EXPLORE EUROPE

Public debt map of the EU

Countries are shaded by their current debt-to-GDP ratio. Hover for details or select a country to open its profile.

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EU RANKING

Countries with the highest debt ratios

Current general government gross debt as a percentage of GDP.

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View the full EU ranking

COMPARE

Put countries side by side

Select two to six EU countries and compare how their debt-to-GDP ratios have developed over time.

COMPARISON Compare historical debt

Follow several countries on one chart and share the selected comparison.

→ RANKING Rank all 27 countries

Compare debt / GDP, total debt, population, debt per capita and bond yield.

→ COUNTRY PROFILES Explore individual countries

Open debt history, EU ranking, population, debt clock data and more.

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DEBT CLOCKS

A debt clock for every EU country

Each country profile includes an indicative debt clock based on the year-on-year change between equivalent quarters.

The clock can also be embedded on another website in light, dark or automatic mode.

Choose a country

EXAMPLE

Germany

Open the country profile to see its current debt clock, historical development and EU ranking.

View Germany

DATA & METHODOLOGY

Comparable data across Europe

European public debt comparisons use harmonised Eurostat statistics for general government gross debt, while 10-year government bond yields are sourced from the European Central Bank.

01

Public debt

We show consolidated general government gross debt — the harmonised measure commonly used for public debt comparisons across the EU.

It covers the whole general government sector, not only central government.

02

Debt-to-GDP ratio

Debt as a share of GDP shows the size of public debt relative to the economy and makes countries of different sizes easier to compare.

Total debt can rise even while the debt-to-GDP ratio falls.

03

Debt clock

The amount per second is an indicative conversion of the change in public debt between the two latest comparable periods.

The difference is spread evenly over time.

It is not a live measure of government borrowing or a forecast of future debt.

04

Debt per capita

Debt per capita is calculated as current public debt divided by the latest available population figure.

Population data are based on Eurostat figures for 1 January.

It is a statistical ratio, not a personal liability of an individual.

05

10-year government bond yield

This is the harmonised market yield on long-term government bonds with residual maturity close to 10 years.

The monthly average provides an indication of current long-term government borrowing conditions.

It is not the average interest rate paid on the existing stock of public debt. Source: European Central Bank, IRS dataset.

DATA STATUS

Latest available datasets

Source data are downloaded, transformed and validated before the website datasets are generated.

Eurostat

Quarterly general government gross debt and debt-to-GDP ratios.

gov_10q_ggdebt —

Eurostat

Population figures used for debt per capita calculations.

demo_gind / JAN —

European Central Bank

Harmonised 10-year government bond yields used to show current long-term borrowing conditions.

IRS —