Netherlands vs United States of America: Employee compensation as share of government spending
Netherlands
7.8%
in 2023
United States of America
8.1%
in 2023
Netherlands rank
148th
United States of America rank
147th
Employee compensation as share of government spending over time
- Netherlands
- United States of America
How they compare
United States of America currently reports 8.1% against 7.8% in Netherlands, a difference of 0.3%.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 50 shared years of data; in 1974 it was United States of America ahead.
Netherlands ranks 148th and United States of America ranks 147th of 155 countries.
Across the 6 decades both report, Netherlands averaged higher in 1 and United States of America in 5.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Netherlands | United States of America | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 11.7% | 14.2% | 2.4% | United States of America |
| 1980s | 9.4% | 10.8% | 1.4% | United States of America |
| 1990s | 8.1% | 9.1% | 1.0% | United States of America |
| 2000s | 7.4% | 10.3% | 2.9% | United States of America |
| 2010s | 7.5% | 9.8% | 2.3% | United States of America |
| 2020s | 7.6% | 7.4% | 0.2% | Netherlands |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher employee compensation as share of government spending, Netherlands or United States of America?
- United States of America, at 8.1% against 7.8% in Netherlands as of 2023.
- What is the difference in employee compensation as share of government spending between Netherlands and United States of America?
- 0.3%, with United States of America ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Netherlands and United States of America?
- 50 years are reported by both, from 1974 to 2023.
- How do Netherlands and United States of America rank globally for employee compensation as share of government spending?
- Netherlands ranks 148th and United States of America ranks 147th of 155 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- International Monetary Fund (IMF) Government Finance Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Employee compensation as share of government spending. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Employee compensation includes wages, in-kind payments, and government contributions to social insurance schemes such as social security and pensions.