Social benefits, Ratio of this level of government's expenditure on in Canada

Canada: Social benefits, Ratio of this level of government's expenditure on was 0.6462 in 2020. ▬ Flat

Latest (2020)
0.6462
Change on year
up 30.2%
World rank
23rd
of 79 countries
All-time high
0.6462
in 2020
All-time low
0.4715
in 2013
Years of data
31
1990–2020

Social benefits, Ratio of this level of government's expenditure on in Canada, 1990–2020

00.20.40.61990200520201990: 0.5441991: 0.5491992: 0.5381993: 0.5251994: 0.5081995: 0.4931996: 0.4941997: 0.491998: 0.4881999: 0.4922000: 0.4882001: 0.4992002: 0.5032003: 0.5032004: 0.4982005: 0.4922006: 0.4912007: 0.492008: 0.4812009: 0.4892010: 0.4832011: 0.4742012: 0.4762013: 0.4712014: 0.4752015: 0.4872016: 0.4962017: 0.5012018: 0.4952019: 0.4962020: 0.646

Source: International Monetary Fund.

Analysis

Canada recorded 0.6462 for social benefits, ratio of this level of government's expenditure on in 2020. That is the highest value across all 31 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 30.2% on the previous year and up 33.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, social benefits, ratio of this level of government's expenditure on in Canada peaked at 0.6462 in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.4715, in 2013.

Canada ranks 23rd of 79 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

Social benefits, Ratio of this level of government's expenditure on in Canada, year by year

Annual values for Social benefits, Ratio of this level of government's expenditure on this item to total general government expenditure on this, Percent (Central government) in Canada, 1990 to 2020.
Year Value Change
1990 0.5444
1991 0.5492 +0.9%
1992 0.538 -2.0%
1993 0.5251 -2.4%
1994 0.5079 -3.3%
1995 0.4929 -3.0%
1996 0.4938 +0.2%
1997 0.4905 -0.7%
1998 0.4876 -0.6%
1999 0.4918 +0.9%
2000 0.4883 -0.7%
2001 0.4991 +2.2%
2002 0.503 +0.8%
2003 0.5028 -0.0%
2004 0.4982 -0.9%
2005 0.4924 -1.2%
2006 0.4914 -0.2%
2007 0.4898 -0.3%
2008 0.4814 -1.7%
2009 0.4886 +1.5%
2010 0.4827 -1.2%
2011 0.4741 -1.8%
2012 0.4763 +0.5%
2013 0.4715 -1.0%
2014 0.4747 +0.7%
2015 0.4866 +2.5%
2016 0.4963 +2.0%
2017 0.501 +0.9%
2018 0.4947 -1.2%
2019 0.4963 +0.3%
2020 0.6462 +30.2%

Canada compared with similar countries

  • Canada's 0.6462 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.2134, 3.0× the median. (42 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Social benefits, Ratio of this level of government's expenditure on in Canada changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
2020 +30.2% 0.4963 0.6462

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 0.5121 0.4876 0.5492 10
2000s 0.4935 0.4814 0.503 10
2010s 0.4854 0.4715 0.501 10
2020s 0.6462 0.6462 0.6462 1

Countries ranked near Canada

  1. 20 Guatemala 0.7144 compare
  2. 21 Estonia 0.6705 compare
  3. 22 Paraguay 0.6701 compare
  4. 24 Kazakhstan 0.6241 compare
  5. 25 South Africa 0.6131 compare
  6. 26 Ireland 0.5951 compare

See the full ranking of 79 places →

More public sector data for Canada

All data for Canada →

Frequently asked questions

What is social benefits, ratio of this level of government's expenditure on in Canada?
Social benefits, ratio of this level of government's expenditure on in Canada was 0.6462 in 2020, according to International Monetary Fund.
What is the highest social benefits, ratio of this level of government's expenditure on recorded in Canada?
The highest recorded value was 0.6462 in 2020.
What is the lowest social benefits, ratio of this level of government's expenditure on recorded in Canada?
The lowest recorded value was 0.4715 in 2013.
How does Canada rank for social benefits, ratio of this level of government's expenditure on?
Canada ranks 23rd out of 79 countries with data for 2020.
Is social benefits, ratio of this level of government's expenditure on rising or falling in Canada?
Over the last ten years it is up 33.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this Canada data come from?
The figures come from International Monetary Fund, published as part of Social benefits, Ratio of this level of government's expenditure on this item to total general government expenditure on this, Percent (Central government). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Social benefits, Ratio of this level of government's expenditure on in Canada. Statizoid, drawing on International Monetary Fund. Retrieved 16 September 2026, from https://public-sector.statizoid.com/stat/social-benefits-ratio-of-this-level-of-government-s-expenditure-on-this-item-to-total/canada/

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About this data

Indicator
Social benefits, Ratio of this level of government's expenditure on this item to total general government expenditure on this, Percent (Central government)
Source
International Monetary Fund
Licence
IMF Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage
79 places, 1,532 data points, 1972–2020
Last refreshed

The Fiscal Decentralization dataset includes fiscal decentralization indicators for a sample of IMF member countries. The following indicators are included in the dataset: Revenue and Expenditure Decentralization Shares; Transfer dependency and Vertical Fiscal Imbalances; Deficit and Debt; Allocation of expenditure (economic classification); Allocation of expenditure (functional classification); Allocation of non-Tax Revenues; and Allocation of Taxes.