International tourism, expenditures in North America
North America: International tourism, expenditures was 6.0% in 2019. ▼ Falling
International tourism, expenditures in North America, 1995–2019
Source: Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism. Measured in % of total imports.
Analysis
The most recent figure for international tourism, expenditures in North America is 6.0%, measured in 2019.
The figure is up 5.5% on the previous year and down 1.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, international tourism, expenditures in North America peaked at 6.8% in 1998 and was at its lowest, 4.8%, in 2013.
North America ranks 20th of 47 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
International tourism, expenditures in North America, year by year
| Year | % of total imports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 6.8% | — |
| 1996 | 6.8% | +0.7% |
| 1997 | 6.7% | -1.2% |
| 1998 | 6.8% | +1.8% |
| 1999 | 6.1% | -10.7% |
| 2000 | 5.8% | -5.5% |
| 2001 | 5.9% | +1.8% |
| 2002 | 5.6% | -5.2% |
| 2003 | 5.4% | -3.5% |
| 2004 | 5.3% | -1.2% |
| 2005 | 5.1% | -4.7% |
| 2006 | 5.0% | -2.3% |
| 2007 | 5.1% | +2.4% |
| 2008 | 5.0% | -1.6% |
| 2009 | 6.1% | +21.5% |
| 2010 | 5.6% | -7.5% |
| 2011 | 5.3% | -6.1% |
| 2012 | 5.0% | -5.3% |
| 2013 | 4.8% | -3.8% |
| 2014 | 4.9% | +1.7% |
| 2015 | 5.2% | +7.1% |
| 2016 | 5.4% | +4.0% |
| 2017 | 5.4% | +0.2% |
| 2018 | 5.7% | +4.1% |
| 2019 | 6.0% | +5.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 6.7% | 6.1% | 6.8% | 5 |
| 2000s | 5.4% | 5.0% | 6.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.3% | 4.8% | 6.0% | 10 |
Countries ranked near North America
- 17 Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of 11.3% compare
- 18 Lebanon 11.2% compare
- 19 South Sudan 11.0% compare
- 20 Libya 10.8% compare
- 21 Palau 10.5% compare
- 22 Brunei Darussalam 10.3% compare
- 23 Bahrain 10.3% compare
More private sector data for North America
- Merchandise trade 20.6% (2025)
- Food imports 7.3% (2024)
- Manufactures imports 77.9% (2024)
- Merchandise imports 4.09 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 10.3% (2024)
- Manufactures exports 52.8% (2024)
- Merchandise exports 2.74 trillion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 7,145 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.0828 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 4.2 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is international tourism, expenditures in North America?
- International tourism, expenditures in North America was 6.0% in 2019, according to Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism.
- What is the highest international tourism, expenditures recorded in North America?
- The highest recorded value was 6.8% in 1998.
- What is the lowest international tourism, expenditures recorded in North America?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.8% in 2013.
- How does North America rank for international tourism, expenditures?
- North America ranks 20th out of 47 groups with data for 2019.
- Is international tourism, expenditures rising or falling in North America?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this North America data come from?
- The figures come from Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism, published as part of International tourism, expenditures (% of total imports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
International tourism expenditures are expenditures of international outbound visitors in other countries, including payments to foreign carriers for international transport. These expenditures may include those by residents traveling abroad as same-day visitors, except in cases where these are important enough to justify separate classification. For some countries they do not include expenditures for passenger transport items. Their share in imports is calculated as a ratio to imports of goods and services, which comprise all transactions between residents of a country and the rest of the world involving a change of ownership from nonresidents to residents of general merchandise, goods sent for processing and repairs, nonmonetary gold, and services.