World: International tourism, receipts for passenger transport items (current US$)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2019, World's international tourism, receipts for passenger transport items (current US$) fell 0.6% on 2018 (from US$278.75 billion to US$276.98 billion).

Across the 23 yearly changes before that (1996 to 2018), the average change was +5.4% and a typical year strayed about 8.3% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.7 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 21.3% in 2004 and the biggest yearly fall was 14.4% 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 2010 to 2019 the straight-line trend is upward, about US$6.93 billion a year. A straight line explains 69% 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.

What this measures

International tourism receipts for passenger transport items are expenditures by international inbound visitors for all services provided in the international transportation by resident carriers. Also included are passenger services performed within an economy by nonresident carriers. Excluded are passenger services provided to nonresidents by resident carriers within the resident economies; these are included in travel items. In addition to the services covered by passenger fares--including fares that are a part of package tours but excluding cruise fares, which are included in travel--passenger services include such items as charges for excess baggage, vehicles, or other personal accompanying effects and expenditures for food, drink, or other items for which passengers make expenditures while on board carriers. Data are in current U.S. dollars.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a gap-filled total.

All 25 values

International tourism, receipts for passenger transport items (current US$) in nearby economies

• Afghanistan — US$10 million (2020)
• Algeria — US$7 million (2020)
• Bahrain — US$51 million (2020)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — US$476 million (2020)
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — US$228 million (2018)
• Israel — US$161 million (2020)
• Jordan — US$336 million (2020)
• Kuwait — US$127 million (2020)

More private sector & trade data for World

• Merchandise trade (% of GDP) — 43.89% (2025)
• Merchandise imports (current US$) — US$26.69 trillion (2025)
• Merchandise exports (current US$) — US$26.39 trillion (2025)
• Merchandise imports from economies in the Arab World (% of total merchandise imports) — 5.46% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from high-income economies (% of total merchandise imports) — 65.06% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside region (% of total merchandise imports) — 23.19% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in East Asia & Pacific (% of total merchandise imports) — 20.78% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in Europe & Central Asia (% of total merchandise imports)

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Questions people ask

What is World's international tourism, receipts for passenger transport items (current US$)?

US$276.98 billion in 2019, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1995?

It is up 211.77% from US$88.84 billion in 1995 (4.85% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was US$278.75 billion in 2018 and the lowest US$88.84 billion in 1995.

Is the latest change in international tourism, receipts for passenger transport items (current US$) unusual for World?

In 2019, World's international tourism, receipts for passenger transport items (current US$) fell 0.6% on 2018 (from US$278.75 billion to US$276.98 billion). Across the 23 yearly changes before that (1996 to 2018), the average change was +5.4% and a typical year strayed about 8.3% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.7 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 ST.INT.TRNR.CD, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism 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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