Hungary's expense (% of GDP) was 42.42% in 2022, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is down 2.3 percentage points from 44.72% in 2012.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 42.42% | 2022 |
| Five years earlier | 42.02% | 2017 |
| Ten years earlier | 44.72% | 2012 |
| Highest | 53.23% | 1986 |
| Lowest | 39.33% | 2019 |
| Average since 2013 | 42.84% | 2013–2022 |
| First recorded | 51.03% | 1981 |
What the numbers say
In 2022, Hungary's expense (% of GDP) rose 0.15 percentage points on 2021 (from 42.27% to 42.42%).
Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1992 to 2021), the average change was −0.24 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 1.8 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 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 5.74 percentage points in 1986 and the biggest yearly fall was 4.16 percentage points in 1996. 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 downward, about 0.42 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 32% 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.
How it compares
In 2022, Hungary had the 2nd highest value of the 25 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Hungary | 42.42% | 2022 |
| World | 28.49% | 2022 |
| Europe & Central Asia | 38.92% | 2023 |
| High income | 30.1% | 2023 |
Closest to Hungary in the 2022 ranking
- Timor-Leste — 1st of 25: 52.49%
- Lesotho — 3rd of 25: 40.23%
- Slovak Republic — 4th of 25: 39.77%
- Belgium — 5th of 25: 39.71%
What this measures
Expense is a decrease in net worth resulting from a transaction. 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.
Limitations: For most countries central government finance data have been consolidated into one account, but for others only budgetary central government accounts are available. Countries reporting budgetary data are noted in the country metadata. Because budgetary accounts may not include all central government units (such as social security funds), they usually provide an incomplete picture. In federal states the central government accounts provide an incomplete view of total public finance. Data on government revenue and expense are collected by the IMF through questionnaires to member countries and by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.
All 42 values
| Year | Expense (% of GDP) |
|---|---|
| 2022 | 42.42 |
| 2021 | 42.27 |
| 2020 | 44.1 |
| 2019 | 39.33 |
| 2018 | 39.7 |
| 2017 | 42.02 |
| 2016 | 43.39 |
| 2015 | 43.25 |
| 2014 | 44.99 |
| 2013 | 46.95 |
| 2012 | 44.72 |
Expense (% of GDP) in nearby economies
More public sector data for Hungary
- Military expenditure (current LCU) — 1.77 trillion (2025)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values) — 402 million (2025)
- Military expenditure (current USD) — 5 billion (2025)
- Military expenditure (% of GDP) — 2.04% (2025)
- Net investment in nonfinancial assets (current LCU) — 2.75 trillion (2024)
- Net investment in nonfinancial assets (% of GDP) — 3.37% (2024)
- Net lending (+) / net borrowing (-) (current LCU) — -3.64 trillion (2024)
- Net lending (+) / net borrowing (-) (% of GDP) — -4.46% (2024)
- Grants and other revenue (current LCU) — 5.09 trillion (2024)
- Grants and other revenue (% of revenue)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Hungary's expense (% of GDP)?
- 42.42% in 2022, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 1981?
- It is down 8.61 percentage points from 51.03% in 1981. The highest value was 53.23% in 1986 and the lowest 39.33% in 2019.
- How does Hungary rank?
- 2nd highest of 25 economies with data for 2022.
- Is the latest change in expense (% of GDP) unusual for Hungary?
- In 2022, Hungary's expense (% of GDP) rose 0.15 percentage points on 2021 (from 42.27% to 42.42%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1992 to 2021), the average change was −0.24 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 1.8 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.2 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator GC.XPN.TOTL.GD.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF); World Development Indicators, World Bank (WB); National Accounts data files, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) 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.
Want to ask your own questions of data like this? Try AnalyzeIt: upload a file or ask about public data in plain words, and every figure comes with its working.
Legal entity
Devansh Yadav
Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh
Governing law: Courts at Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh
Phone: +91 8433475698
Legal: legal@analyzeit.in