% | -3.6% |
| 1991 | 4.5% | +8.7% |
| 1992 | 4.7% | +5.3% |
| 1993 | 4.8% | +1.4% |
| 1994 | 4.7% | -1.9% |
| 1995 | 4.5% | -3.2% |
| 1996 | 4.4% | -3.6% |
| 1997 | 4.4% | -0.1% |
| 1998 | 4.2% | -3.0% |
| 1999 | 4.2% | -0.4% |
| 2000 | 4.6% | +8.5% |
| 2001 | 5.0% | +9.6% |
| 2002 | 5.3% | +5.1% |
| 2003 | 5.5% | +4.7% |
| 2004 | 5.7% | +3.2% |
| 2005 | 6.0% | +5.8% |
| 2006 | 5.8% | -2.9% |
| 2007 | 6.2% | +5.7% |
| 2008 | 7.2% | +17.0% |
| 2009 | 8.1% | +12.0% |
| 2010 | 8.0% | -1.1% |
| 2011 | 7.6% | -5.7% |
| 2012 | 7.6% | -0.0% |
| 2013 | 7.1% | -5.5% |
| 2014 | 6.6% | -7.7% |
| 2015 | 5.1% | -22.8% |
| 2016 | 5.3% | +4.0% |
| 2017 | 5.0% | -5.2% |
| 2018 | 5.0% | -1.2% |
| 2019 | 4.9% | -1.4% |
| 2020 | 5.4% | +11.1% |
| 2021 | 5.0% | -8.7% |
| 2022 | 4.6% | -6.9% |
| 2023 | 4.9% | +6.4% |
| 2024 | 5.0% | +2.1% |
| 2025 | 4.7% | -5.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.6% | 1 |
| 1960s | 2.8% | 2.4% | 3.3% | 10 |
| 1970s | 4.8% | 3.7% | 5.6% | 10 |
| 1980s | 5.2% | 4.3% | 6.1% | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.4% | 4.1% | 4.8% | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.9% | 4.6% | 8.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 6.2% | 4.9% | 8.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.9% | 4.6% | 5.4% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More health data for Ireland
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -4.76 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.89 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,122 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 20 deaths (2100)
- Population ages 0-14, female, annual growth rate -0.8894 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female, per capita 0.0884 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, annual growth rate -0.8627 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, per capita 0.0926 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government health spending as a share of gdp in Ireland?
- Government health spending as a share of gdp in Ireland was 4.7% in 2025, according to OECD (2026); OECD (1993); Lindert (1994) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest government health spending as a share of gdp recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 8.1% in 2009.
- What is the lowest government health spending as a share of gdp recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.6% in 1930.
- How does Ireland rank for government health spending as a share of gdp?
- Ireland ranks 44th out of 59 countries with data for 2025.
- Is government health spending as a share of gdp rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from OECD (2026); OECD (1993); Lindert (1994) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Government health spending as a share of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Public health expenditure divided by gross domestic product, expressed as a percentage.