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

United Kingdom: Social benefits, Ratio of this level of government's expenditure on was 0.8364 in 2020. ▼ Falling

Latest (2020)
0.8364
Change on year
down 0.3%
World rank
16th
of 79 countries
All-time high
0.9536
in 1972
All-time low
0.8263
in 1995
Years of data
49
1972–2020

Social benefits, Ratio of this level of government's expenditure on in United Kingdom, 1972–2020

00.20.40.60.81197219962020

Source: International Monetary Fund.

Analysis

In 2020, social benefits, ratio of this level of government's expenditure on in United Kingdom stood at 0.8364.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.3% on the previous year and up 0.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, social benefits, ratio of this level of government's expenditure on in United Kingdom peaked at 0.9536 in 1972 and was at its lowest, 0.8263, in 1995.

United Kingdom ranks 16th of 79 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 49 years of available data.

Social benefits, Ratio of this level of government's expenditure on in United Kingdom, 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 United Kingdom, 1972 to 2020.
Year Value Change
1972 0.9536
1973 0.9464 -0.8%
1974 0.9493 +0.3%
1975 0.9493 +0.0%
1976 0.9463 -0.3%
1977 0.9446 -0.2%
1978 0.9437 -0.1%
1979 0.9476 +0.4%
1980 0.9458 -0.2%
1981 0.9506 +0.5%
1982 0.9531 +0.3%
1983 0.9113 -4.4%
1984 0.9046 -0.7%
1985 0.9057 +0.1%
1986 0.9066 +0.1%
1987 0.906 -0.1%
1988 0.9036 -0.3%
1989 0.8991 -0.5%
1990 0.8961 -0.3%
1991 0.8884 -0.9%
1992 0.8782 -1.1%
1993 0.8667 -1.3%
1994 0.8587 -0.9%
1995 0.8263 -3.8%
1996 0.8281 +0.2%
1997 0.8388 +1.3%
1998 0.841 +0.3%
1999 0.8455 +0.5%
2000 0.8453 -0.0%
2001 0.847 +0.2%
2002 0.8421 -0.6%
2003 0.847 +0.6%
2004 0.8497 +0.3%
2005 0.847 -0.3%
2006 0.8449 -0.2%
2007 0.8451 +0.0%
2008 0.8438 -0.2%
2009 0.8428 -0.1%
2010 0.836 -0.8%
2011 0.8353 -0.1%
2012 0.8353 +0.0%
2013 0.8319 -0.4%
2014 0.833 +0.1%
2015 0.8349 +0.2%
2016 0.8348 -0.0%
2017 0.835 +0.0%
2018 0.8369 +0.2%
2019 0.839 +0.2%
2020 0.8364 -0.3%

United Kingdom compared with similar countries

  • United Kingdom's 0.8364 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.2134, 3.9× the median. (42 countries reporting)
  • United Kingdom's 0.8364 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.1767, 4.7× the median. (45 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 0.9476 0.9437 0.9536 8
1980s 0.9186 0.8991 0.9531 10
1990s 0.8568 0.8263 0.8961 10
2000s 0.8455 0.8421 0.8497 10
2010s 0.8352 0.8319 0.839 10
2020s 0.8364 0.8364 0.8364 1

Countries ranked near United Kingdom

  1. 13 Norway 0.9266 compare
  2. 14 Mauritius 0.8714 compare
  3. 15 Brazil 0.8449 compare
  4. 17 Czechia 0.8062 compare
  5. 18 Bosnia and Herzegovina 0.8049 compare
  6. 19 Thailand 0.7501 compare

See the full ranking of 79 places →

More public sector data for United Kingdom

All data for United Kingdom →

Frequently asked questions

What is social benefits, ratio of this level of government's expenditure on in United Kingdom?
Social benefits, ratio of this level of government's expenditure on in United Kingdom was 0.8364 in 2020, according to International Monetary Fund.
What is the highest social benefits, ratio of this level of government's expenditure on recorded in United Kingdom?
The highest recorded value was 0.9536 in 1972.
What is the lowest social benefits, ratio of this level of government's expenditure on recorded in United Kingdom?
The lowest recorded value was 0.8263 in 1995.
How does United Kingdom rank for social benefits, ratio of this level of government's expenditure on?
United Kingdom ranks 16th out of 79 countries with data for 2020.
Is social benefits, ratio of this level of government's expenditure on rising or falling in United Kingdom?
Over the last ten years it is up 0.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this United Kingdom 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 United Kingdom. Statizoid, drawing on International Monetary Fund. Retrieved 17 September 2026, from https://public-sector.statizoid.com/stat/social-benefits-ratio-of-this-level-of-government-s-expenditure-on-this-item-to-total/united-kingdom/

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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.