Interest payments in Germany

Germany: Interest payments was 2.5% in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
2.5%
Change on year
up 21.1%
World rank
123rd
of 155 countries
All-time high
7.7%
in 1995
All-time low
1.0%
in 2021
Years of data
53
1972–2024

Interest payments in Germany, 1972–2024

02468197219982024

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

Analysis

Germany recorded 2.5% for interest payments in 2024.

That represents a change of up 21.1% on the previous year and down 19.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, interest payments in Germany peaked at 7.7% in 1995 and was at its lowest, 1.0%, in 2021.

That places Germany 123rd out of 155 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 53 years of available data.

Interest payments in Germany, year by year

Annual values for Interest payments (% of revenue) in Germany, 1972 to 2024.
Year % of revenue Change
1972 1.5%
1973 1.5% -0.2%
1974 1.8% +23.3%
1975 2.1% +14.9%
1976 2.4% +17.0%
1977 2.7% +12.7%
1978 2.8% +3.5%
1979 3.1% +8.5%
1980 3.3% +8.2%
1981 4.0% +21.7%
1982 4.7% +16.2%
1983 5.5% +17.0%
1984 5.4% -2.2%
1985 5.4% -0.1%
1986 5.4% -0.2%
1987 5.3% -0.2%
1988 5.4% +1.2%
1989 5.0% -8.2%
1990 5.0% +0.2%
1991 5.6% +12.5%
1992 6.8% +21.1%
1993 6.8% -0.3%
1994 7.0% +4.2%
1995 7.7% +9.3%
1996 7.7% -0.3%
1997 7.5% -1.6%
1998 7.6% +0.4%
1999 6.9% -8.8%
2000 6.9% +0.2%
2001 6.6% -4.4%
2002 6.5% -1.8%
2003 6.0% -8.2%
2004 6.0% +0.2%
2005 5.8% -2.3%
2006 5.7% -2.5%
2007 5.7% +0.5%
2008 5.7% -0.3%
2009 5.4% -5.2%
2010 5.1% -6.3%
2011 5.3% +3.9%
2012 4.7% -10.5%
2013 3.5% -26.7%
2014 3.1% -11.0%
2015 2.7% -13.4%
2016 2.2% -16.4%
2017 1.9% -15.4%
2018 1.7% -10.1%
2019 1.4% -15.2%
2020 1.0% -27.0%
2021 1.0% -7.6%
2022 1.5% +50.5%
2023 2.0% +40.5%
2024 2.5% +21.1%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 2.2% 1.5% 3.1% 8
1980s 4.9% 3.3% 5.5% 10
1990s 6.9% 5.0% 7.7% 10
2000s 6.0% 5.4% 6.9% 10
2010s 3.2% 1.4% 5.3% 10
2020s 1.6% 1.0% 2.5% 5

Countries ranked near Germany

  1. 120 Latvia 2.7% compare
  2. 121 Saint Kitts and Nevis 2.7% compare
  3. 122 Kyrgyzstan 2.6% compare
  4. 124 Vanuatu 2.4% compare
  5. 125 Bosnia and Herzegovina 2.4% compare
  6. 126 Russia 2.4% compare

See the full ranking of 196 places →

More public sector data for Germany

All data for Germany →

Frequently asked questions

What is interest payments in Germany?
Interest payments in Germany was 2.5% in 2024, according to Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
What is the highest interest payments recorded in Germany?
The highest recorded value was 7.7% in 1995.
What is the lowest interest payments recorded in Germany?
The lowest recorded value was 1.0% in 2021.
How does Germany rank for interest payments?
Germany ranks 123rd out of 155 countries with data for 2024.
Is interest payments rising or falling in Germany?
Over the last ten years it is down 19.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Germany data come from?
The figures come from Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Interest payments (% of revenue). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Interest payments in Germany. Statizoid, drawing on Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Retrieved 28 August 2026, from https://public-sector.statizoid.com/stat/interest-payments-percent-of-revenue/germany/

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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.