Netherlands — Education spending
Government Education Spending (% of GDP) for Netherlands, 1970–2022.
Education spending for Netherlands was 5.18% in 2022, according to the latest World Bank data. The series covers 50 years, from 1970 to 2022. The highest recorded value was 6.36% in 1975. The lowest was 4.49% in 1996 (about 1.2× the low point). Across that span the compound annual growth rate works out to -0.35% per year.
Netherlands ranks 51 of 172 economies on this measure (1 = highest), putting it in the top 30%. The median for Europe & Central Asia is 4.59%, so Netherlands sits above it. It peaked in 1975 and has fallen 19% since. Over the last decade (2012–2022) the figure moved down 3%. Within Europe & Central Asia it ranks 16 of 45 economies; Ukraine (5.14%) is just below it. Its sharpest one-year move was up 8% in 1974. That is 2% below this series' own ten-year average.
Data highlights
World ranking. Slipped: 2nd of 31 in 1970 → 11th of 63 in 1980 → 8th of 50 in 1990 → 46th of 116 in 2000 → 32nd of 130 in 2010 → 50th of 157 in 2020 → 42nd of 150 in 2022.
Key figures
Full history — 1970 to 2022
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 5.18% | -0.2 pp |
| 2021 | 5.38% | +0.1 pp |
| 2020 | 5.29% | +0.2 pp |
| 2019 | 5.06% | -0.2 pp |
| 2018 | 5.27% | +0.2 pp |
| 2017 | 5.09% | -0.3 pp |
| 2016 | 5.39% | +0.1 pp |
| 2015 | 5.28% | -0.1 pp |
| 2014 | 5.4% | -0.1 pp |
| 2013 | 5.48% | +0.1 pp |
| 2012 | 5.37% | -0.0 pp |
| 2011 | 5.42% | -0.0 pp |
| 2010 | 5.46% | +0.1 pp |
| 2009 | 5.39% | +0.4 pp |
| 2008 | 5% | +0.1 pp |
| 2007 | 4.86% | -0.2 pp |
| 2006 | 5.02% | -0.1 pp |
| 2005 | 5.09% | +0.0 pp |
| 2004 | 5.04% | +0.0 pp |
| 2003 | 5.02% | +0.2 pp |
| 2002 | 4.79% | +0.1 pp |
| 2001 | 4.69% | +0.1 pp |
| 2000 | 4.58% | +0.1 pp |
| 1999 | 4.5% | -0.0 pp |
| 1998 | 4.53% | +0.0 pp |
| 1996 | 4.49% | -0.1 pp |
| 1995 | 4.57% | -0.1 pp |
| 1994 | 4.66% | -0.1 pp |
| 1993 | 4.75% | -0.4 pp |
| 1991 | 5.15% | -0.1 pp |
| 1990 | 5.22% | -0.2 pp |
| 1988 | 5.46% | -0.4 pp |
| 1987 | 5.89% | +0.3 pp |
| 1986 | 5.55% | +0.1 pp |
| 1985 | 5.46% | +0.4 pp |
| 1984 | 5.08% | -0.4 pp |
| 1983 | 5.49% | -0.2 pp |
| 1982 | 5.69% | -0.1 pp |
| 1981 | 5.74% | -0.1 pp |
| 1980 | 5.88% | -0.2 pp |
| 1979 | 6.08% | -0.1 pp |
| 1978 | 6.18% | +0.0 pp |
| 1977 | 6.17% | -0.1 pp |
| 1976 | 6.3% | -0.1 pp |
| 1975 | 6.36% | +0.0 pp |
| 1974 | 6.33% | +0.5 pp |
| 1973 | 5.83% | -0.5 pp |
| 1972 | 6.31% | -0.0 pp |
| 1971 | 6.32% | +0.1 pp |
| 1970 | 6.21% | — |
Frequently asked questions
What was Netherlands’s Education spending in 1971?
6.32% (1971). The full year-by-year table above lists every published year, most recent first.
Are changes in this series measured in percentage points?
Yes. The series is a share expressed in % of GDP, so year-over-year movements in the Change column are percentage points (pp), not percent.
Is Netherlands’s Education spending growing or shrinking?
Between 1970 and 2022 the series was shrinking overall: -16.6% in total — about 0.3% a year compounded.
Where does this data come from?
World Bank Open Data (CC BY-4.0), indicator SE.XPD.TOTL.GD.ZS. Values are reproduced as published; this page only computes summary statistics such as change, CAGR and extremes.
What are the most recent published figures?
The last five published years: 2022: 5.18%; 2021: 5.38%; 2020: 5.29%; 2019: 5.06%; 2018: 5.27%. Earlier years are in the full-history table below.
Related data
SE.XPD.TOTL.GD.ZS — Government Education Spending (% of GDP). Data licensed under CC BY 4.0. Values are reproduced as published; this page computes the summary statistics (change, CAGR, extremes) from the underlying annual series. View the original dataset on data.worldbank.org.