Tax revenue (% of GDP) in Denmark
Denmark: Tax revenue (% of GDP) was 33.4% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Tax revenue in Denmark, 1972–2024
Source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for tax revenue in Denmark is 33.4%, measured in 2024.
That represents a change of up 4.3% on the previous year and down 8.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, tax revenue in Denmark peaked at 36.6% in 2014 and was at its lowest, 26.5%, in 1976.
Denmark ranks 3rd of 157 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 53 years of available data.
Tax revenue (% of GDP) in Denmark, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 29.0% | — |
| 1973 | 28.9% | -0.3% |
| 1974 | 29.1% | +0.7% |
| 1975 | 26.8% | -8.2% |
| 1976 | 26.5% | -0.8% |
| 1977 | 27.1% | +2.2% |
| 1978 | 28.2% | +3.9% |
| 1979 | 28.6% | +1.6% |
| 1980 | 28.7% | +0.2% |
| 1981 | 28.2% | -1.4% |
| 1982 | 27.2% | -3.5% |
| 1983 | 28.0% | +2.6% |
| 1984 | 29.1% | +4.2% |
| 1985 | 30.6% | +5.1% |
| 1986 | 32.9% | +7.4% |
| 1987 | 32.3% | -1.8% |
| 1988 | 32.4% | +0.5% |
| 1989 | 31.4% | -3.2% |
| 1990 | 29.7% | -5.4% |
| 1991 | 29.1% | -2.0% |
| 1992 | 29.5% | +1.2% |
| 1993 | 30.9% | +4.7% |
| 1994 | 31.6% | +2.3% |
| 1995 | 31.7% | +0.5% |
| 1996 | 32.0% | +0.9% |
| 1997 | 31.8% | -0.6% |
| 1998 | 32.2% | +1.2% |
| 1999 | 32.1% | -0.4% |
| 2000 | 31.5% | -1.8% |
| 2001 | 30.2% | -4.2% |
| 2002 | 30.2% | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 30.3% | +0.3% |
| 2004 | 31.2% | +3.2% |
| 2005 | 33.0% | +5.6% |
| 2006 | 31.9% | -3.3% |
| 2007 | 35.1% | +10.2% |
| 2008 | 33.4% | -4.9% |
| 2009 | 33.0% | -1.3% |
| 2010 | 32.8% | -0.6% |
| 2011 | 32.8% | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 33.5% | +2.2% |
| 2013 | 33.8% | +0.8% |
| 2014 | 36.6% | +8.3% |
| 2015 | 34.2% | -6.6% |
| 2016 | 33.5% | -1.9% |
| 2017 | 33.3% | -0.6% |
| 2018 | 32.4% | -2.7% |
| 2019 | 35.0% | +8.0% |
| 2020 | 34.5% | -1.4% |
| 2021 | 35.2% | +2.0% |
| 2022 | 30.7% | -12.6% |
| 2023 | 32.0% | +4.1% |
| 2024 | 33.4% | +4.3% |
Denmark compared with similar countries
- Denmark's 33.4% is above the median for high income countries, which is 20.7%, 1.6× the median. (57 countries reporting)
- Denmark's 33.4% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 20.8%, 1.6× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 28.0% | 26.5% | 29.1% | 8 |
| 1980s | 30.1% | 27.2% | 32.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 31.1% | 29.1% | 32.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 32.0% | 30.2% | 35.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 33.8% | 32.4% | 36.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 33.1% | 30.7% | 35.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Denmark
- 1 Lesotho 35.4% compare
- 2 Namibia 33.9% compare
- 4 New Zealand 29.5% compare
- 5 Luxembourg 28.6% compare
- 6 Macao 27.4% compare
More public sector data for Denmark
- 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 278.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2025)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 71.44 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.001 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate 55.84 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is tax revenue in Denmark?
- Tax revenue in Denmark was 33.4% in 2024, according to Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest tax revenue recorded in Denmark?
- The highest recorded value was 36.6% in 2014.
- What is the lowest tax revenue recorded in Denmark?
- The lowest recorded value was 26.5% in 1976.
- How does Denmark rank for tax revenue?
- Denmark ranks 3rd out of 157 countries with data for 2024.
- Is tax revenue rising or falling in Denmark?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Denmark data come from?
- The figures come from Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Tax revenue (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 53 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Taxes are compulsory, unrequited payments, in cash or in kind, made by institutional units to government units. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.