Productivity vs. GDP per capita in China
China: Productivity vs. GDP per capita was 17.69 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in 2023. ◆ Volatile
Productivity vs. GDP per capita in China, 1952–2023
Source: Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in international-$ in 2021 prices per hour.
Analysis
In 2023, productivity vs. gdp per capita in China stood at 17.69 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour. That is the highest value across all 72 years on record.
That represents a change of up 4.7% on the previous year and up 81.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, productivity vs. gdp per capita in China peaked at 17.69 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in 2023 and was at its lowest, 0.5035 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour, in 1952.
China ranks 82nd of 130 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 0.5359 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 0.5035 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 0.5595 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 8 |
| 1960s | 0.6185 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 0.5289 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 0.7079 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.7736 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 0.6897 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 0.897 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.2 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 0.9019 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 1.53 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.38 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 1.53 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 3.25 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.27 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 3.5 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 7.62 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 2010s | 10.83 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 8.04 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 14.17 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.56 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 15.13 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 17.69 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 4 |
Countries ranked near China
- 79 Venezuela 18.44 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
- 80 Botswana 18.36 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
- 81 Albania 17.84 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
- 83 Moldova 17.57 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
- 84 Sri Lanka 17.55 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
- 85 Tunisia 16.8 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
More work & labour data for China
- Women can take the same jobs as men 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Legislation on sexual harassment in employment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Criminal sanctions or compensation for workplace sexual harassment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 59.1% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) 49.3% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 69.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) 78.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15-6 74.0% (2025)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) 84.7% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) 47.7% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is productivity vs. gdp per capita in China?
- Productivity vs. gdp per capita in China was 17.69 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in 2023, according to Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest productivity vs. gdp per capita recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 17.69 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in 2023.
- What is the lowest productivity vs. gdp per capita recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.5035 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in 1952.
- How does China rank for productivity vs. gdp per capita?
- China ranks 82nd out of 130 countries with data for 2023.
- Is productivity vs. gdp per capita rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 81.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Productivity vs. GDP per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 72 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
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.