Health Spending by Country 2026

Executive summary

This index ranks 49 of the world's largest economies by health spending (% of GDP), 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. United States leads at 16.7% (2023); Indonesia is lowest among those ranked at 2.7%. Sweden ranks 7th of 49 at 11.2% (2024). As reference points, the EU stands at 10.5%, the OECD at 12.7% and the world at 10.1%. 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

How much a country spends on health, as a share of GDP, shapes access, outcomes and fiscal pressure. This index ranks countries by total health expenditure as a percentage of GDP (World Bank, compiled from WHO).

The United States is a persistent outlier, spending far more of its economy on health than any peer without correspondingly better outcomes — a fact cited in almost every health-policy debate.

What drives the ranking

Health spending rises with income, ageing populations and medical-technology costs. How it is organised — single-payer, insurance-based, or mixed — strongly affects both the level of spending and what it buys.

High spending does not guarantee good outcomes: several countries achieve top-tier life expectancy at a fraction of US spending, which is why this index pairs naturally with the life-expectancy ranking.

What the data reveals

The field is moderately spread at the top: the leader, United States, at 16.7% is about 2.0× the median of 8.5% across the 49 economies, and 1.36× the second-placed Germany. In other words, health spending (% of GDP) varies widely but without an extreme outlier.

Benchmarked against the OECD average of 12.7%, 1 of the 49 ranked economies (2%) come out higher, and 16 exceed the world figure of 10.1%. This shows how much of the distribution sits above the rich-world benchmark — a quick read on whether health spending (% of GDP) is broadly high or concentrated among a few.

What the data says about Sweden: at 11.2% it ranks 7th of 49 — the top quartile — above the median of 8.5%. That places Sweden among the leaders of the field on health spending (% of GDP).

The spread is wide: the upper quartile of economies clusters around 10.4% and the lower quartile around 5.6%, while the leader United States is 6.2× the lowest-ranked Indonesia (2.7%). The quartile split is a cleaner read on typical health spending (% of GDP) than a simple average, which a few extreme values can distort.

Top 5 vs bottom 5

The five highest and five lowest economies on health spending (% of GDP) 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 health spending (% of GDP) 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 health spending (% of GDP) for United States (the current leader) against Sweden over the past decade; the table below shows the top economies year by year.

By region

Median health spending (% of GDP) by world region among the ranked economies. Regional medians reveal patterns the country ranking alone can hide.

Biggest movers

The largest changes in health spending (% of GDP) over the available window — where the action has been.

Full ranking — 49 economies

Complete ranking by health spending (% of GDP), 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 health spending (% of GDP) 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. Total health expenditure combines public and private spending; the public/private split, not shown here, varies enormously and matters for access and equity. Confidence: High (official multilateral source).

Data dictionary

Frequently asked questions

Glossary

Health Spending (% Of Gdp)

Health expenditure (% of GDP) — 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 — Health expenditure (% of GDP)
• World Health Organization (WHO)
• World Bank Open Data (home)
• IMF World Economic Outlook (comparison)
• OECD Data
• Affärslivet — Sweden Economic Indicators

Related reports & data

• CO2 Emissions by Country 2026
• Renewable Energy by Country 2026
• Life Expectancy by Country 2026
• Education Spending by Country 2026
• Affärslivet Business Climate Index
• Sweden Economic Indicators