By Marcus Lu
Over time, the distribution of global GDP among the world’s largest economies has shifted dynamically, reflecting changes in economic policies, technological advancements, and demographic trends.
To see how this has played out in recent decades, we visualized the world’s top six economies by their share of global GDP from 1980 to 2024.
All figures were sourced from the IMF’s World Economic Outlook (April 2024 edition) and are based on using current prices.
Data and Highlights
The data we used to create this graphic can be found in the table below.
U.S. Resilience
Starting with the U.S., we can see that America’s share of global GDP has fluctuated quite significantly over time.
After bottoming out at 21.1% in 2011, the U.S. economy grew its relative size by several percentage points, and is estimated by the IMF to make up 26.3% of global GDP in 2024.
This chart also suggests that the U.S. has managed a stronger recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, evidenced by its rising share of global GDP since 2020. China, the EU, and Japan have seen relative declines over the same period.
China’s Incredible Rise
This chart also provides perspective on China’s period of rapid economic growth, which began in the early 2000s.
It’s interesting to note that China joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001, which facilitated China’s integration into the global economy.
Japan Falls From the #2 Spot
Japan was once the second largest country economy after the U.S., accounting for 17.8% of the global economy in 1994 and 1995. Since then, economic stagnation and an aging population have resulted in a relative decline of the country’s economic might.
Source: Visual Capitalist
