Irish public expenditure 2026: €133.3bn
Total expenditure for 2026 by sector, as presented by the Department of Public Expenditure on whereyourmoneygoes.gov.ie. These are the year's planned allocations, not money already paid out.
Source: Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation, Jan 2026 (opens in a new tab) · read by Flush 1 Mar 2026
By sector
Documented fact| Sector | 2026 allocation | Share | Per resident | Official detail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Social Protection | €28.9bn | 21.7% | €5,230 | whereyourmoneygoes.gov.ie |
| Health | €27.4bn | 20.6% | €4,959 | whereyourmoneygoes.gov.ie |
| Debt Servicing & EU PaymentsInterest on the national debt and Ireland’s contribution to the EU budget. This is non-voted expenditure: it is paid without an annual Dáil vote. | €15.9bn | 11.9% | €2,878 | whereyourmoneygoes.gov.ie |
| Education | €13.5bn | 10.1% | €2,443 | whereyourmoneygoes.gov.ie |
| Housing | €11.4bn | 8.6% | €2,063 | whereyourmoneygoes.gov.ie |
| Justice | €6.3bn | 4.7% | €1,140 | whereyourmoneygoes.gov.ie |
| Transport | €4.8bn | 3.6% | €869 | whereyourmoneygoes.gov.ie |
| Additional DepartmentsAll departments not shown separately on the source, combined into one figure by the source itself. | €25.1bn | 18.8% | €4,542 | whereyourmoneygoes.gov.ie |
| Total | €133.3bn | 100% | €24,124 |
Sector figures sum to €133.3bn, matching the published total. Amounts are shown as the source rounds them (to €0.1bn).
How these figures are calculated
- Share = sector amount ÷ total × 100, to one decimal place.
- Per resident = amount ÷ 5,525,600, the CSO's population estimate for April 2026. Source: Central Statistics Office, 24 Aug 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- Departments are grouped as the source groups them. "Additional Departments" is the source's own catch-all; we do not break it down because the source does not on this page.
- Figures refresh automatically when the source page changes; Budget day figures for the next year replace these once published there.