Science statistics show how scientific capacity is funded, measured, and translated into discoveries and technology. The figures below cover U.S. research spending and science achievement, research-supported publications, patent activity, and international R&D indicators. Dates and geographies are stated for each measure because the statistics describe different parts of the science system.
Contents
- Research spending in the United States
- Science achievement in U.S. schools
- Research support and S&E publications
- Patent activity by company
- The worldwide patent landscape
- Global R&D intensity and researcher capacity
- OECD research trends and national comparisons
Research spending in the United States
The United States recorded $993.4 billion in total research and development spending in 2024. The National Science Foundation’s Table 1 divides that total into three major activities: basic research, applied research, and experimental development. Basic research spending was $144.8 billion, applied research spending was $180.4 billion, and experimental development spending was $668.2 billion (NSF Table 1).
Experimental development therefore represented 67.3% of U.S. R&D in 2024. Applied research represented 18.2%, while basic research represented 14.6% (NSF Table 1). These shares describe the composition of the 2024 total; they are not measures of research quality or scientific impact.
The long-run spending series also shows the scale of change in current dollars. U.S. all-R&D spending was $267.9 billion in 2000, $406.6 billion in 2010, $494.5 billion in 2015, and $716.5 billion in 2020. In 2024, the corresponding total was $993.4 billion (NSF Table 1).
Inflation-adjusted figures provide a separate view. U.S. all-R&D spending reached $792.0 billion in constant 2017 dollars in 2024. In the same constant-dollar measure, basic research was $115.5 billion, applied research was $143.9 billion, and experimental development was $532.7 billion (NSF Table 1). Keeping current-dollar and constant-dollar values separate is essential when comparing spending across years.
| U.S. R&D measure | 2024 value | Share or basis |
|---|---|---|
| Basic research | $144.8 billion | 14.6% of R&D |
| Applied research | $180.4 billion | 18.2% of R&D |
| Experimental development | $668.2 billion | 67.3% of R&D |
| All R&D | $993.4 billion | Current dollars |
| All R&D | $792.0 billion | Constant 2017 dollars |
Science achievement in U.S. schools
The 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress science results reported an average grade 8 science score of 150. The distribution was broad: the 10th-percentile score was 101, the 25th-percentile score was 126, the 75th-percentile score was 176, and the 90th-percentile score was 194 (NSF Table 3).
These percentile statistics describe the spread of grade 8 science performance in the United States in 2024. The middle half of reported scores extends from 126 at the 25th percentile to 176 at the 75th percentile, while the average was 150. Percentiles and averages answer different questions: the average summarizes the center of the reported results, while percentiles show positions within the score distribution.
Research support and S&E publications
NSF Table 6 counts science and engineering publications from 2002 through 2023 that cited selected U.S. agencies. The Department of Health and Human Services was cited in 1,983,820 S&E publications during that period. The National Science Foundation was cited in 918,900, while the Department of Energy was cited in 269,274.
Other agencies also appeared in substantial numbers of cited publications. The Department of Defense was cited in 197,830 S&E publications from 2002–23, and NASA was cited in 99,959. The Department of Agriculture was cited in 79,513, while the Department of Veterans Affairs was cited in 41,498 (NSF Table 6).
The same source reports 34,495 cited S&E publications for the Department of Commerce and 27,769 for the Department of the Interior over 2002–23. These are publication-citation counts associated with the listed agencies across the stated period; they should not be read as a ranking of the scientific quality of individual papers or as a count of unique research projects.
| Agency | S&E publications citing the agency, 2002–23 |
|---|---|
| Department of Health and Human Services | 1,983,820 |
| National Science Foundation | 918,900 |
| Department of Energy | 269,274 |
| Department of Defense | 197,830 |
| NASA | 99,959 |
| Department of Agriculture | 79,513 |
| Department of Veterans Affairs | 41,498 |
| Department of Commerce | 34,495 |
| Department of the Interior | 27,769 |
Patent activity by company
USPTO patent counts provide one measure of corporate inventive activity in 2024. Samsung Electronics led the listed companies with 10,220 USPTO patents. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company had 3,994, followed by Apple with 3,505 and Qualcomm with 3,441 (NSF Table 7).
The next group included LG Electronics with 3,182 USPTO patents, Huawei Technologies with 3,149, IBM with 2,466, Canon with 2,381, and Google with 2,191. Intel had 1,941, BOE Technology Group had 1,883, Toyota had 1,872, and Micron Technology had 1,795 (NSF Table 7).
Additional 2024 counts were 1,717 for Microsoft Technology Licensing, 1,552 for Dell Products, 1,543 for Amazon Technologies, 1,541 for Ericsson, 1,473 for Sony Group, and 1,431 for Hyundai Motor. Mitsubishi Electric had 1,291; Ford Global Technologies and KIA each had 1,247; Capital One Services had 1,168; and NEC and Nike each had 1,109 (NSF Table 7).
These are USPTO patent counts for the named company entities in 2024. They are not a complete measure of worldwide patenting, research spending, commercial success, or the importance of an invention.
The worldwide patent landscape
The World Intellectual Property Organization reported 3.7 million patent applications worldwide in 2024. Resident applications accounted for 72.6% of the worldwide total, while non-resident applications accounted for 27.4% (WIPO Patents Highlights 2025). The same publication reported 2.1 million patent grants worldwide and 19.7 million patents in force in 2024.
China issued over 1 million patents in 2024. The United States issued 319,815 patent grants, Japan issued 200,284, the Republic of Korea issued 127,806, and Europe issued 109,524 (WIPO Patents Highlights 2025). Patent grants are a flow during the year, whereas patents in force are a stock that accumulates and expires over time.
At the end of the 2024 measure, China had 5.7 million patents in force, the United States had 3.5 million, Japan had 2.1 million, and the Republic of Korea had 1.3 million (WIPO Patents Highlights 2025). The WIPO data also records at least 231,536 U.S. patent applications filed abroad in 2024.
Patent intensity can be compared with a country’s economic scale using resident patent applications per USD 100 billion of GDP. In 2024, China’s ratio was 4,977 and Japan’s was 4,150. Switzerland recorded 1,506, Finland 1,331, Germany 1,241, and the United States 1,053 (WIPO Patents Highlights 2025).
Global R&D intensity and researcher capacity
UNESCO UIS reported that global R&D expenditure rose from 1.71% of world GDP in 2015 to 1.92% in 2023. In 2023, Europe and Northern America invested 2.55% of GDP in R&D, compared with 2.42% in Eastern and South-Eastern Asia and 0.38% in Sub-Saharan Africa (UNESCO UIS 2026 R&D Data Release).
The number of researchers worldwide increased from 1,141 per million inhabitants in 2015 to 1,486 in 2023. Regional researcher density differed sharply in 2023: Europe and Northern America had 4,358 researchers per million inhabitants, while Sub-Saharan Africa had 88 (UNESCO UIS 2026 R&D Data Release).
The spending and researcher measures describe related but distinct dimensions of scientific capacity. R&D intensity is expressed as a share of GDP, while researcher density is expressed per million inhabitants. They should not be treated as interchangeable indicators.
OECD research trends and national comparisons
The OECD reported that R&D intensity across OECD economies rose from 2.3% of GDP in 2013 to 2.7% in 2023. In 2023, Israel had an R&D intensity of 6.3% and Korea had 5.0%. The reported U.S. intensity was 1.7%, while the EU intensity was 1.6% (OECD STI Outlook 2025).
The OECD also reported different 2023 changes in national R&D expenditure. Germany’s expenditure rose by 0.8%, France’s fell by 0.5%, and Japan’s grew by 2.7%. Korea’s expenditure grew by 3.7%, China’s by 8.7%, and Poland’s and Spain’s each increased by over 8% (OECD STI Outlook 2025).
The business sector accounted for 73.6% of OECD gross domestic expenditure on R&D in 2023, compared with 66% in 2010. Business-performed R&D represented 77.7% in China, 78.4% in the United States, and 66.0% in the EU27 in 2023 (OECD STI Outlook 2025).
| Indicator, 2023 | Reported value |
|---|---|
| OECD R&D intensity | 2.7% of GDP |
| Israel R&D intensity | 6.3% of GDP |
| Korea R&D intensity | 5.0% of GDP |
| U.S. R&D intensity | 1.7% of GDP |
| EU R&D intensity | 1.6% of GDP |
| OECD business-sector share of GERD | 73.6% |
| China business-performed R&D share | 77.7% |
| U.S. business-performed R&D share | 78.4% |
| EU27 business-performed R&D share | 66.0% |
Together, these statistics place science within a measurable system of investment, education, publication support, invention, and workforce capacity. The measures use different dates, units, and geographic scopes, so each comparison is strongest when its definition and measurement period remain visible.