How much does the NHS cost the UK compared to healthcare spending in other countries?

Britain’s healthcare is in crisis, with leaders and senior doctors calling the pressures facing the NHS “intolerable and unsustainable”.

A&E waits are currently the worst on record and there are “grave concerns” over patient safety as people wait hours, and even days, to be seen.

Chair of the British Medical Association (BMA) professor Phil Banfield has called on the government to “step up and take immediate action” to solve the crisis, particularly as funding for the NHS has not kept pace with demand and the ongoing cost of living crisis.

• Ambulance strike: What happens when paramedics and 999 call handlers walk out?
• How people with learning disabilities are stepping up to help the NHS recruitment crisis
• The NHS is ‘past the point of no return’ say junior doctors bearing the brunt of the NHS crisis

However, a spokesperson for the prime minister said the government is “confident” it is “providing the NHS with the funding it needs.” So is this true? And how does the NHS compare with the rest of the world?

Of course, different countries have different sized populations, so one of the simplest ways to measure healthcare spending is per person. The World Health Organization (WHO) created its Global Health Expenditure database in 2019 to compare which countries spend the most, and the least, on their population.

Not every country in the world has universal healthcare, and those that do differ on how much money is allocated per person. How much does the UK spend on healthcare? Is it as high as one might think? And which country spends the most in the world?

How much does the NHS cost the UK?

The Department for Health and Social Care has been allocated a budget of £180.2billion for 2022/23, according to The King’s Fund. Of this, £152.6bn will be spent on the NHS. This is down from the £157.9bn spent on the NHS in 2021/2022, and the £156bn in 2020/2021, when there was the small matter of a raging pandemic to contend with.

This spending represents around 45 per cent of overall government outlay on goods and services in the UK, according to the Office for National Statistics. 

And broken down to expenditure per person, the WHO reports that the UK spends £3,615 per person on healthcare. 

Your support changes lives. Find out how you can help us help more people by signing up for a subscription

However, healthcare spending is uneven depending on where in the UK you live. In the five years before the pandemic, people in England received less healthcare spending compared to each of the UK nations, with Northern Ireland the highest.

In England, London has the highest healthcare spend per person, and the south-east has the lowest, with more than an £800 (37 per cent) per person difference in 2019/20, according to the British Medical Journal. 

Is healthcare really free in the UK?

It is true we have universal healthcare, in that every resident in the UK can walk into a hospital and receive treatment at any time without any upfront costs. However, it wouldn’t be completely accurate to say it is free.

We do pay for healthcare, through our taxes and National Insurance paid out from your salary. This covers the majority of your healthcare needs, but does not include prescription costs, dental care, or eye care which (for most people) are paid for over the counter.

How much does France spend on healthcare?

People in France receive, on average, a little more spending on their healthcare than in the UK, at £3,699 per person. Like Britain, France has a universal healthcare system financed by government health insurance. 

In 2000, the WHO deemed that France provided the “best overall health care” in the world. Over 20 years later, however, this top spot was taken by Japan, followed by Singapore in second place, South Korea, then Norway.

How much does the US spend on healthcare?

Despite the reputation of healthcare in the US being poor and heavily privatised, the country shells out quite a lot of money on healthcare.

The US government spends $10,921 per person on healthcare, which equates to £9,061 – three times as much as the UK despite having nearly five times as many people.

However, around 28 million people in the US are not covered by public or private health insurance.

The average health insurance cost for an individual is over £5,822 per year. But, an average insured American will pay around £1,371 in medical costs before their insurance kicks in.

How much does Switzerland spend on healthcare?

The healthcare system in Switzerland has a reputation for being outstanding. In 2019, the country spent £8,039 per person on healthcare, more than double the amount the UK spends. 

Switzerland has a universal healthcare system, paid for by individuals through contributions to public health insurance schemes. All residents and non-residents are required to pay enough for basic cover, which will take care of 80 to 90 percent of healthcare costs. 

Get the latest news and insight into how the Big Issue magazine is made by signing up for the Inside Big Issue newsletter

In September, health authorities raised the average monthly premiums charged by health insurance companies by 3.9 per cent to 9.5 per cent. The Swiss interior minister Alain Berset told journalists at the time it was a “difficult” and “unpleasant” development, citing Covid-19 as a primary reason for the increase in healthcare costs.

How much does Scandinavia spend on healthcare?

Out of the Scandinavian countries, Norway spends the most on healthcare – around £6,644 per person, while Finland spends the least, averaging £3,692 per person.

Sweden and Denmark spend nearly £5,000 per person each, while Iceland spends around £5,200 per person. 

How much does Germany spend on healthcare?

Germany spends over £4,500 on healthcare per person.

German citizens and legal residents are all entitled to free “medically necessary” healthcare, funded by taxes. But, everyone living in Germany must also have state or private health insurance, which covers hospital treatments, outpatient medical costs, prescription drugs, and pregnancy.

Health insurance in Germany can range from around £132 to £882 a month depending on your personal circumstances.

How much does Ireland spend on healthcare?

The Irish government spends £4,503 per person on healthcare, almost £1,000 more than the British government. 

Healthcare in Ireland is delivered through a mix of private and public bodies. A new national health service was established in 2005, which is still in the process of being set up as an alternative to the large private healthcare market.

Hospitals in Ireland have long faced serious overcrowding issues, but the number of patients waiting on trolleys has reached record highs in 2023.

How much does Australia spend on healthcare?

People in Australia can expect to have an average of £4,501 spent on their healthcare each, which is more than people in the UK and £1 more than those in Germany.

Healthcare in Australia is underpinned by Medicare – a universal health insurance scheme funded by the government. This means patients can receive care free of charge. 

However, Medicare does not usually cover costs for ambulance services, most dental services and optical aids (such as glasses and contact lenses), so people are encouraged to buy health insurance to cover this. The government refunds the cost of health insurance for those on the lowest incomes. 

How much does Canada spend on healthcare?

Canada has a universal, publicly-funded healthcare system, also called Medicare. All citizens and permanent residents can access hospital treatment and GP services for free when they need it. Across the country’s 13 provinces and territories, Canada spends around £4,188 per person on healthcare spending.

Some services are excluded from the free healthcare system, including prescriptions and dental care – but many provinces and territories provide some coverage for marginalised groups.

Which country spends the most on healthcare?

That honour, surprisingly, goes to the US. They spend more on healthcare than any other country in the world, beating all high-income countries.

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health determined that the higher overall health care spending in the US was due mainly to higher prices, including “higher drug prices, higher salaries for doctors and nurses, higher hospital administration costs and higher prices for many medical services”.

So they may get the same care — or even lesser care — but it costs more.

Who spends the least on healthcare?

Madagascar spends the least on healthcare – just $19.85 per person. That equates to £16.84, around the average cost of two roast dinners. 

So, how much does the NHS cost the UK compared to spending in other countries?

The UK spent less on healthcare per head than its closest European neighbours in 2019, apart from Spain (£2,273) and Portugal (£1,862). 

It also spent three times less than the US, though this is due to increased costs of providing healthcare rather than necessarily providing a better service. 

• For those of us in the ambulance service, strike days are no different from business as usual’
• ‘My elderly mother was in an ambulance for 18 hours. But A&E was worse’

However, the UK does spend more on healthcare than most other countries in the world, including all eastern European countries, African countries, and countries in Asia – except for Japan. 

Take a look at the WHO 2019 data yourself here.