Chile: Researchers in R&D (per million people)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2022, Chile's researchers in R&D (per million people) rose 68.22 on 2021 (from 638.84 to 707.06).

Across the 14 yearly changes before that (2008 to 2021), the average change was +21.73 and a typical year strayed about 49.94 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.9 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 123.52 in 2021 and the biggest yearly fall was 68.57 in 2009. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2013 to 2022 the straight-line trend is upward, about 31.51 a year. A straight line explains 85% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

A straight-line projection, tested first

Extending that straight line gives about 725 for 2025. We show this only because the same method, fitted on earlier years, predicted 2020 to 2022 better than "no change" would have: its average miss was 64.77, against 113.09 for assuming no change. Treat it as a continuation of the recent pattern, not a forecast of events: it cannot see a recession, a policy change or a revision to the data.

See how a linear trend forecast works and the guide on forecasting without fooling yourself.

How it compares

See how every economy compares in the full ranking.

Closest to Chile in the 2022 ranking

• Canada — 2nd of 8: 5,624
• United States — 3rd of 8: 4,937
• Malaysia — 4th of 8: 1,218
• Ukraine — 6th of 8: 586.08
• South Africa — 7th of 8: 444.16
• Sri Lanka — 8th of 8: 94.49

What this measures

The number of researchers engaged in Research &Development (R&D), expressed as per million. Researchers are professionals who conduct research and improve or develop concepts, theories, models techniques instrumentation, software of operational methods. R&D covers basic research, applied research, and experimental development.

Limitations: Estimates of the resources allocated to R&D are affected by national characteristics such as the periodicity and coverage of national R&D surveys across institutional sectors and industries; and the use of different sampling and estimation methods. R&D typically involves a few large performers, hence R&D surveys use various techniques to maintain up-to-date registers of known performers, while attempting to identify new or occasional performers.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 16 values

Researchers in R&D (per million people) in nearby economies

• Argentina — 1,313 (2023)
• Bolivia — 63.06 (2021)
• Costa Rica — 507.76 (2023)
• Guatemala — 1.45 (2023)
• Mexico — 438.25 (2024)
• Panama — 250.47 (2024)
• Paraguay — 138.79 (2023)
• Uruguay — 937.57 (2024)
• Venezuela, RB — 179.96 (2023)

More infrastructure data for Chile

• Fixed telephone subscriptions — 1.74 million (2024)
• Fixed telephone subscriptions (per 100 people) — 8.79 (2024)
• Air transport, registered carrier departures worldwide — 144,494 (2023)
• Air transport, freight (million ton-km) — 1,499 (2023)
• Air transport, passengers carried — 21.32 million (2023)
• Mobile cellular subscriptions — 26.22 million (2024)
• Mobile cellular subscriptions (per 100 people) — 132.66 (2024)
• ICT service exports (BoP, current US$) — US$764.07 million (2025)
• ICT service exports (% of service exports, BoP) — 5.87% (2025)
• Patent applications, nonresidents

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Chile's researchers in R&D (per million people)?

707.06 in 2022, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2007?

It is up 111.3% from 334.62 in 2007 (5.11% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 707.06 in 2022 and the lowest 287.11 in 2009.

Is the latest change in researchers in R&D (per million people) unusual for Chile?

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SP.POP.SCIE.RD.P6, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), uri: https://databrowser.uis.unesco.org/resources/bulk, publisher: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), date accessed: 2025-03-26, date published: 2025-02 Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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