Palau has a GDP of $282M compared to $1.83B for San Marino, ranking 193/197 and 181/197 by economy size, respectively.
The chart below compares the two countries' GDP growth in both current (nominal) and constant dollars, accounting for inflation over time.
| Year | GDP | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Palau
|
San Marino
|
|||
| Current $ | Constant $ | Current $ | Constant $ | |
| 1970 | $11,563,041 | $145,352,813 | - | - |
| 1971 | $12,706,874 | $145,536,452 | - | - |
| 1972 | $13,956,474 | $146,033,169 | - | - |
| 1973 | $15,331,889 | $146,328,192 | - | - |
| 1974 | $16,848,759 | $146,482,619 | - | - |
| 1975 | $18,521,112 | $146,519,630 | - | - |
| 1976 | $20,364,420 | $146,458,790 | - | - |
| 1977 | $22,308,104 | $148,553,303 | - | - |
| 1978 | $24,530,015 | $147,827,479 | - | - |
| 1979 | $27,004,251 | $147,274,387 | - | - |
| 1980 | $29,728,054 | $146,723,368 | - | - |
| 1981 | $32,726,594 | $146,174,407 | - | - |
| 1982 | $36,027,583 | $145,627,496 | - | - |
| 1983 | $39,661,530 | $148,441,032 | - | - |
| 1984 | $44,814,259 | $155,301,972 | - | - |
| 1985 | $51,030,637 | $163,744,973 | - | - |
| 1986 | $58,109,314 | $172,646,979 | - | - |
| 1987 | $66,169,905 | $182,032,942 | - | - |
| 1988 | $75,348,615 | $191,929,175 | - | - |
| 1989 | $85,800,543 | $202,363,417 | - | - |
| 1990 | $97,702,303 | $213,364,917 | - | - |
| 1991 | $106,555,300 | $223,830,946 | - | - |
| 1992 | $104,771,300 | $209,505,677 | - | - |
| 1993 | $96,455,700 | $183,736,397 | - | - |
| 1994 | $106,138,500 | $197,149,210 | - | - |
| 1995 | $121,018,500 | $218,638,452 | - | - |
| 1996 | $137,494,600 | $241,376,946 | - | - |
| 1997 | $143,860,800 | $246,928,594 | $976,606,694 | $1,248,966,330 |
| 1998 | $149,079,600 | $251,867,130 | $1,048,316,128 | $1,342,209,396 |
| 1999 | $144,206,500 | $238,266,284 | $1,109,473,368 | $1,463,670,758 |
| 2000 | $149,535,800 | $232,062,062 | $1,007,661,367 | $1,495,569,702 |
| 2001 | $159,453,500 | $247,147,106 | $1,059,529,812 | $1,578,997,708 |
| 2002 | $162,665,500 | $259,544,370 | $1,148,872,072 | $1,583,905,238 |
| 2003 | $154,559,900 | $251,178,536 | $1,462,590,267 | $1,645,249,360 |
| 2004 | $166,391,600 | $261,072,519 | $1,715,340,543 | $1,720,089,190 |
| 2005 | $191,048,400 | $269,985,444 | $1,786,514,058 | $1,761,803,193 |
| 2006 | $193,679,700 | $269,651,419 | $1,909,765,165 | $1,829,281,727 |
| 2007 | $200,903,600 | $274,381,188 | $2,188,654,628 | $1,959,331,267 |
| 2008 | $201,167,300 | $259,306,750 | $2,403,213,305 | $1,949,516,207 |
| 2009 | $189,998,000 | $240,479,586 | $2,064,277,126 | $1,748,307,486 |
| 2010 | $188,174,300 | $238,325,139 | $1,881,191,925 | $1,652,610,655 |
| 2011 | $198,873,900 | $250,523,288 | $1,813,717,439 | $1,515,199,821 |
| 2012 | $215,762,400 | $253,663,378 | $1,604,701,299 | $1,408,461,048 |
| 2013 | $225,345,700 | $245,961,582 | $1,678,741,475 | $1,397,419,106 |
| 2014 | $243,156,500 | $257,693,948 | $1,673,911,426 | $1,387,604,047 |
| 2015 | $278,824,800 | $278,824,800 | $1,419,401,071 | $1,419,401,071 |
| 2016 | $298,323,500 | $277,598,001 | $1,468,343,140 | $1,452,677,592 |
| 2017 | $285,600,000 | $268,548,255 | $1,528,620,346 | $1,456,429,357 |
| 2018 | $288,546,300 | $268,843,680 | $1,655,353,653 | $1,478,187,033 |
| 2019 | $281,941,600 | $269,381,408 | $1,616,232,125 | $1,508,721,723 |
| 2020 | $258,990,800 | $253,220,049 | $1,544,714,493 | $1,408,423,248 |
| 2021 | $235,752,900 | $218,291,145 | $1,855,396,000 | $1,604,162,946 |
| 2022 | $255,591,100 | $215,413,136 | $1,831,700,577 | $1,730,866,818 |
| 2023 | $281,849,100 | $219,456,509 | - | - |
Economic indicators
|
Palau
|
San Marino
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Gross domestic product |
$282M
2023 |
$1.83B
2022 |
| GDP rank |
193/197
2023 |
181/197
2022 |
| GDP growth |
10.3%
2022-2023 |
-1.28%
2021-2022 |
| GDP per capita |
$15,899
2023 |
$54,265
2022 |
| GDP per capita rank |
67/197
2023 |
20/197
2022 |
| GDP per capita, PPP |
$17,532
2023 |
$75,941
2022 |
| Government debt | n/a |
$1.31B
2022 |
| Debt-to-GDP ratio | n/a |
64.1%
2025 |
| Government debt per person | n/a |
$38,712
2022 |
| Government debt per person rank | n/a |
15/185
2022 |
| Average annual personal income after taxes |
$8,654
2025 |
$44,308
2025 |
| Government expenditure, % of GDP |
53%
2025 |
22.1%
2025 |
| Consumer prices inflation |
1.8%
2024-2025 |
2%
2024-2025 |
| Unemployment rate |
0.77%
2020 |
4.91%
2022 |
| Population |
17663
|
33996
|
GDP per capita in Palau vs San Marino
Palau's GDP per capita is $15,899, ranking 67/197, compared to $54,265 in San Marino, ranking 20/197. Adjusted for purchasing power (GDP per capita PPP), Palau ranks 105th at $17,532, while San Marino ranks 17th at $75,941.
| Year | Current $ | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Palau
|
San Marino
|
|||
| GDP per capita | GDP per capita, PPP | GDP per capita | GDP per capita, PPP | |
| 1970 | $1,017 | - | - | - |
| 1971 | $1,081 | - | - | - |
| 1972 | $1,145 | - | - | - |
| 1973 | $1,221 | - | - | - |
| 1974 | $1,328 | - | - | - |
| 1975 | $1,464 | - | - | - |
| 1976 | $1,616 | - | - | - |
| 1977 | $1,781 | - | - | - |
| 1978 | $1,972 | - | - | - |
| 1979 | $2,189 | - | - | - |
| 1980 | $2,423 | - | - | - |
| 1981 | $2,639 | - | - | - |
| 1982 | $2,838 | - | - | - |
| 1983 | $3,049 | - | - | - |
| 1984 | $3,360 | - | - | - |
| 1985 | $3,728 | - | - | - |
| 1986 | $4,144 | - | - | - |
| 1987 | $4,616 | - | - | - |
| 1988 | $5,145 | - | - | - |
| 1989 | $5,741 | - | - | - |
| 1990 | $6,403 | $9,604 | - | - |
| 1991 | $6,824 | $10,179 | - | - |
| 1992 | $6,553 | $9,516 | - | - |
| 1993 | $5,892 | $8,344 | - | - |
| 1994 | $6,329 | $8,927 | - | - |
| 1995 | $7,038 | $9,858 | - | - |
| 1996 | $7,788 | $10,794 | - | - |
| 1997 | $7,945 | $10,951 | $37,853 | $44,426 |
| 1998 | $8,048 | $11,042 | $40,127 | $47,679 |
| 1999 | $7,630 | $10,382 | $41,932 | $52,064 |
| 2000 | $7,797 | $10,192 | $37,601 | $53,713 |
| 2001 | $8,240 | $10,999 | $39,035 | $57,252 |
| 2002 | $8,341 | $11,639 | $41,791 | $57,584 |
| 2003 | $7,862 | $11,395 | $52,530 | $60,224 |
| 2004 | $8,395 | $12,064 | $58,232 | $61,114 |
| 2005 | $9,640 | $12,868 | $59,878 | $63,739 |
| 2006 | $9,885 | $13,401 | $63,271 | $67,434 |
| 2007 | $10,408 | $14,216 | $70,124 | $71,744 |
| 2008 | $10,583 | $13,905 | $75,902 | $71,724 |
| 2009 | $10,155 | $13,183 | $62,429 | $61,970 |
| 2010 | $10,229 | $13,449 | $56,543 | $58,926 |
| 2011 | $11,001 | $14,683 | $55,601 | $56,240 |
| 2012 | $12,145 | $15,410 | $47,946 | $51,274 |
| 2013 | $12,769 | $15,298 | $50,808 | $50,770 |
| 2014 | $13,726 | $16,245 | $51,260 | $52,909 |
| 2015 | $15,691 | $17,685 | $43,147 | $52,247 |
| 2016 | $16,763 | $17,748 | $44,359 | $53,033 |
| 2017 | $16,034 | $17,462 | $45,192 | $52,463 |
| 2018 | $16,198 | $17,879 | $47,951 | $54,461 |
| 2019 | $15,841 | $18,227 | $46,627 | $57,444 |
| 2020 | $14,557 | $17,367 | $44,427 | $55,207 |
| 2021 | $13,257 | $15,663 | $54,169 | $64,745 |
| 2022 | $14,392 | $16,581 | $54,265 | $75,941 |
| 2023 | $15,899 | $17,532 | - | - |
Government deficit by year
In 2022, Palau's government deficit, the difference between spending and revenue, was -$14.9M, equivalent to -5.84% of GDP. This compares to San Marino's surplus of $7.76M, or 0.42% of GDP.
Over the past 19 years, Palau recorded a fiscal deficit in 9 of those years, while San Marino ran a deficit in 12 years. On average, Palau posted an annual deficit equal to -0.72% of GDP, compared to deficit of -3.96% of GDP for San Marino.
| Year | Deficit/surplus, % of GDP | |
|---|---|---|
|
Palau
|
San Marino
|
|
| 2000 | -13.4% | - |
| 2001 | -16.7% | - |
| 2002 | -12.7% | - |
| 2003 | -3.17% | - |
| 2004 | -4.82% | 2.44% |
| 2005 | 1.38% | 3.58% |
| 2006 | 0.14% | 1.51% |
| 2007 | -2.08% | 1.83% |
| 2008 | -1.71% | 0.18% |
| 2009 | -2.14% | -2.46% |
| 2010 | -1.27% | -2.24% |
| 2011 | 1.29% | -4.05% |
| 2012 | 0.98% | -7.08% |
| 2013 | 0.54% | -7.74% |
| 2014 | 3.59% | 1.06% |
| 2015 | 5.08% | -3.32% |
| 2016 | 3.52% | -0.19% |
| 2017 | 4.76% | -3.49% |
| 2018 | 6.18% | -1.56% |
| 2019 | -0.36% | -0.11% |
| 2020 | -13% | -37.6% |
| 2021 | -9.94% | -16.4% |
| 2022 | -5.84% | 0.42% |
| 2023 | 1.02% | -0.73% |
| 2024 | 4.38% | -1.85% |
| 2025 | 2.29% | -1.71% |
Inflation comparison by year
Over the past 23 years, Palau has recorded an average annual inflation rate of 3.41%, compared with 1.95% in San Marino. In 2025, inflation was 1.8% in Palau and 2% in San Marino.
| Year | Inflation | ||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Palau
|
San Marino
|
Palau
|
San Marino
|
| 2001 | -0.7% | - | |
| 2002 | -0.3% | - | |
| 2003 | 0.6% | 1.3% | |
| 2004 | 0.5% | 1.4% | |
| 2005 | 3.6% | 1.7% | |
| 2006 | 4.2% | 2.1% | |
| 2007 | 3% | 2.5% | |
| 2008 | 9.9% | 4.1% | |
| 2009 | 4.7% | 2.4% | |
| 2010 | 1.1% | 2.4% | |
| 2011 | 2.6% | 2.2% | |
| 2012 | 5.4% | 2.8% | |
| 2013 | 2.8% | 1.6% | |
| 2014 | 4% | 1.1% | |
| 2015 | 2.2% | 0.1% | |
| 2016 | -1.3% | 0.6% | |
| 2017 | 1.1% | 1% | |
| 2018 | 2.4% | 1.2% | |
| 2019 | 0.4% | 0.5% | |
| 2020 | 0.7% | -0.1% | |
| 2021 | -0.5% | 1.6% | |
| 2022 | 13.2% | 5.3% | |
| 2023 | 12.4% | 5.9% | |
| 2024 | 3.6% | 1.2% | |
| 2025 | 1.8% | 2% | |
Balance of trade
|
Palau
|
San Marino
|
|
|---|---|---|
Current account balance
|
-$135M
2022 |
$284M
2022 |
| Current account balance ranking |
89/189
2022 |
61/189
2022 |
| Current account balance, % of GDP |
-53%
2022 |
+15.5%
2022 |
| Goods imports |
$159M
2022 |
$2.32B
2022 |
| Goods exports |
$2.1M
2022 |
$2.73B
2022 |
| Service imports |
$58.2M
2022 |
$849M
2022 |
| Service exports |
$22.4M
2022 |
$891M
2022 |
| Imports of goods and services, % of GDP |
74.3%
2022 |
173%
2022 |
| Exports of goods and services, % of GDP |
13.5%
2022 |
197.4%
2022 |
Economic freedom indices
The indices of economic freedom below are issued by the Heritage Foundation. Higher scores indicate stronger economic health.
|
Palau
|
San Marino
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Economic freedom | 62 | 76 |
| Economic freedom ranking | 84/197 | 16/197 |
More economic indicators
|
Palau
|
San Marino
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Services, % of GDP |
76.7%
2023 |
55.1%
2022 |
| Industry, % of GDP |
9.87%
2023 |
37.6%
2022 |
| Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, % of GDP |
2.99%
2023 |
0.01%
2022 |
|
GNI, Atlas method
|
$249M
2023 |
$1.82B
2022 |
| GNI per capita, PPP |
$16,500
2023 |
$69,360
2022 |
| Total reserves including gold | n/a |
$759M
2024 |
| Total reserves ranking | n/a |
147/177
2024 |
|
Net foreign direct investment
|
-$72M
2022 |
-$20.3M
2022 |
|
Net inflows of foreign direct investment
|
$69.1M
2024 |
$85.9M
2022 |
|
Net outflows of foreign direct investment
|
-$38K
1998 |
$65.6M
2022 |
| Poverty at national poverty lines |
24.9%
2020 |
n/a |
|
Gross capital formation, % of GDP
|
38.4%
2022 |
23%
2022 |
GDP per capita map
GDP per capita
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Economy comparisons
The current account balance is the sum of net trade in goods and services, net earnings from cross-border investments, and net transfer payments. It reflects a country's economic transactions with the rest of the world and is a fundamental component of the balance of payments. A surplus indicates that a country exports more than it imports, while a deficit shows the opposite.
Gross National Income (GNI) measures a country's total income. It encompasses income earned by residents, businesses, and foreign sources, defined as employee compensation and investment profits. GNI adds product taxes not included elsewhere and subtracts subsidies. It accounts for income from residents working abroad but excludes earnings from foreigners within the country.
A negative value for Net Foreign Direct Investment indicates a country is a net receiver of investments, as foreign inflows exceed outflows after Balance of Payments adjustments. A positive value indicates a net provider, with outflows exceeding inflows. Inflows are credits (increasing foreign claims on domestic assets), while outflows are debits (increasing domestic assets abroad).
Foreign direct investment (FDI, net inflows) shows how much capital foreign investors bring into a country after accounting for any funds that flow back in the opposite direction. It represents the net value of overseas companies establishing, expanding, or financing businesses in the reporting country. A positive number means more capital entered the country than was withdrawn, while a negative number means foreign investors pulled out more than they invested.
Foreign direct investment (FDI, net outflows) shows how much capital residents of a country invest abroad after accounting for any funds that flow back in the opposite direction. It represents the net value of domestic companies establishing, expanding, or financing businesses in other countries. A positive number means more capital was invested abroad than withdrawn, while a negative number means residents pulled back more than they invested.
Formerly gross domestic investment, gross capital formation measures the share of a country’s economic output invested in fixed assets, including buildings, machinery, and infrastructure. It indicates how much of the economy is devoted to building productive capacity.