Compensation of employees in Portugal

Portugal: Compensation of employees was 21.1% in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
21.1%
Change on year
up 0.8%
World rank
93rd
of 155 countries
All-time high
31.4%
in 2000
All-time low
19.2%
in 1986
Years of data
46
1978–2023

Compensation of employees in Portugal, 1978–2023

0102030197820002023

Source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of expense.

Analysis

Portugal recorded 21.1% for compensation of employees in 2023.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.8% on the previous year and down 2.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, compensation of employees in Portugal peaked at 31.4% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 19.2%, in 1986.

Portugal ranks 93rd of 155 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 46 years of available data.

Compensation of employees in Portugal, year by year

Annual values for Compensation of employees (% of expense) in Portugal, 1978 to 2023.
Year % of expense Change
1978 26.3%
1979 26.1% -0.6%
1980 25.6% -1.8%
1981 23.9% -6.8%
1982 24.6% +3.0%
1983 21.5% -12.7%
1984 22.7% +5.9%
1985 19.8% -12.8%
1986 19.2% -3.5%
1987 21.0% +9.4%
1988 22.5% +7.2%
1989 28.8% +28.3%
1990 29.0% +0.6%
1991 29.7% +2.5%
1992 30.5% +2.7%
1993 30.1% -1.4%
1994 30.3% +0.5%
1995 28.8% -4.9%
1996 29.2% +1.3%
1997 30.2% +3.5%
1998 30.0% -0.6%
1999 30.5% +1.7%
2000 31.4% +3.0%
2001 30.8% -2.0%
2002 31.1% +1.1%
2003 30.5% -2.2%
2004 29.9% -1.8%
2005 29.7% -0.6%
2006 28.4% -4.4%
2007 27.3% -3.8%
2008 26.3% -4.0%
2009 25.8% -1.9%
2010 24.7% -4.0%
2011 22.8% -7.7%
2012 20.7% -9.3%
2013 21.6% +4.2%
2014 19.7% -8.7%
2015 20.4% +3.4%
2016 21.5% +5.8%
2017 20.8% -3.2%
2018 21.6% +3.8%
2019 22.0% +1.5%
2020 20.9% -4.8%
2021 21.3% +1.8%
2022 20.9% -1.8%
2023 21.1% +0.8%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 26.2% 26.1% 26.3% 2
1980s 23.0% 19.2% 28.8% 10
1990s 29.8% 28.8% 30.5% 10
2000s 29.1% 25.8% 31.4% 10
2010s 21.6% 19.7% 24.7% 10
2020s 21.1% 20.9% 21.3% 4

Countries ranked near Portugal

  1. 90 Equatorial Guinea 21.7% compare
  2. 91 New Zealand 21.5% compare
  3. 92 Uzbekistan 21.3% compare
  4. 94 Türkiye 20.9% compare
  5. 95 Albania 20.5% compare
  6. 96 Luxembourg 20.5% compare

See the full ranking of 196 places →

More public sector data for Portugal

All data for Portugal →

Frequently asked questions

What is compensation of employees in Portugal?
Compensation of employees in Portugal was 21.1% in 2023, according to Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
What is the highest compensation of employees recorded in Portugal?
The highest recorded value was 31.4% in 2000.
What is the lowest compensation of employees recorded in Portugal?
The lowest recorded value was 19.2% in 1986.
How does Portugal rank for compensation of employees?
Portugal ranks 93rd out of 155 countries with data for 2023.
Is compensation of employees rising or falling in Portugal?
Over the last ten years it is down 2.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Portugal data come from?
The figures come from Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Compensation of employees (% of expense). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Compensation of employees in Portugal. Statizoid, drawing on Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Retrieved 04 September 2026, from https://public-sector.statizoid.com/stat/compensation-of-employees-percent-of-expense/portugal/

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About this data

Indicator
Compensation of employees (% of expense)
Unit
% of expense
Source
Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
196 places, 5,286 data points, 1972–2024
Last refreshed

Compensation of employees is defined as the total remuneration, in cash or in kind, payable by an enterprise to an employee in return for work done by the latter during the accounting period. This indicator is expressed as percentage of total expenses which is any decrease in net worth resulting from a transaction.