In 2024, Sudan ranked had the highest public debt level in relation to its GDP, with an estimated debt almost three times larger than its GDP. The countries with the highest public debt often have a high level of economic instability, however there are also many more developed economies on this list, such as five of the G7 countries, who feature due to their high levels of national borrowing and public spending. Venezuela's public debt

Of the G7 countries, Japan had the highest net debt in terms of share of gross domestic product (GDP) between 2010 and 2024. That year, Japan's government's net debt reached an estimated *** percent of its total GDP. Italy had the second highest debt rate at *** percent of its GDP, whereas Canada had the lowest at only ** percent.

This dataset provides values for GOVERNMENT DEBT TO GDP reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

The statistic shows the 20 countries with the lowest national debt in 2024 in relation to the gross domestic product (GDP). The data refer to the debts of the entire state, including the central government, the provinces, municipalities, local authorities and social insurance. In 2024, Russia's estimated level of national debt reached about 20.3 percent of the GDP, ranking 16th of the countries with the lowest national debt. National debt and GDP The debt-to-GDP ratio is an indicator of a country’s ability to produce and sell goods in order to pay back any present debts, however these countries should not retain newer debts in the process. Many economists believe that if a country is able to produce more without impairing its own economical growth, it can be considered more stable, particularly for the future. However, the listed countries, with the exception of Russia and Saudi Arabia, are not necessarily economic first-world powers. Additionally, economically powerful countries such as the United States and France maintain one of the highest debt-to-GDP ratios, signifying that occurring debt does not necessarily damage the state of the economy and is sometimes necessary in order to help develop it. Saudi Arabia has maintained one of the lowest debt-to-GDP ratios due to its high export rates, which primarily consist of petroleum and petroleum goods. Given the significance of oil in today’s world, Saudi Arabia produces enough oil and earns enough revenue to maintain a high GDP and additionally refrain from incurring debt.

The United States recorded a Government Debt to GDP of 124.30 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product in 2024. This dataset provides - United States Government Debt To GDP - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

In the third quarter of 2024, Greece's national debt was the highest in all the European Union, amounting to 158 percent of Greece's gross domestic product. In spite of Greece's total being high by EU standards, it marks a substantial decrease from the historical high point reached by the country's national debt of 207 percent of GDP in 2020. Italy, France, Spain, Belgium, and Portugal also all have government debt worth over one year's production of their economies, while the small Baltic country of Estonia has the smallest national debt when compared with GDP, at only 24 percent. In debitum incrementum?A country’s national debt, also known as government debt or public debt, is defined as all borrowings owed by the government of a country. It usually comprises internal debt – owed to other governmental departments – and external debt, which is held by the public and is owed to government bond owners. National debt can be caused by a struggling economy in general, or by low tax income, which usually leads to money being borrowed from other governments for support, which in turn cannot be paid back right away. At first glance, a high national debt is not always a sign of a struggling economy – but since increasing debt can slow down economic growth significantly, it is imperative for the respective government to seek a steady reduction in the long run.

Key information about United States Government Debt: % of GDP

• United States Government debt accounted for 124.0 % of the country's Nominal GDP in Dec 2024, compared with the ratio of 123.1 % in the previous quarter.
• US government debt to GDP ratio data is updated quarterly, available from Mar 1969 to Dec 2024.
• The data reached an all-time high of 130.4 % in Mar 2021 and a record low of 31.8 % in Sep 1974.

CEIC calculates quarterly Government Debt as % of Nominal GDP from monthly Government Debt and rolling sum of quarterly Nominal GDP. The Bureau of the Fiscal Service provides Government Debt in USD. The Bureau of Economic Analysis provides Nominal GDP in USD. Government Debt covers Central Government only.


Related information about United States Government Debt: % of GDP

• In the latest reports, US National Government Debt reached 36,220.2 USD bn in Jan 2025.
• The country's Nominal GDP reached 6,632.4 USD bn in Mar 2023.

In 2024, the net government debt to gross domestic product (GDP) ratio of Japan was estimated at about *** percent. The government debt ratio of the United States was over ** percent. Saudi Arabia, who had the lowest net debt, had a debt ratio of only **** percent.

Graph and download economic data for Gross Federal Debt as Percent of Gross Domestic Product (GFDGDPA188S) from 1939 to 2023 about debt, gross, federal, GDP, and USA.

In 2024, Ukraine's estimated national debt amounted to nearly 96 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP), which was the highest ratio among the Eurasian countries. Armenia and Kyrgyzstan ranked second and third, with national debts amounting to approximately 52 percent and 42 percent of their GDP, respectively. The debt-to-GDP ratio is an indicator of a country’s ability to produce and sell goods in order to pay back any present debts. A higher ratio means that a country does not produce enough to pay off its debt, whereas a lower ratio indicates enough economic activity to make debt payments.

Japan recorded a Government Debt to GDP of 236.70 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product in 2024. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - Japan Government Debt to GDP - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

This dataset provides values for GOVERNMENT DEBT TO GDP reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

Key information about Japan Government Debt: % of GDP

• Japan Government debt accounted for 216.2 % of the country's Nominal GDP in Dec 2024, compared with the ratio of 217.2 % in the previous quarter.
• Japan government debt to GDP ratio data is updated quarterly, available from Dec 1994 to Dec 2024.
• The data reached an all-time high of 225.8 % in Mar 2021 and a record low of 55.9 % in Dec 1994.

CEIC calculates quarterly Government Debt as % of Nominal GDP from monthly Government Debt and rolling sum of quarterly Nominal GDP. The Bank of Japan provides Government Debt in local currency. The Economic and Social Research Institute provides Nominal GDP in local currency. Government Debt covers Central Government only.


Related information about Japan Government Debt: % of GDP

• In the latest reports, Japan National Government Debt reached 9,396.6 USD bn in Apr 2023.
• The country's Nominal GDP reached 1,080.1 USD bn in Mar 2023.

Graph and download economic data for Central government debt, total (% of GDP) for Japan (DEBTTLJPA188A) from 1990 to 2022 about Japan, debt, government, and GDP.

Households Debt in the United States decreased to 68.30 percent of GDP in the first quarter of 2025 from 69.40 percent of GDP in the fourth quarter of 2024. This dataset provides - United States Households Debt To Gdp- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Russia recorded a Government Debt to GDP of 16.40 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product in 2024. This dataset provides - Russia Government Debt To GDP - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Key information about European Union Government Debt: % of GDP

• European Union Government debt accounted for 81.6 % of the country's Nominal GDP in Sep 2024, compared with the ratio of 81.5 % in the previous quarter.
• EU government debt to GDP ratio data is updated quarterly, available from Mar 2000 to Sep 2024.
• The data reached an all-time high of 91.5 % in Mar 2021 and a record low of 62.4 % in Dec 2007.

CEIC calculates quarterly Government Debt as % of Nominal GDP from quarterly Government Debt and rolling sum of quarterly Nominal GDP. Eurostat provides Government Debt in EUR and Nominal GDP in EUR. European Union stands for EU27 excluding UK.


Related information about European Union Government Debt: % of GDP

• In the latest reports, EU National Government Debt reached 16,136.9 USD bn in Sep 2024.
• The country's Nominal GDP reached 4,430.4 USD bn in Mar 2023.

India recorded a Government Debt to GDP of 81.92 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product in 2024. This dataset provides - India Government Debt To GDP - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Private Debt to GDP in the United States decreased to 142 percent in 2024 from 147.50 percent in 2023. United States Private Debt to GDP - values, historical data, forecasts and news - updated on September of 2025.

Key information about Italy Government Debt: % of GDP

• Italy Government debt accounted for 135.3 % of the country's Nominal GDP in Dec 2024, compared with the ratio of 136.2 % in the previous quarter.
• Italy government debt to GDP ratio data is updated quarterly, available from Dec 1995 to Dec 2024.
• The data reached an all-time high of 159.9 % in Mar 2021 and a record low of 103.9 % in Dec 2007.

CEIC calculates quarterly Government Debt as % of Nominal GDP from monthly Government Debt and rolling sum of quarterly Nominal GDP. The Bank of Italy provides Government Debt in EUR. Italian National Institute of Statistics provides Nominal GDP in EUR.


Related information about Italy Government Debt: % of GDP

• In the latest reports, Italy National Government Debt reached 3,069.8 USD bn in Dec 2024.
• The country's Nominal GDP reached 538.7 USD bn in Mar 2023.