Economy of Croatia

Economy of Croatia
Currency	Euro (EUR, €)
Fiscal year	1 January – 31 December
Trade organisations	EU, EEA, WTO
Country group	Advanced economy; High-income economy;
Statistics
Population	3,866,233 (2024 est.)
GDP	$113.13 billion (nominal, 2025f); $207.40 billion (PPP, 2025f);
GDP rank	74th (nominal, 2024); 79th (PPP, 2024);
GDP growth	3.3% (2023); 3.9% (2024); 3.1% (2025);
GDP per capita	$29,370 (nominal, 2026f); $53,840 (PPP, 2026f);
GDP per capita rank	47th (nominal, 2025); 39th (PPP, 2025);
GDP by sector	Services: 60.9%; Industry: 19.9%; Agriculture: 3.1%; (2022);
Inflation (CPI)	4.0% (2024f)
Population below poverty line	21.7% at-risk (2024);
Gini coefficient	29.8 low (2024)
Human Development Index	0.889 very high (41st) (2023); 0.828 very high IHDI (30th) (2023);
Corruption Perceptions Index	50 out of 100 points (2023) (57th)
Labour force	1,772,797 (2024); 73.6% employment rate (2024);
Unemployment	4.5% (November 2025); 16.7% (youth) (June 2024);
Average gross salary	€2,093 monthly (November 2025)
Average net salary	€1,498 monthly (November 2025)
Main industries	chemicals and plastics, machine tools, fabricated metal, electronics, pig iron and rolled steel products, aluminium, paper, wood products, construction materials, textiles, shipbuilding, petroleum and petroleum refining, food and beverages, tourism
External
Exports	$26.13 billion (2024)
Export goods	transport equipment, machinery, textiles, chemicals, foodstuffs, fuels
Main export partners	Germany 11.9%; Italy 11.4%; Bosnia and Herzegovina 11.2%; Slovenia 10.9%; Hungary 6.2%; Serbia 5.4%; Austria 5.1%; United States 3.3%; Slovakia 2.4%; France 2.4%; (2024);
Imports	$46.56 billion (2024)
Import goods	machinery, transport and electrical equipment; chemicals, fuels and lubricants; foodstuffs
Main import partners	Germany 14.4%; Italy 13.2%; Slovenia 11.8%; Hungary 6.5%; Austria 5.3%; Netherlands 4.1%; Poland 4.1%; France 4.0%; China 3.4%; Bosnia and Herzegovina 2.8%; (2024);
FDI stock	$43.71 billion (on-shore) (2017); $8.473 billion (off-shore) (2017);
Current account	€-1.059 billion (2024)
Gross external debt	€56.19 billion (2024)
Public finances
Government debt	57.6% of GDP (2024); €49.3 billion (2024);
Foreign reserves	€2.92 billion (August 2024)
Budget balance	€-2.026 billion deficit (2024); -2.4% of GDP (2024);
Revenues	45.6% of GDP (2024)
Expenses	48.0% of GDP (2024)
Economic aid	€10.74 billion from European Structural and Investment Funds (2014–2020);
Credit rating	Standard & Poor's:; A (Long Term); A-1 (Short Term); Outlook: Stable (2026); Fitch:; A−; Outlook: Stable (2024); Moody's:; A3; Outlook: Stable (2024); Scope:; A−; Outlook: Positive (2025);
	All values, unless otherwise stated, are in US dollars.

The economy of Croatia is a highly developed mixed economy. It is one of the largest economies in Southeast Europe by nominal gross domestic product (GDP). It maintains a similarly high regional GDP-per-capita. It is an open economy with accommodative foreign policy, highly dependent on international trade in Europe. Within Croatia, economic development varies among its counties, with strongest growth in Central Croatia and its financial centre, Zagreb. It has a very high level of human development, low levels of income inequality, and a high quality of life. Croatia's labor market has been perennially inefficient, with an underdeveloped investment climate and an ineffective corporate and income tax system.

Croatia's economic history is closely linked to its historic nation-building efforts. Its pre-industrial economy leveraged the country's geography and natural resources to guide agricultural growth. The 1800s saw a shipbuilding boom, railroading, and widespread industrialization. During the 1900s, Croatia entered into a planned economy (with socialism) in 1941 and a command economy (with communism) during World War II. It experienced rapid urbanization in the 1950s and decentralized in 1965, diversifying its economy before the independence of Croatia in 1990. The Croatian War of Independence (1991–95) curbed 21–25% of wartime GDP, leaving behind a developing transition economy.

The modern Croatian economy is considered high-income, dominated by its tertiary service and industry sectors which account for 70% of GDP. Tourism in Croatia routinely generates 10% to 15% of total GDP. Croatia is an emerging energy power in Europe, with strategic investments in liquefied natural gas (LNG), geothermal networks, and electric transport. It supports regional economic activity via transportation networks along the Adriatic Sea and throughout Pan-European corridors. It is a member of the European Union, Eurozone, and Schengen Area. Croatia has free-trade agreements with many world nations and is a part of the World Trade Organization (2000) and the EEA (2013).