The chart above shows the per capita annualized nominal gross domestic product (GDP) in each EU state as of the first quarter of 2021 in euros, the change from five years ago, and the per capita GDP ten years prior. Luxembourg and Ireland had exceptional growth over the past five years.
Findings
- The difference between the state with the largest per capita GDP, Luxembourg, and the state with the smallest, Bulgaria, is €125,709.41 (up from €98,469.74 five years ago and up from €78,150.41 ten years ago). Luxembourg and Bulgaria had the largest and smallest per capita GDP respectively both five and ten years ago.
- Luxembourg has 15.23 times the per capita GDP that Bulgaria does. The ratio of largest per capita GDP to smallest per capita GDP was down from 16.22 five years ago and up from 14.78 ten years ago.
- The median per capita GDP in the 28 EU states is €25,219.90 (up from €22,805.05 five years ago and up from €20,992.34 ten years ago) and the mean €34,591.02 (up from €28,886.93 five years ago and up from €24,974.49 ten years ago).
- Of the 28 states, 27 had the per capita GDP rise in current euros over the past five years while 1 had the per capita GDP decline.
- Of the 28 states, 27 had the per capita GDP rise in current euros over the past ten years while 1 had the per capita GDP decline.
Caveats
- GDP data is from the first quarters of 2021, 2016, and 2011.
- Census data is from 2001 and 2011.
- The data is seasonally adjusted in current euros.
- The data is annualized by multiplying the quarterly figure by four.
- All figures are rounded to the nearest hundredth.
Details
In absolute terms, Greece had the worst performance over the past five years with a drop of €272.80. Ireland had the best performance with a gain of €32,120.02. Over the past ten years, Greece had the worst performance with a drop of €3,697.47 while Ireland had the best performance with a gain of €51,754.66.
In relative terms, Greece had the worst performance over the past five years with a 1.75% drop in per capita GDP while Ireland had the best performance with a 56.34% rise in per capita GDP. Over the past ten years, Greece had the worst performance with a 19.45% drop in per capita GDP while Ireland had the best performance with a 138.46% rise in per capita GDP.
There were 3 states with a per capita GDP of over €40,000 ten years ago, 8 states five years ago, and 10 states now. Conversely, there were 14 states with a per capita GDP of less than €20,000 ten years ago, 13 states five years ago, and 10 states now.
Estonia (from 19th to 17th largest per capita GDP) rose 2 spots in the five year period. Conversely, Austria (from 5th to 7th), Portugal (from 17th to 19th), and Greece (from 20th to 22nd) fell 2 spots in the five year period. Over the past ten years, Malta (from 18th to 12th) rose 6 spots, while Greece (from 15th to 22nd) fell 7 spots.
Data
| State | First Quarter 2011 | First Quarter 2016 | First Quarter 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Austria | 36,680.02 | 42,487.19 | 45,201.55 |
| Belgium | 33,882.03 | 38,306.51 | 43,279.31 |
| Bulgaria | 5,671.1 | 6,471.65 | 8,834.98 |
| Croatia | 10,412.47 | 10,613.31 | 12,601.82 |
| Cyprus | 23,513.16 | 22,035.58 | 25,730.01 |
| Czechia | 15,701.94 | 16,770.76 | 21,516.94 |
| Denmark | 44,526.91 | 50,004.64 | 56,883.43 |
| Estonia | 12,170.03 | 16,328.38 | 21,999.91 |
| Finland | 36,454.31 | 40,105.1 | 44,703.19 |
| France | 31,464.64 | 34,335.12 | 37,134.31 |
| Germany | 33,166.98 | 38,610.62 | 42,718.32 |
| Greece | 19,014.27 | 15,589.6 | 15,316.8 |
| Hungary | 10,273.11 | 11,338.51 | 14,415.7 |
| Ireland | 37,379.93 | 57,014.57 | 89,134.59 |
| Italy | 27,750 | 28,417.2 | 28,656.28 |
| Latvia | 9,281.19 | 12,103.89 | 14,672.09 |
| Lithuania | 9,925.48 | 12,418.58 | 16,944.31 |
| Luxembourg | 83,821.51 | 104,941.39 | 134,544.39 |
| Malta | 16,562.37 | 24,746.68 | 32,448.09 |
| Netherlands | 38,949.99 | 41,966.6 | 48,958.06 |
| Poland | 10,148.88 | 11,005.85 | 14,152.81 |
| Portugal | 16,908.87 | 17,401.16 | 19,231.15 |
| Romania | 6,563.06 | 8,122.7 | 11,615.53 |
| Slovakia | 12,989.43 | 14,937.04 | 17,228.92 |
| Slovenia | 18,136.28 | 19,380.46 | 23,679.57 |
| Spain | 22,970.41 | 23,574.52 | 24,709.79 |
| Sweden | 44,175.81 | 49,455.15 | 54,744.3 |
| United Kingdom | 30,791.55 | 40,351.24 | 47,492.42 |
Sources
Eurostat. 2021. "GDP and Main Components." Accessed August 26, 2021. https://appsso.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/nui/show.do?query=BOOKMARK_DS-406779_QID_-B4FCD9_UID_-3F171EB0&layout=TIME,C,X,0;GEO,L,Y,0;UNIT,L,Z,0;S_ADJ,L,Z,1;NA_ITEM,L,Z,2;INDICATORS,C,Z,3;&zSelection=DS-406779UNIT,CP_MEUR;DS-406779INDICATORS,OBS_FLAG;DS-406779NA_ITEM,B1GQ;DS-406779S_ADJ,SCA;&rankName1=UNIT_1_2_-1_2&rankName2=INDICATORS_1_2_-1_2&rankName3=NA-ITEM_1_2_-1_2&rankName4=S-ADJ_1_2_-1_2&rankName5=TIME_1_0_0_0&rankName6=GEO_1_2_0_1&sortC=ASC_-1_FIRST&rStp=&cStp=&rDCh=&cDCh=&rDM=true&cDM=true&footnes=false&empty=false&wai=false&time_mode=NONE&time_most_recent=false&lang=EN&cfo=%23%23%23%2C%23%23%23.%23%23%23.
Eurostat. 2017. "Population change - Demographic balance and crude rates at national level." Accessed December 11, 2017. http://appsso.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/nui/show.do?query=BOOKMARK_DS-054722_QID_690C8C0A_UID_-3F171EB0&layout=TIME,C,X,0;GEO,L,Y,0;INDIC_DE,L,Z,0;INDICATORS,C,Z,1;&zSelection=DS-054722INDICATORS,OBS_FLAG;DS-054722INDIC_DE,JAN;&rankName1=INDICATORS_1_2_-1_2&rankName2=INDIC-DE_1_2_-1_2&rankName3=TIME_1_0_0_0&rankName4=GEO_1_2_0_1&sortC=ASC_-1_FIRST&rStp=&cStp=&rDCh=&cDCh=&rDM=true&cDM=true&footnes=false&empty=false&wai=false&time_mode=NONE&time_most_recent=false&lang=EN&cfo=%23%23%23%2C%23%23%23.%23%23%23.
Federal Reserve. 2021. "Foreign Exchange Rates." Accessed August 27, 2021. https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/g5/.
Office for National Statistics. 2021. "Gross Domestic Product at market prices: Current price: Seasonally adjusted £m - Office for National Statistics." Accessed August 26, 2021. https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossdomesticproductgdp/timeseries/ybha/ukea.