Countries by International tourism, expenditures for travel items (current US$)
China ranks 1st in international tourism expenditures with $130.5 billion in 2020, more than three times the second-ranked Germany at $38.8 billion. At the other end, South Sudan ranks 193rd with just $1 million. The gap between top and bottom spans over 13 million percent, reflecting vast differences in outbound travel capacity across economies.
Ranking 2020
| Rank | Country | Value |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | China | 130,504,000,000 |
| 2 | Germany | 38,752,000,000 |
| 3 | United States | 35,806,000,000 |
| 4 | France | 27,758,000,000 |
| 5 | United Kingdom | 21,698,000,000 |
| 6 | South Korea | 16,157,000,000 |
| 7 | Belgium | 13,035,000,000 |
| 8 | India | 12,574,000,000 |
| 9 | Canada | 12,078,000,000 |
| 10 | Italy | 10,858,000,000 |
| 11 | Switzerland | 9,546,000,000 |
| 12 | Russia | 9,140,000,000 |
| 13 | Spain | 8,742,000,000 |
| 14 | Iran | 8,695,000,000 |
| 15 | Saudi Arabia | 8,533,000,000 |
| 16 | Netherlands | 7029100097.66 |
| 17 | Singapore | 6,828,000,000 |
| 18 | Qatar | 6,742,000,000 |
| 19 | Kuwait | 6,696,000,000 |
| 20 | Australia | 6,488,000,000 |
| 21 | Sweden | 6,144,000,000 |
| 22 | Denmark | 5,636,000,000 |
| 23 | Nigeria | 5,548,000,000 |
| 24 | Hong Kong | 5,520,000,000 |
| 25 | Japan | 5,448,000,000 |
| 26 | Brazil | 5,394,000,000 |
| 27 | Poland | 5,202,000,000 |
| 28 | Austria | 4,903,000,000 |
| 29 | Malaysia | 4,820,000,000 |
| 30 | Ukraine | 4,691,000,000 |
| 31 | Philippines | 4,568,000,000 |
| 32 | Iraq | 4,172,000,000 |
| 33 | Norway | 3,860,000,000 |
| 34 | Mexico | 3,475,000,000 |
| 35 | Czechia | 3,430,000,000 |
| 36 | Portugal | 3,140,000,000 |
| 37 | Romania | 3,022,000,000 |
| 38 | Thailand | 2,865,000,000 |
| 39 | Egypt | 2,509,000,000 |
| 40 | Luxembourg | 2,420,000,000 |
| 41 | Argentina | 2,346,000,000 |
| 42 | Ireland | 2,334,000,000 |
| 43 | Libya | 2,042,000,000 |
| 44 | Venezuela | 1,812,000,000 |
| 45 | Israel | 1,804,000,000 |
| 46 | Bahrain | 1,720,000,000 |
| 47 | Lebanon | 1,671,000,000 |
| 48 | Indonesia | 1,653,000,000 |
| 49 | Finland | 1,646,000,000 |
| 50 | New Zealand | 1,466,000,000 |
| 51 | Colombia | 1,396,000,000 |
| 52 | Slovakia | 1,224,000,000 |
| 53 | Hungary | 1,159,000,000 |
| 54 | Serbia | 1,115,000,000 |
| 55 | Morocco | 1,113,000,000 |
| 56 | Bulgaria | 1,048,000,000 |
| 57 | Türkiye | 1,040,000,000 |
| 58 | Oman | 1,036,000,000 |
| 59 | South Africa | 928,000,000 |
| 60 | Greece | 898,000,000 |
| 61 | Uzbekistan | 888,000,000 |
| 62 | Cyprus | 880,000,000 |
| 63 | Pakistan | 848,000,000 |
| 64 | Macao | 845,000,000 |
| 65 | Kazakhstan | 826,000,000 |
| 66 | Slovenia | 817900024.41 |
| 67 | Croatia | 775687194.82 |
| 68 | Syria | 774,000,000 |
| 69 | Albania | 763,000,000 |
| 70 | Peru | 733,000,000 |
| 71 | Tanzania | 651099975.59 |
| 72 | Angola | 615,000,000 |
| 73 | Estonia | 594,000,000 |
| 74 | Puerto Rico | 592,000,000 |
| 75 | Palestine | 558,000,000 |
| 76 | Cameroon | 553,000,000 |
| 77 | Mongolia | 550,000,000 |
| 78 | Chile | 530,000,000 |
| 79 | Iceland | 519,000,000 |
| 80 | Panama | 465,000,000 |
| 81 | Sri Lanka | 449,000,000 |
| 82 | Belarus | 445,000,000 |
| 83 | Lithuania | 438,000,000 |
| 84 | Azerbaijan | 412,000,000 |
| 85 | Ecuador | 408,000,000 |
| 86 | Bangladesh | 394,000,000 |
| 87 | Jordan | 381,000,000 |
| 88 | Tunisia | 369,000,000 |
| 89 | Uruguay | 341,000,000 |
| 90 | Ethiopia | 322,000,000 |
| 91 | Armenia | 307,000,000 |
| 92 | Aruba | 306,000,000 |
| 93 | Latvia | 301,000,000 |
| 94 | Costa Rica | 300,000,000 |
| 95 | Lesotho | 276,000,000 |
| 95 | Moldova | 276,000,000 |
| 97 | Bolivia | 274,000,000 |
| 98 | Nepal | 263,000,000 |
| 99 | Guatemala | 256,000,000 |
| 100 | Republic of Congo | 251,000,000 |
| 100 | Laos | 251,000,000 |
| 102 | Algeria | 234,000,000 |
| 102 | Zambia | 234,000,000 |
| 104 | Gabon | 232,000,000 |
| 105 | Cayman Islands | 227,000,000 |
| 106 | Haiti | 217,000,000 |
| 107 | Dominican Republic | 214,000,000 |
| 108 | Côte d'Ivoire | 205,000,000 |
| 108 | Mauritius | 205,000,000 |
| 110 | DR Congo | 204,000,000 |
| 111 | Kenya | 196,000,000 |
| 112 | Bermuda | 191,000,000 |
| 113 | Myanmar | 186,000,000 |
| 114 | Andorra | 180,000,000 |
| 114 | Georgia | 180,000,000 |
| 116 | Mali | 179,000,000 |
| 117 | French Polynesia | 177,000,000 |
| 118 | Senegal | 171,000,000 |
| 119 | Cambodia | 169,000,000 |
| 120 | Honduras | 163,000,000 |
| 121 | New Caledonia | 153,000,000 |
| 122 | North Macedonia | 147,000,000 |
| 123 | El Salvador | 142,000,000 |
| 124 | Zimbabwe | 135,000,000 |
| 125 | Jamaica | 131,000,000 |
| 126 | Malta | 127,000,000 |
| 127 | Burkina Faso | 114599998.47 |
| 128 | Papua New Guinea | 113,000,000 |
| 129 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 112,000,000 |
| 130 | Bahamas | 110,000,000 |
| 130 | Uganda | 110,000,000 |
| 132 | Ghana | 105,000,000 |
| 133 | Rwanda | 104,000,000 |
| 134 | Niger | 102,500,000 |
| 135 | Curaçao | 102,000,000 |
| 136 | Brunei | 97,000,000 |
| 137 | Paraguay | 96,000,000 |
| 138 | Benin | 94,000,000 |
| 139 | Maldives | 92,000,000 |
| 140 | Mozambique | 90,000,000 |
| 141 | Botswana | 89,000,000 |
| 141 | Kyrgyzstan | 89,000,000 |
| 143 | Guinea-Bissau | 87099998.47 |
| 144 | Malawi | 83,000,000 |
| 145 | Madagascar | 79,000,000 |
| 146 | Sierra Leone | 77,000,000 |
| 147 | Fiji | 75,000,000 |
| 148 | Namibia | 72,000,000 |
| 149 | Nicaragua | 63,000,000 |
| 150 | Suriname | 60,000,000 |
| 151 | Timor-Leste | 54,000,000 |
| 152 | Barbados | 53,000,000 |
| 153 | Cabo Verde | 52,000,000 |
| 154 | Central African Republic | 50400001.53 |
| 155 | Bhutan | 50,000,000 |
| 156 | Yemen | 49,000,000 |
| 157 | Guyana | 47,000,000 |
| 158 | Togo | 43,000,000 |
| 159 | Eswatini | 36,000,000 |
| 160 | Tonga | 33,000,000 |
| 160 | Trinidad and Tobago | 33,000,000 |
| 162 | Comoros | 31,000,000 |
| 163 | Solomon Islands | 30899999.62 |
| 164 | Afghanistan | 30,000,000 |
| 164 | Montenegro | 30,000,000 |
| 166 | Antigua and Barbuda | 27,000,000 |
| 167 | Seychelles | 26,000,000 |
| 168 | Burundi | 23,000,000 |
| 169 | Belize | 20549999.24 |
| 170 | Marshall Islands | 19899999.62 |
| 171 | Sint Maarten (Dutch part) | 19,000,000 |
| 171 | Saint Lucia | 19,000,000 |
| 173 | Mauritania | 18,000,000 |
| 173 | Vanuatu | 18,000,000 |
| 175 | Djibouti | 14899999.62 |
| 176 | Palau | 13699999.81 |
| 177 | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 13,000,000 |
| 178 | Micronesia | 12,000,000 |
| 179 | Sao Tome and Principe | 9,500,000 |
| 180 | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 9,000,000 |
| 181 | Nauru | 7099999.9 |
| 182 | Tuvalu | 6300000.19 |
| 183 | Dominica | 6,000,000 |
| 183 | Sudan | 6,000,000 |
| 185 | Liberia | 5699999.81 |
| 186 | Gambia | 5,000,000 |
| 186 | Grenada | 5,000,000 |
| 188 | Guinea | 4199999.81 |
| 188 | Turks and Caicos Islands | 4199999.81 |
| 190 | Tajikistan | 3,500,000 |
| 191 | Kiribati | 3200000.05 |
| 192 | Samoa | 1299999.95 |
| 193 | South Sudan | 1,000,000 |
Analysis
This metric measures international tourism expenditures in current US dollars, as recorded under World Bank indicator ST.INT.TVLX.CD. According to the source definition, international tourism expenditures are expenditures of international outbound visitors in other countries. The goods and services are purchased by, or on behalf of, the traveler or provided, without a quid pro quo, for the traveler to use or give away. These may include expenditures by residents traveling abroad as same-day visitors, except in cases where these are so important as to justify a separate treatment. The dataset covers 193 countries for the reference year 2020, with 157 of those (81.3%) reporting data from that specific year and 172 of 193 (89.1%) providing data from within the last seven years. All datapoints are classified as official quality. The range runs from $1 million to $130.5 billion, a spread of 13,050,300%.
The top of the ranking is dominated by large, wealthy economies. China (rank 1, $130.5 billion) stands alone by a wide margin. Germany (rank 2, $38.8 billion) and the United States (rank 3, $35.8 billion) follow, with France (rank 4, $27.8 billion) and the United Kingdom (rank 5, $21.7 billion) rounding out the top five. Korea (rank 6, $16.2 billion) and Belgium (rank 7, $13.0 billion) reflect strong outbound travel cultures relative to their population sizes. India (rank 8, $12.6 billion) and Canada (rank 9, $12.1 billion) also rank in the top ten, with Italy (rank 10, $10.9 billion) closing out the leading group.
Several counterintuitive placements appear mid-ranking. Belgium (rank 7, $13.0 billion) outspends much larger economies such as Australia (rank 20, $6.5 billion) and Japan (rank 25, $5.4 billion). Iran (rank 14, $8.7 billion) ranks above the Netherlands (rank 16, $7.0 billion) and Singapore (rank 17, $6.8 billion). Nigeria (rank 23, $5.5 billion) outranks Japan (rank 25, $5.4 billion) and Brazil (rank 26, $5.4 billion). Libya (rank 43, $2.0 billion) and Venezuela (rank 44, $1.8 billion) appear above many larger economies. At the lower end, small island states and low-income countries cluster near the bottom, with Samoa at rank 192 ($1.3 million) and South Sudan at rank 193 ($1 million).
Several data limitations apply to this metric. The 2020 reference year coincides with a period of severely reduced global travel, meaning values across all countries are likely depressed relative to prior or subsequent years and may not represent typical outbound tourism patterns. The average year-over-year change of 22.1% indicates inherent volatility in this indicator. The ranking includes 34 extreme outliers identified at the 3-standard-deviation threshold, which can distort comparisons. Some values appear as non-round numbers (for example, the Netherlands at $7,029,100,097.66 and Slovenia at $817,900,024.41), suggesting differences in national reporting methods. The metric captures total expenditure in absolute terms and does not adjust for population size or GDP, which limits direct comparability between countries of different scales.
Methodology
Data source: World Bank World Development Indicators, indicator ST.INT.TVLX.CD. The metric is international tourism expenditures in current US dollars for the year 2020. Per the source definition, international tourism expenditures are expenditures of international outbound visitors in other countries. The goods and services are purchased by, or on behalf of, the traveler or provided, without a quid pro quo, for the traveler to use or give away. These may include expenditures by residents traveling abroad as same-day visitors, except in cases where these are so important as to justify a separate treatment. The dataset covers 193 countries. Of these, 157 (81.3%) report data specifically from 2020, and 172 (89.1%) report data from within the last seven years. All 193 datapoints are classified as official quality (100%). The ranking identified 34 extreme outliers using a 3-standard-deviation threshold. The value range spans $1,000,000 to $130,504,000,000, a spread of 13,050,300%. Values are expressed in absolute current US dollars; no population or GDP adjustment is applied.