France vs Germany: Productivity: output per hour worked

France
77.67 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour
in 2023
Germany
82.5 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour
in 2023
France rank
12th
Germany rank
10th

Productivity: output per hour worked over time

  • France
  • Germany
020406080195019862023

How they compare

Germany currently reports 82.5 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour against 77.67 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in France, a difference of 4.83 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour.

That makes Germany's figure about 1.1 times France's.

The two have swapped places 5 times across 74 shared years of data; in 1950 it was France ahead.

France ranks 12th and Germany ranks 10th of 130 countries.

Across the 8 decades both report, France averaged higher in 5 and Germany in 3.

Head to head by decade

Decade France Germany Difference Ahead
1950s 9.74 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour 7.77 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour 1.97 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour France
1960s 16.92 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour 14.03 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour 2.89 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour France
1970s 29.98 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour 23.35 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour 6.64 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour France
1980s 39.92 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour 30.49 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour 9.43 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour France
1990s 50.29 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour 49.22 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour 1.06 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour France
2000s 63.67 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour 65.1 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour 1.43 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour Germany
2010s 72.6 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour 75.64 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour 3.04 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour Germany
2020s 78.99 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour 82.55 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour 3.56 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour Germany

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher productivity: output per hour worked, France or Germany?
Germany, at 82.5 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour against 77.67 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in France as of 2023.
What is the difference in productivity: output per hour worked between France and Germany?
4.83 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour, with Germany ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for France and Germany?
74 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2023.
How do France and Germany rank globally for productivity: output per hour worked?
France ranks 12th and Germany ranks 10th of 130 countries.
Where does this data come from?
Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Productivity: output per hour worked. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Individual pages

About this data

Indicator
Productivity: output per hour worked
Unit
international-$ in 2021 prices per hour
Source
Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
130 places, 4,965 data points, 1950–2023
Last refreshed

Productivity is calculated as GDP divided by the total number of hours worked in the economy. This data is adjusted for inflation and differences in living costs between countries.