United Kingdom: Central government debt, total (% of GDP)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, United Kingdom's central government debt, total (% of GDP) fell 5.41 percentage points on 2023 (from 136.14% to 130.74%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was +3.36 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 14.85 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.6 standard deviations below 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 47.74 percentage points in 1995 and the biggest yearly fall was 45.59 percentage points in 2022. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 6% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

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

How it compares

In 2024, United Kingdom had the 3rd highest value of the 28 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.

Closest to United Kingdom in the 2024 ranking

• Singapore — 1st of 28: 167.8%
• United States — 3rd of 28: 115.79%
• El Salvador — 4th of 28: 107.28%
• Spain — 5th of 28: 105.64%

What this measures

Debt is the entire stock of direct government fixed-term contractual obligations to others outstanding on a particular date. It includes domestic and foreign liabilities such as currency and money deposits, securities other than shares, and loans. It is the gross amount of government liabilities reduced by the amount of equity and financial derivatives held by the government. Because debt is a stock rather than a flow, it is measured as of a given date, usually the last day of the fiscal year. Central government is the part of general government that includes all administrative departments of the national executive, legislative, and judicial functions, other central agencies and those non-market producers controlled by the central government, whose competence extends normally over the whole economic territory. 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 35 values

Central government debt, total (% of GDP) in nearby economies

• Albania — 49.96% (2024)
• Belarus — 33.24% (2019)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 39.74% (2024)
• Georgia — 40.1% (2024)
• Hungary — 81.99% (2024)
• Iceland — 80.09% (2023)
• Kazakhstan — 20.89% (2023)
• Kyrgyz Republic — 38.72% (2024)
• Moldova — 37.48% (2024)
• Russian Federation — 17.85% (2024)

More public sector data for United Kingdom

• Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values) — 609 million (2025)
• Military expenditure (current USD) — 88.98 billion (2025)
• Military expenditure (current LCU) — 71.18 billion (2025)
• Military expenditure (% of GDP) — 2.35% (2025)
• Arms exports (SIPRI trend indicator values) — 702 million (2025)
• Net incurrence of liabilities, total (current LCU) — 203.14 billion (2024)
• Net incurrence of liabilities, total (% of GDP) — 7.03% (2024)
• Net investment in nonfinancial assets (current LCU) — 69.25 billion (2024)
• Net investment in nonfinancial assets (% of GDP)

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 United Kingdom's central government debt, total (% of GDP)?

130.74% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1990?

It is up 100.53 percentage points from 30.2% in 1990. The highest value was 194.68% in 2020 and the lowest 29.19% in 1991.

How does United Kingdom rank?

3rd highest of 28 economies with data for 2024.

Is the latest change in central government debt, total (% of GDP) unusual for United Kingdom?

In 2024, United Kingdom's central government debt, total (% of GDP) fell 5.41 percentage points on 2023 (from 136.14% to 130.74%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was +3.36 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 14.85 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.6 standard deviations below 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.DOD.TOTL.GD.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF) 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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