International comparison
How the UK sits against other major economies, on a measure chosen to be comparable across countries.
Comparing like with like
Countries measure debt differently. This comparison uses general government gross debt as a share of GDP, the most consistent measure available internationally. The UK's headline national measure (net debt, about 94% of GDP) is lower and not directly comparable. The deficit shown is the IMF general government measure for calendar year 2025, which is broader than the UK's own public sector net borrowing (4.4% of GDP in the year to March 2026). All three are for 2025, the latest completed year; some 2025 figures are still IMF estimates rather than final outturn. All figures are from the IMF World Economic Outlook, October 2026 vintage, taken from the IMF DataMapper on 25 October 2026.
General government gross debt (% of GDP), 2025
| Country | Debt %GDP | Deficit %GDP | Growth % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | 204.8 | 0.7 | 1.2 |
| Italy | 137.1 | 3.1 | 0.5 |
| United States | 124.4 | 7.1 | 2.3 |
| France | 115.5 | 5.1 | 0.9 |
| Canada | 113.6 | 1.7 | 1.9 |
| United Kingdom UK | 102.1 | 5.3 | 1.2 |
| Germany | 62.7 | 2.9 | 0.2 |
| Australia | 51.9 | 2.9 | 2 |
Debt figures: IMF World Economic Outlook database, 2025. Retrieved . official
Why the UK number here differs from the headline
This table uses general government gross debt, the most consistent measure across countries. The UK's own headline measure (public sector net debt, around 94% of GDP) is lower because it subtracts liquid assets and is defined slightly differently. Comparing countries fairly means using the same definition for all of them, even if it is not the one a country usually quotes at home.