Social contributions (% of revenue) in Germany
Germany: Social contributions (% of revenue) was 55.7% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Social contributions in Germany, 1972–2024
Source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of revenue.
Analysis
Germany recorded 55.7% for social contributions in 2024.
That represents a change of up 0.7% on the previous year and up 6.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, social contributions in Germany peaked at 59.9% in 1997 and was at its lowest, 46.6%, in 1972.
That places Germany 1st out of 112 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 52 years of available data.
Social contributions (% of revenue) in Germany, year by year
| Year | % of revenue | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 46.6% | — |
| 1973 | 47.6% | +2.0% |
| 1974 | 48.9% | +2.8% |
| 1975 | 51.0% | +4.3% |
| 1976 | 52.1% | +2.2% |
| 1977 | 51.3% | -1.6% |
| 1978 | 51.3% | -0.0% |
| 1979 | 51.5% | +0.4% |
| 1980 | 53.9% | +4.7% |
| 1981 | 54.9% | +1.9% |
| 1982 | 55.0% | +0.2% |
| 1983 | 54.7% | -0.6% |
| 1984 | 52.2% | -4.6% |
| 1985 | 52.2% | -0.1% |
| 1986 | 53.0% | +1.6% |
| 1987 | 53.6% | +1.2% |
| 1988 | 54.7% | +2.0% |
| 1989 | 52.9% | -3.3% |
| 1991 | 54.3% | +2.7% |
| 1992 | 53.6% | -1.2% |
| 1993 | 54.9% | +2.4% |
| 1994 | 55.1% | +0.2% |
| 1995 | 56.9% | +3.3% |
| 1996 | 59.1% | +3.9% |
| 1997 | 59.9% | +1.3% |
| 1998 | 59.4% | -0.9% |
| 1999 | 56.9% | -4.1% |
| 2000 | 55.9% | -1.7% |
| 2001 | 56.7% | +1.3% |
| 2002 | 57.0% | +0.6% |
| 2003 | 56.2% | -1.3% |
| 2004 | 57.6% | +2.4% |
| 2005 | 57.1% | -0.9% |
| 2006 | 55.7% | -2.4% |
| 2007 | 53.6% | -3.9% |
| 2008 | 53.1% | -0.9% |
| 2009 | 53.5% | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 54.0% | +1.0% |
| 2011 | 52.6% | -2.7% |
| 2012 | 52.6% | +0.1% |
| 2013 | 52.3% | -0.6% |
| 2014 | 52.2% | -0.3% |
| 2015 | 52.6% | +0.8% |
| 2016 | 53.2% | +1.1% |
| 2017 | 53.3% | +0.2% |
| 2018 | 53.3% | +0.2% |
| 2019 | 53.6% | +0.6% |
| 2020 | 55.9% | +4.1% |
| 2021 | 54.6% | -2.2% |
| 2022 | 54.6% | -0.1% |
| 2023 | 55.3% | +1.3% |
| 2024 | 55.7% | +0.7% |
Germany compared with similar countries
- Germany's 55.7% is above the median for high income countries, which is 28.1%, 2.0× the median. (49 countries reporting)
- Germany's 55.7% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 29.8%, 1.9× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 50.0% | 46.6% | 52.1% | 8 |
| 1980s | 53.7% | 52.2% | 55.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 56.7% | 53.6% | 59.9% | 9 |
| 2000s | 55.6% | 53.1% | 57.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 53.0% | 52.2% | 54.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 55.2% | 54.6% | 55.9% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Germany
More public sector data for Germany
- Democracy, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Elected parliament, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Universal right to vote, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Universal right to vote in practice, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Arms imports 1.63 billion SIPRI trend indicator values (2025)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 2.86 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.0001 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate 19.5 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is social contributions in Germany?
- Social contributions in Germany was 55.7% in 2024, according to Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest social contributions recorded in Germany?
- The highest recorded value was 59.9% in 1997.
- What is the lowest social contributions recorded in Germany?
- The lowest recorded value was 46.6% in 1972.
- How does Germany rank for social contributions?
- Germany ranks 1st out of 112 countries with data for 2024.
- Is social contributions rising or falling in Germany?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- 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 Social contributions (% of revenue). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 52 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Social contributions are actual or imputed contributions payable to social insurance schemes to make provisions for social benefits to be paid. 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.