Interest payments (% of revenue) by country

Interest payments include interest payments on government debt (including long-term bonds, long-term loans, and other debt instruments) to domestic and foreign residents. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of revenue which includes all transactions that add to the amount of economic value of a unit or sector.

Countries reporting
152
Highest
79.9%
Sri Lanka
Lowest
0.0%
Iraq
Median
7.0%
Years covered
53
1972–2024
Data points
5,564

What the numbers show

Interest payments (% of revenue) is currently reported for 152 countries. The highest value is 79.9% in Sri Lanka; the lowest is 0.0% in Iraq.

The median across all reporting countries is 7.0%, and the mean is 9.5%.

The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 13,693.

Over the past decade 91 countries rose and 58 fell. The largest increase was in East Timor (up 1,131,720.0%), and the largest decrease in Iraq (down 99.1%).

Interest payments: full country ranking

#Country LatestYear 10-year changeTrend
1 Sri Lanka 79.9% 2023 up 107.5% rising
2 Malawi 35.8% 2024 up 103.5% rising
3 India 34.0% 2022 up 36.4% rising
4 Egypt 33.3% 2015 up 48.3% rising
5 Bahrain 31.9% 2020 up 667.4% volatile
6 Brazil 30.1% 2024 down 1.9% flat
7 Panama 28.9% 2024 up 114.9% rising
8 Zambia 28.3% 2024 up 83.3% volatile
9 Barbados 25.6% 2016 up 75.5% rising
10 Angola 25.2% 2024 up 657.2% volatile
11 Kenya 24.3% 2023 up 120.5% rising
12 Jamaica 22.4% 2020 down 44.8% falling
13 Ghana 21.6% 2023 down 9.5% rising
14 Uganda 21.0% 2024 up 95.4% rising
15 Guinea-Bissau 21.0% 2024 up 472.8% volatile
16 Bangladesh 20.8% 2021 up 31.3% rising
17 United States 20.3% 2024 up 115.6% flat
18 Mexico 20.0% 2024 up 59.4% volatile
19 Bahamas 20.0% 2024 up 37.4% rising
20 Dominican Republic 19.3% 2024 up 22.4% volatile
21 Gabon 18.9% 2021 up 469.0% rising
22 Jordan 18.6% 2023 up 45.6% rising
23 South Africa 18.2% 2024 up 79.6% rising
24 Cote d'Ivoire 18.0% 2023 up 124.8% falling
25 Philippines 17.3% 2024 up 1.7% falling
26 Costa Rica 16.6% 2024 up 53.6% rising
27 Malaysia 15.6% 2024 up 51.9% rising
28 Mozambique 15.1% 2024 up 355.7% rising
29 Iceland 14.9% 2023 down 35.5% volatile
30 Namibia 14.7% 2024 up 256.9% volatile
31 El Salvador 14.3% 2024 up 23.8% rising
32 Papua New Guinea 14.2% 2024 up 80.4% flat
33 Seychelles 14.1% 2008 down 33.7% rising
34 Togo 14.0% 2023 up 161.3% rising
35 Colombia 13.9% 2024 up 68.0% falling
36 Tanzania 13.9% 2024 up 64.6% rising
37 Fiji 13.9% 2024 up 31.2% rising
38 Saint Lucia 13.6% 2017 up 19.9% rising
39 Zimbabwe 13.5% 2018 up 503.2% volatile
40 Trinidad and Tobago 13.2% 2019 up 56.3% volatile
41 Ethiopia 12.6% 2024 up 319.2% volatile
42 Armenia 12.6% 2024 up 146.6% volatile
43 Guatemala 12.5% 2024 up 6.9% rising
44 Senegal 12.3% 2023 up 75.7% rising
45 Hungary 12.2% 2024 up 29.3% volatile
46 Laos 11.8% 2022 up 240.7% rising
47 Turkey 11.7% 2024 up 72.5% volatile
48 Indonesia 11.1% 2009 down 48.9% volatile
49 Cape Verde 10.9% 2020 up 87.4% rising
50 Honduras 10.6% 2020 up 173.0% rising
51 Mauritius 10.4% 2024 up 38.8% falling
52 Paraguay 10.3% 2024 up 460.8% volatile
53 Maldives 9.7% 2021 up 25.6% rising
54 Burkina Faso 9.7% 2024 up 190.3% volatile
55 Myanmar 9.6% 2019 up 41.7% rising
56 Belize 9.4% 2017 down 37.9% volatile
57 Israel 9.4% 2024 up 31.4% falling
58 Italy 9.4% 2024 down 15.6% falling
59 Congo 9.0% 2021 up 2,341.8% volatile
60 Kazakhstan 9.0% 2023 up 335.4% flat
61 Argentina 8.5% 2024 down 0.8% volatile
62 Canada 8.4% 2024 up 12.6% volatile
63 United Kingdom 8.3% 2024 down 1.2% falling
64 Ukraine 8.3% 2024 up 0.2% volatile
65 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 8.1% 2017 down 16.7% falling
66 Nepal 8.0% 2023 up 93.2% volatile
67 Morocco 8.0% 2023 down 11.0% falling
68 Bolivia 8.0% 2007 down 11.1% rising
69 Rwanda 7.7% 2023 up 167.7% volatile
70 Mali 7.6% 2020 up 270.5% rising
71 Greece 7.5% 2024 down 17.5% volatile
72 Albania 7.4% 2024 down 34.2% volatile
73 Eswatini 7.4% 2021 up 70.7% rising
74 Romania 7.3% 2024 up 45.6% volatile
75 Niger 7.2% 1980 rising
76 Nicaragua 7.0% 2024 up 42.5% falling
77 Uruguay 6.9% 2024 down 5.9% volatile
78 Cameroon 6.8% 2021 up 232.8% volatile
79 Peru 6.6% 2021 up 20.3% volatile
80 Spain 6.5% 2024 down 39.0% volatile
81 North Macedonia 5.9% 2024 up 63.1% rising
82 Thailand 5.8% 2024 up 6.3% volatile
83 Moldova 5.6% 2023 up 267.1% volatile
84 Tunisia 5.6% 2012 down 44.5% rising
85 Georgia 5.5% 2024 up 87.9% volatile
86 Lebanon 5.4% 2024 down 87.6% falling
87 Portugal 5.4% 2024 down 56.4% falling
88 South Korea 5.3% 2024 down 0.1% flat
89 Chile 5.2% 2024 up 98.0% volatile
90 Poland 5.2% 2023 down 28.4% volatile
91 Sudan 5.1% 2016 down 19.1% falling
92 San Marino 5.0% 2024 up 316.9% volatile
93 Madagascar 4.8% 2024 up 15.2% volatile
94 Ecuador 4.7% 2022 up 79.8% rising
95 New Zealand 4.7% 2024 up 4.3% volatile
96 Belgium 4.5% 2024 down 35.4% falling
97 Mongolia 4.3% 2024 down 50.9% volatile
98 France 4.2% 2024 down 10.3% rising
99 Central African Republic 4.2% 2021 down 24.4% volatile
100 Croatia 4.2% 2023 down 55.8% rising
101 Belarus 4.2% 2024 up 33.3% volatile
102 Equatorial Guinea 4.2% 2022 up 322.0% volatile
103 Kuwait 3.9% 1998 down 72.8% volatile
104 Serbia 3.6% 2022 down 29.0% rising
105 Saudi Arabia 3.5% 2024 up 943.5% volatile
106 Slovakia 3.5% 2024 down 35.4% falling
107 Lesotho 3.5% 2024 up 191.4% volatile
109 Czechia 3.5% 2024 up 2.3% falling
110 China 3.4% 2021 up 3.7% falling
111 Botswana 3.4% 2023 up 143.8% rising
112 Uzbekistan 3.3% 2023 up 3,178.9% volatile
113 Austria 3.1% 2024 down 41.4% falling
114 Australia 3.1% 2022 down 16.4% falling
115 United Arab Emirates 3.0% 2024 up 150,689.0% volatile
116 Tajikistan 2.9% 2024 volatile
117 Finland 2.9% 2024 down 10.6% volatile
118 Slovenia 2.9% 2024 down 61.6% rising
119 Cyprus 2.8% 2024 down 64.3% falling
120 Latvia 2.7% 2024 down 41.5% falling
121 Saint Kitts and Nevis 2.7% 2020 down 88.6% falling
122 Kyrgyzstan 2.6% 2024 up 9.9% falling
123 Germany 2.5% 2024 down 19.4% falling
124 Vanuatu 2.4% 2023 down 29.2% falling
125 Bosnia and Herzegovina 2.4% 2024 up 20.5% rising
126 Russia 2.4% 2020 up 47.5% volatile
127 Burundi 2.4% 2021 down 22.4% volatile
129 Lithuania 1.9% 2024 down 66.5% volatile
130 Cambodia 1.8% 2023 down 1.3% rising
131 Netherlands 1.7% 2024 down 50.0% volatile
132 Norway 1.6% 2024 up 75.2% volatile
133 Bhutan 1.5% 2020 down 76.8% volatile
134 Andorra 1.5% 2024 down 3.5% rising
135 Solomon Islands 1.5% 2024 up 350.6% volatile
136 Denmark 1.4% 2024 down 48.9% volatile
137 Bulgaria 1.4% 2024 down 41.8% volatile
138 Estonia 1.4% 2024 up 267.3% volatile
139 Tonga 1.3% 2023 down 57.4% falling
140 Samoa 1.2% 2023 down 54.9% falling
141 Sweden 1.1% 2024 down 33.2% volatile
142 Switzerland 0.9% 2024 down 48.9% falling
143 Azerbaijan 0.9% 2024 up 147.0% volatile
144 Kiribati 0.7% 2023 down 33.3% volatile
145 Somalia 0.6% 2024 volatile
147 Palau 0.6% 2020 down 24.9% falling
148 Iran 0.6% 2009 up 1,041,780.0% volatile
149 Democratic Republic of Congo 0.5% 2022 down 74.5% volatile
150 Singapore 0.5% 2024 up 37,746.0% volatile
151 Marshall Islands 0.4% 2020 down 56.1% falling
152 Micronesia (country) 0.4% 2020 down 34.4% falling
153 East Timor 0.1% 2022 up 1,131,720.0% volatile
154 Afghanistan 0.1% 2017 up 59.3% volatile
155 Iraq 0.0% 2019 down 99.1% volatile

Regions and income groups

Aggregates are excluded from the country ranking above so that a region can never outrank a country.

About this data

Indicator
Interest payments (% of revenue)
Unit
% of revenue
Source
Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
196 places, 5,564 data points, 1972–2024
Last refreshed

Interest payments include interest payments on government debt (including long-term bonds, long-term loans, and other debt instruments) to domestic and foreign residents. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of revenue which includes all transactions that add to the amount of economic value of a unit or sector.