Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality in Singapore
Singapore: Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality was 14.0% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality in Singapore, 1980–2023
Source: UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality in Singapore is 14.0%, measured in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 16.4% on the previous year and up 5.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality in Singapore peaked at 18.9% in 1982 and was at its lowest, 11.6%, in 2005.
Singapore ranks 131st of 187 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 44 years of available data.
Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality in Singapore, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 17.0% | — |
| 1981 | 17.9% | +5.2% |
| 1982 | 18.9% | +5.8% |
| 1983 | 18.8% | -0.8% |
| 1984 | 17.7% | -5.8% |
| 1985 | 15.7% | -11.3% |
| 1986 | 12.7% | -18.7% |
| 1987 | 13.1% | +2.7% |
| 1988 | 14.1% | +7.6% |
| 1989 | 15.7% | +11.5% |
| 1990 | 14.5% | -7.3% |
| 1991 | 15.2% | +4.4% |
| 1992 | 16.1% | +6.1% |
| 1993 | 16.3% | +1.2% |
| 1994 | 16.6% | +2.0% |
| 1995 | 15.8% | -5.1% |
| 1996 | 15.9% | +0.8% |
| 1997 | 15.3% | -3.7% |
| 1998 | 14.0% | -8.4% |
| 1999 | 14.5% | +3.6% |
| 2000 | 14.9% | +2.2% |
| 2001 | 14.6% | -1.8% |
| 2002 | 12.7% | -13.0% |
| 2003 | 12.4% | -1.9% |
| 2004 | 11.6% | -6.8% |
| 2005 | 11.6% | -0.2% |
| 2006 | 11.8% | +2.2% |
| 2007 | 12.8% | +8.4% |
| 2008 | 13.8% | +7.3% |
| 2009 | 13.0% | -5.8% |
| 2010 | 12.8% | -1.3% |
| 2011 | 13.1% | +2.5% |
| 2012 | 13.6% | +3.6% |
| 2013 | 13.3% | -2.3% |
| 2014 | 13.6% | +2.1% |
| 2015 | 13.1% | -3.1% |
| 2016 | 13.3% | +1.3% |
| 2017 | 14.0% | +5.1% |
| 2018 | 13.0% | -7.0% |
| 2019 | 13.2% | +1.1% |
| 2020 | 12.7% | -3.2% |
| 2021 | 12.8% | +0.6% |
| 2022 | 12.0% | -6.1% |
| 2023 | 14.0% | +16.4% |
Singapore compared with similar countries
- Singapore's 14.0% is below the median for high income countries, which is 29.8%, 47% of the median. (65 countries reporting)
- Singapore's 14.0% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 18.1%, 77% of the median. (30 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 16.1% | 12.7% | 18.9% | 10 |
| 1990s | 15.4% | 14.0% | 16.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 12.9% | 11.6% | 14.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 13.3% | 12.8% | 14.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 12.9% | 12.0% | 14.0% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Singapore
- 128 Dominican Republic 14.3% compare
- 129 Mexico 14.3% compare
- 130 Philippines 14.1% compare
- 132 Rwanda 14.0% compare
- 133 Cote d'Ivoire 13.6% compare
- 134 Ghana 13.5% compare
More poverty & inequality data for Singapore
- Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty 0.943 live births per woman (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 14.01 (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, annual growth rate 16.4 % change on previous year (2023)
- Gender Inequality Index 0.031 (2023)
- Share of government consumption in GDP vs. share of population living in extreme poverty 11.9% (2023)
- Lifespan inequality: Gini coefficient in women 0.0759 (2023)
- Lifespan inequality: Gini coefficient by sex 0.0759 (2023)
- Lifespan inequality: Gini coefficient in men 0.091 (2023)
- Income inequality: Atkinson index 0.2594 (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality in Singapore?
- Tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality in Singapore was 14.0% in 2023, according to UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality recorded in Singapore?
- The highest recorded value was 18.9% in 1982.
- What is the lowest tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality recorded in Singapore?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.6% in 2005.
- How does Singapore rank for tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality?
- Singapore ranks 131st out of 187 countries with data for 2023.
- Is tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality rising or falling in Singapore?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Singapore data come from?
- The figures come from UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 44 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Taxes include direct and indirect taxes as well as social contributions. The Gini coefficient measures inequality on a scale from 0 to 1. Higher values indicate higher inequality.