Fastest-Growing Economies 2026

Executive summary

This index ranks 49 of the world's largest economies by GDP growth, using World Bank Open Data for cross-country comparability, and goes beyond a single snapshot: it shows the nominal figure, a ten-year history, a regional breakdown and the biggest movers. Ireland leads at 12.3% (2025); Finland is lowest among those ranked at 0.2%. Sweden ranks 30th of 49 at 1.5% (2025). As reference points, the EU stands at 1.5%, the OECD at 1.8% and the world at 2.9%. Every figure carries its World Bank series and reference year, and the complete dataset is free to download as CSV and JSON under a CC BY 4.0 licence.

Key findings

Overview

Economic growth — the annual percentage change in real (inflation-adjusted) GDP — is the single most-watched macro number, because compounding small differences in growth produce vast differences in prosperity over a generation. This index ranks economies by their most recent annual real GDP growth.

Growth leadership rotates. Emerging economies with room to catch up typically grow faster than mature ones; a single year's figure is best read alongside the multi-year trend shown below, since one-off rebounds, commodity booms and statistical base effects can flatter a single year.

What drives the ranking

Real GDP growth is driven by growth in the labour force, in the capital stock and in productivity (how efficiently the two are combined). Fast-growers are usually catching up to the technological frontier; mature economies grow more slowly but from a much higher base.

Short-run growth also swings with the global cycle, interest rates and commodity prices — which is why the fastest-growing economy in any single year is often a small or recovering one, not a large stable one.

What the data reveals

The field is highly concentrated at the top: the leader, Ireland, at 12.3% is about 6.0× the median of 2.1% across the 49 economies, and 1.54× the second-placed Viet Nam. In other words, GDP growth is dominated by a handful of standouts.

Benchmarked against the OECD average of 1.8%, 28 of the 49 ranked economies (57%) come out higher, and 17 exceed the world figure of 2.9%. This shows how much of the distribution sits above the rich-world benchmark — a quick read on whether GDP growth is broadly high or concentrated among a few.

What the data says about Sweden: at 1.5% it ranks 30th of 49 — the lower half — below the median of 2.1%. That places Sweden in the lower part of the field on GDP growth.

The spread is wide: the upper quartile of economies clusters around 4.0% and the lower quartile around 1.0%, while the leader Ireland is 71.1× the lowest-ranked Finland (0.2%). The quartile split is a cleaner read on typical GDP growth than a simple average, which a few extreme values can distort.

Top 5 vs bottom 5

The five highest and five lowest economies on GDP growth side by side — the clearest snapshot of the range across the 49 ranked economies.

Limitations & notes

This ranking uses the latest year each economy reports to the World Bank; reporting lags differ, so some countries carry data a year or two older than others (see the year column in the full table). It measures GDP growth as the source defines it — not its causes, quality, or wider welfare implications, and not any single 'best' outcome. Every figure is an official World Bank series, not an Affärslivet estimate; the complete dataset with per-country years and sources is free to download and reproduce below.

How it has changed over time

The chart tracks GDP growth for Ireland (the current leader) against Sweden over the past decade; the table below shows the top economies year by year.

By region

Median GDP growth by world region among the ranked economies. Regional medians reveal patterns the country ranking alone can hide.

Biggest movers

The largest changes in GDP growth over the available window — where the action has been.

Full ranking — 49 economies

Complete ranking by GDP growth, most recent World Bank data, with world region. Region aggregates (EU, OECD, World) appear in the At-a-glance box as reference points.

Scoreboard (machine-readable data)

Every headline indicator with its value, period, source and confidence. Free to reuse under CC BY 4.0.

↓ CSV · ↓ JSON

Methodology & verification

Economies are ranked by GDP growth using the World Bank Open Data API, which harmonises national statistics for cross-country comparison. Each value is the most recent year available for that economy, shown alongside the figure; the trend table uses each economy's reported history. Economies with no reported value are omitted rather than estimated. Region aggregates (EU, euro area, OECD, World) are reference points, not ranked. A single year of growth can be distorted by base effects (a rebound from a prior contraction), commodity windfalls or data revisions. The multi-year table below gives a truer picture of sustained performance. Confidence: High (official multilateral source).

Data dictionary

Frequently asked questions

Glossary

Gdp Growth

GDP growth (annual %) — as reported by the World Bank. ↗

World Bank Open Data

A free, authoritative database of harmonised economic indicators for every country. ↗

Purchasing-power parity (PPP)

A conversion that equalises the price of a comparable basket of goods across countries, so output and incomes can be compared in real terms rather than at market exchange rates. ↗

Nominal (current US$)

A value converted at prevailing market exchange rates and not adjusted for differences in price levels. ↗

GNI per capita

Gross national income per person — like GDP per capita but including net income earned abroad; useful where cross-border corporate flows are large. ↗

Reference year

The year a figure applies to; it can differ across countries because national statistics are published on different schedules. ↗

Region aggregate

A World Bank grouping (e.g. European Union, OECD, World) whose value is a weighted regional total or average, shown here for reference rather than ranked. ↗

Sources

• World Bank Open Data — GDP growth (annual %)
• World Bank Open Data (home)
• IMF World Economic Outlook (comparison)
• OECD Data
• Affärslivet — Sweden Economic Indicators

Related reports & data

• Largest Economies in the World 2026
• Richest Countries in the World 2026
• Inflation Rate by Country 2026
• Unemployment Rate by Country 2026
• Affärslivet Business Climate Index
• Sweden Economic Indicators