Share of R&D personnel and researchers in total active population and in Ireland

Ireland: Share of R&D personnel and researchers in total active population and was 2.5% in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
2.5%
Change on year
up 10.7%
World rank
16th
of 48 countries
All-time high
2.5%
in 2023
All-time low
1.0%
in 2012
Years of data
19
2000–2023

Share of R&D personnel and researchers in total active population and in Ireland, 2000–2023

00.511.522.52000201120232000: 1.2 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2001: 1.3 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2002: 1.3 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2003: 1.3 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2004: 1.3 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2005: 1.4 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2006: 1.4 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2007: 1.4 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2008: 1.4 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2009: 1.5 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2010: 1.5 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2011: 1.7 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2012: 1 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2013: 2.2 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2015: 2.1 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2017: 2.2 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2019: 2.1 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2021: 2.2 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)2023: 2.5 Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)

Source: Eurostat. Measured in Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC).

Analysis

The most recent figure for share of r&d personnel and researchers in total active population and in Ireland is 2.5%, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 19 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 10.7% on the previous year and up 14.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of r&d personnel and researchers in total active population and in Ireland peaked at 2.5% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 1.0%, in 2012.

Ireland ranks 16th of 48 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 19 years of available data.

Share of R&D personnel and researchers in total active population and in Ireland, year by year

Annual values for Share of R&D personnel and researchers in total active population and employment by sector of performance and sex in Ireland, 2000 to 2023.
Year Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC) Change
2000 1.2%
2001 1.3% +12.1%
2002 1.3% -1.5%
2003 1.3% +0.8%
2004 1.3% +2.3%
2005 1.4% +2.3%
2006 1.4% +0.7%
2007 1.4% -0.7%
2008 1.4% +4.4%
2009 1.5% +6.4%
2010 1.5% +2.0%
2011 1.7% +8.5%
2012 1.0% -37.3%
2013 2.2% +108.7%
2015 2.1% -2.8%
2017 2.2% +4.7%
2019 2.1% -4.1%
2021 2.2% +5.7%
2023 2.5% +10.7%

Ireland compared with similar countries

  • Ireland's 2.5% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 2.2%, 1.1× the median. (34 countries reporting)
  • Ireland's 2.5% is above the median for high income countries, which is 2.2%, 1.1× the median. (33 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Share of R&D personnel and researchers in total active population and in Ireland changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
2013 +108.7% 1.0% 2.2%
2012 -37.3% 1.7% 1.0%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 1.3% 1.2% 1.5% 10
2010s 1.8% 1.0% 2.2% 7
2020s 2.4% 2.2% 2.5% 2

Countries ranked near Ireland

  1. 14 Slovenia 2.6% compare
  2. 14 Slovenia 2.6% compare
  3. 17 Czechia 2.4% compare
  4. 17 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 2.4% compare
  5. 17 United Kingdom 2.4% compare

See the full ranking of 51 places →

More work & labour data for Ireland

All data for Ireland →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of r&d personnel and researchers in total active population and in Ireland?
Share of r&d personnel and researchers in total active population and in Ireland was 2.5% in 2023, according to Eurostat.
What is the highest share of r&d personnel and researchers in total active population and recorded in Ireland?
The highest recorded value was 2.5% in 2023.
What is the lowest share of r&d personnel and researchers in total active population and recorded in Ireland?
The lowest recorded value was 1.0% in 2012.
How does Ireland rank for share of r&d personnel and researchers in total active population and?
Ireland ranks 16th out of 48 countries with data for 2023.
Is share of r&d personnel and researchers in total active population and rising or falling in Ireland?
Over the last ten years it is up 14.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Ireland data come from?
The figures come from Eurostat, published as part of Share of R&D personnel and researchers in total active population and employment by sector of performance and sex. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 19 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Eurostat).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Share of R&D personnel and researchers in total active population and in Ireland. Statizoid, drawing on Eurostat. Retrieved 15 September 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-r-and-d-personnel-and-researchers-in-total-active-population-and-employment-by/ireland/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Eurostat); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-r-and-d-personnel-and-researchers-in-total-active-population-and-employment-by/ireland/">Share of R&D personnel and researchers in total active population and in Ireland</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Share of R&D personnel and researchers in total active population and employment by sector of performance and sex
Unit
Percentage of population in the labour force - numerator in head count (HC)
Source
Eurostat
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Eurostat)
Coverage
51 places, 1,043 data points, 1992–2024
Last refreshed