₦airaland Forum

How Countries Compare on Tax Revenue

Key Takeaways

- Denmark collects tax revenue equal to 45.3% of GDP, the highest among the countries in this comparison, and more than twice the 19.5% collected in the United States.

- Seven of the 10 countries with the highest tax-revenue shares are in Europe.

- Several oil-rich economies rank near the bottom, where natural-resource revenues can reduce reliance on conventional taxation.

Tax revenue varies significantly around the world, reflecting differences in tax systems, economic development, institutional capacity and other sources of government income.

Using the latest data from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), this comparison examines tax revenue as a percentage of GDP across countries in 2024.

Where Governments Rely Most on Taxes

Among wealthy economies, the differences are substantial. Denmark collects tax revenue equivalent to 45.3% of GDP, compared with roughly 29% in Canada and Australia and 19.5% in the United States.

Rank| Country| Tax Revenue as % of GDP (2024)

1| Denmark| 45.3%
2| Bulgaria| 38.8%
3| Sweden| 38.7%
4| Namibia| 35.3%
5| Iceland| 33.4%
6| New Zealand| 32.6%
7| Norway| 31.3%
8| Eswatini| 30.7%
9| Luxembourg| 30.7%
10| Finland| 30.4%
11| Italy| 29.6%
12| Belgium| 29.6%
13| Canada| 29.5%
14| Australia| 29.4%
15| Montenegro| 29.0%
16| France| 28.7%
17| United Kingdom| 28.5%
18| Austria| 28.3%
19| Greece| 27.8%
20| Barbados| 27.8%

These differences partly reflect how countries structure their tax systems and finance public services.

Nordic countries generally have broad tax bases that help finance extensive public programmes, while the United States relies more heavily on private spending in areas such as healthcare and retirement.

The World’s Least Taxed Countries

At the other end of the ranking, oil-rich economies appear alongside some of the world's poorest countries. Both groups collect relatively little in taxes, but for very different reasons.

Rank| Country| Tax Revenue as % of GDP (2024)

1| Libya| 1.2%
2| Kuwait| 1.4%
3| Iraq| 1.7%
4| Yemen| 2.0%
5| Sudan| 2.0%
6| Somalia| 2.2%
7| Nigeria| 3.4%
8| Qatar| 3.8%
9| Bahrain| 4.4%
10| Oman| 4.5%
11| South Sudan| 4.8%
12| Haiti| 5.0%
13| Iran| 5.2%
14| Equatorial Guinea| 5.5%
15| Angola| 5.6%
16| Myanmar| 5.6%
17| Brunei| 6.1%
18| Ethiopia| 6.2%
19| Sierra Leone| 6.4%
20| Panama| 6.7%

For major oil producers, natural resources provide an alternative source of government revenue. Kuwait collects just 1.4% of GDP in taxes, while Qatar, Bahrain and Oman are all below 5%.

In lower-income countries, low tax collections can instead reflect large informal economies and limited tax-collection capacity.

Therefore, similar tax levels can have very different explanations: resource wealth may reduce the need for conventional taxation in one country, while limited capacity to collect taxes may explain the situation in another.

America’s Growing Tax and Spending Gap

The United States occupies an interesting position in the global comparison. Its tax revenue is lower than that of many other advanced economies, while federal spending is projected to remain substantially higher than federal revenues.

In 2026, federal spending is projected at 23.3% of GDP, compared with revenues of 17.5%. By 2036, those figures are projected to reach 24.4% and 17.8%, respectively.

Meanwhile, net interest payments are projected to more than double to approximately $2.1 trillion, nearly matching all federal discretionary spending.

This creates a persistent gap between what the federal government collects and what it spends, while an increasing share of the budget goes toward servicing past borrowing.

Tax Revenue Around the World

Countries' tax revenues vary according to development levels, institutional capacity, tax systems, economic structures and natural-resource wealth.

The following figures show tax revenue as a percentage of GDP in 2024:

Country| Tax Revenue
Afghanistan| 10.9%
Albania| 19.8%
Algeria| 9.4%
Andorra| 15.8%
Angola| 5.6%
Antigua and Barbuda| 15.6%
Argentina| 22.8%
Armenia| 22.4%
Aruba| 21.0%
Australia| 29.4%
Austria| 28.3%
Azerbaijan| 17.8%
Bahrain| 4.4%
Bangladesh| 7.4%
Barbados| 27.8%
Belarus| 27.2%
Belgium| 29.6%
Belize| 23.2%
Benin| 13.2%
Bhutan| 10.8%
Bolivia| 17.8%
Bosnia and Herzegovina| 22.6%
Botswana| 22.4%
Brazil| 25.6%
Brunei Darussalam| 6.1%
Bulgaria| 38.8%
Burkina Faso| 18.8%
Burundi| 12.1%
Cabo Verde| 19.4%
Cambodia| 12.5%
Cameroon| 12.7%
Canada| 29.5%
Central African Republic| 7.8%
Chad| 7.4%
Chile| 19.6%
China| 13.0%
Colombia| 23.0%
Comoros| 8.9%
Costa Rica| 13.2%
Côte d'Ivoire| 13.6%
Croatia| 27.2%
Cyprus| 25.3%
Czech Republic| 18.9%
DR Congo| 9.8%
Denmark| 45.3%
Djibouti| 11.0%
Dominica| 22.3%
Dominican Republic| 14.5%
Ecuador| 13.6%
Egypt| 11.7%
El Salvador| 21.6%
Equatorial Guinea| 5.5%
Estonia| 22.9%
Eswatini| 30.7%
Ethiopia| 6.2%
Fiji| 22.3%
Finland| 30.4%
France| 28.7%
Gabon| 13.3%
Georgia| 24.9%
Germany| 23.0%
Ghana| 13.3%
Greece| 27.8%
Grenada| 23.6%
Guatemala| 11.8%
Guinea| 12.3%
Guinea-Bissau| 8.8%
Guyana| 8.2%
Haiti| 5.0%
Honduras| 17.5%
Hong Kong SAR| 14.2%
Hungary| 24.7%
Iceland| 33.4%
India| 18.1%
Indonesia| 10.1%
Iran| 5.2%
Iraq| 1.7%
Ireland| 20.5%
Israel| 24.9%
Italy| 29.6%
Jamaica| 25.6%
Japan| 20.2%
Jordan| 15.4%
Kazakhstan| 16.0%
Kenya| 12.9%
Kiribati| 17.5%
South Korea| 13.2%
Kosovo| 27.1%
Kuwait| 1.4%
Kyrgyz Republic| 21.8%
Lao P.D.R.| 12.4%
Latvia| 22.8%
Lebanon| 10.3%
Lesotho| 23.5%
Liberia| 11.6%
Libya| 1.2%
Liechtenstein| 14.5%
Lithuania| 22.3%
Luxembourg| 30.7%
Macao SAR| 25.9%
Türkiye| 16.6%
Micronesia| 16.5%
Romania| 16.4%
Nepal| 16.4%
Thailand| 16.0%
Mali| 15.8%
Mexico| 15.7%
Philippines| 15.4%
Mauritania| 15.3%
St. Kitts and Nevis| 15.2%
Togo| 14.9%
Singapore| 14.3%
Peru| 14.3%
Malawi| 14.1%
Vanuatu| 13.9%
Marshall Islands| 13.9%
Rwanda| 13.8%
Uzbekistan| 13.6%
Vietnam| 13.0%
Uganda| 12.9%
Malaysia| 12.5%
Sri Lanka| 12.4%
Papua New Guinea| 12.1%
Turkmenistan| 11.9%
Tanzania| 11.9%
Zimbabwe| 11.6%
Paraguay| 11.4%
Madagascar| 11.4%
The Gambia| 11.1%
São Tomé and Príncipe| 10.8%
Republic of Congo| 10.6%
Pakistan| 9.9%
Timor-Leste| 9.1%
Saudi Arabia| 7.2%
Niger| 6.9%
Panama| 6.7%
Sierra Leone| 6.4%
Myanmar| 5.6%
South Sudan| 4.8%
Oman| 4.5%
Qatar| 3.8%
Nigeria| 3.4%
Somalia| 2.2%
Yemen| 2.0%
Sudan| 2.0%
Iraq| 1.7%
Kuwait| 1.4%
Libya| 1.2%

What Does Nigeria's Position Mean?

Nigeria's reported tax revenue of 3.4% of GDP in 2024 places it among the countries with the lowest tax-revenue ratios in the comparison.

However, a low tax-to-GDP ratio does not by itself tell us whether citizens are lightly or heavily burdened by taxes. The figure measures government tax revenue relative to the size of the economy and can be influenced by factors such as the size of the informal economy, tax administration, exemptions, compliance, economic structure and other sources of government revenue.

The international comparison therefore raises an important question about how Nigeria can broaden its revenue base while supporting economic activity and ensuring that taxation is effectively used to provide public services.

Source: Dorothy Neufeld, Visual Capitalist, “Ranked: The World's Most and Least Taxed Countries,” published October 1, 2026. Data source: International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Revenue Longitudinal Data (WoRLD), 2024 figures.

Whatever is the case, a regime that rejects statistics should not be directly or indirectly defended with statistics.

Useless list for Nigeria.
Just living in Nigeria is a tax

The govt always want to show justification for increasing tax or widening tax net but the often forget that more than 80% Nigerians are underemployed, over burdening them with tax will reduce their disposable income and impoverish them the more!

You want to tax people providing electricity, Healthcare, education, to mention but a few, for themselves?

LordIsaac:
You want to tax people providing electricity, Healthcare, education, to mention but a few, for themselves?

Shey government dey provide electricity, healthcare, and education for free elsewhere without taxes?

LegendHero:
Shey government dey provide electricity, healthcare, and education for free elsewhere without taxes?

They've been taxing Nigerians from antiquity with nothing to show for it. For example, where is the electricity Obasanjo et al spent over 8billion dollars on?

immortalcrown:
Whatever is the case, a regime that rejects statistics should not be directly or indirectly defended with statistics.

Na statistics you mus chop. Both macro and micro. And Macron sef if possible