Chapter 3 Data Apps

An Overview of Long-Run Economic Growth

Explore the data of Chapter 3 without any code. Every chart below is live: hover over it to read the values, and use its buttons, menus and sliders to change what it shows.

← Back to Chapter 3: An Overview of Long-Run Economic Growth

See also: Chapter 3 Model Apps, the chapter’s models without code.

Growth over the very long run

Fig. 1: Economic growth over the very long run

Switch to the ratio scale with the buttons to separate the lines, use the menu to add a region, and drag the small chart under the axis to zoom in.

Sources. Data: Maddison Project Database 2023, GDP per capita (gdppc) and population, Groningen Growth and Development Centre (Bolt and van Zanden 2024, doi:10.34894/INZBF2); for the earliest years of the textbook’s six countries, Angus Maddison’s own estimates, the Maddison Database 2010. Prepared files: data/ch03/fig3-1.csv and data/ch03/maddison_longrun.csv (see the data notes). Chart: inspired by Fig. 3.1 in Jones (2024), Macroeconomics, 6th ed.

Fig. 2: Per capita GDP across countries

Use the menu to add the countries of a region; gaps in the early data are real, as many countries have estimates only every ten years before 1950.

Sources. Data: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis via FRED: real GDP (GDPCA), population (B230RC0A052NBEA) and GDP deflator (A191RD3A086NBEA), from 1929; before 1929 and for every other country: Maddison Project Database 2023, GDP per capita (gdppc) and population, Groningen Growth and Development Centre (Bolt and van Zanden 2024, doi:10.34894/INZBF2) (the textbook uses the Barro-Ursúa data before 1929). Prepared files: data/ch03/fig3-2.csv and data/ch03/maddison_world.csv (see the data notes). Chart: inspired by Fig. 3.2 in Jones (2024), Macroeconomics, 6th ed.

The mathematics of growth

Fig. 5: U.S. per capita GDP on a ratio scale

Move the slider to change the growth rate of the dashed line; on a ratio scale, steady growth draws a straight line.

Sources. Data: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis via FRED: real GDP (GDPCA), population (B230RC0A052NBEA) and GDP deflator (A191RD3A086NBEA), from 1929; before 1929 and for every other country: Maddison Project Database 2023, GDP per capita (gdppc) and population, Groningen Growth and Development Centre (Bolt and van Zanden 2024, doi:10.34894/INZBF2). The dashed constant-growth line is our own least-squares fit. Prepared files: data/ch03/fig3-2.csv and data/ch03/maddison_world.csv (see the data notes). Chart: inspired by Fig. 3.5 in Jones (2024), Macroeconomics, 6th ed.

Fig. 5, other countries: per capita GDP on a ratio scale

Pick a country from the menu; its dashed line grows at the country’s own average rate, so few follow it as closely as the United States.

Sources. Data: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis via FRED: real GDP (GDPCA), population (B230RC0A052NBEA) and GDP deflator (A191RD3A086NBEA), from 1929; before 1929 and for every other country: Maddison Project Database 2023, GDP per capita (gdppc) and population, Groningen Growth and Development Centre (Bolt and van Zanden 2024, doi:10.34894/INZBF2). The dashed constant-growth line is our own least-squares fit. Prepared files: data/ch03/fig3-2.csv and data/ch03/maddison_world.csv (see the data notes). Chart: inspired by Fig. 3.5 in Jones (2024), Macroeconomics, 6th ed.

Growth across countries

Fig. 6: Per capita GDP since 1870 across countries

Use the menu to add the countries of a region; click a name in the legend to hide it, or double-click to show it alone.

Sources. Data: Maddison Project Database 2023, GDP per capita (gdppc) and population, Groningen Growth and Development Centre (Bolt and van Zanden 2024, doi:10.34894/INZBF2), converted to 2022 dollars with the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis GDP deflator (A191RD3A086NBEA), via FRED. Prepared files: data/ch03/fig3-6.csv and data/ch03/maddison_world.csv (see the data notes). Chart: inspired by Fig. 3.6 in Jones (2024), Macroeconomics, 6th ed.

Fig. 7: Levels and growth rates of per capita GDP

Press the play button or move the slider to change the starting year; for 2000 and 2010 the upward tilt of the cloud disappears.

Sources. Data: Penn World Table 11.0, real GDP at chained PPPs (rgdpe) and population (pop), Groningen Growth and Development Centre (Feenstra, Inklaar and Timmer 2015, doi:10.34894/FABVLR). Prepared files: data/ch03/pwt_income.csv (see the data notes). Chart: inspired by Fig. 3.7 in Jones (2024), Macroeconomics, 6th ed.

Counting people, not countries

Fig. 8: The world’s population by per capita GDP

Move the slider to change the year, and hover over the big vertical jumps: they are China and India, each with more than a billion people.

Sources. Data: Penn World Table 11.0, real GDP at chained PPPs (rgdpe) and population (pop), Groningen Growth and Development Centre (Feenstra, Inklaar and Timmer 2015, doi:10.34894/FABVLR). Prepared files: data/ch03/pwt_income.csv (see the data notes). Chart: inspired by Fig. 3.8 in Jones (2024), Macroeconomics, 6th ed.

Rules for growth rates

Fig. 9: U.S. population, GDP and per capita GDP

Move the slider to change the starting year; per capita GDP grows at the growth rate of GDP minus that of population.

Sources. Data: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis via FRED: real GDP (GDPCA), population (B230RC0A052NBEA) and GDP deflator (A191RD3A086NBEA), from 1929; before 1929 and for every other country: Maddison Project Database 2023, GDP per capita (gdppc) and population, Groningen Growth and Development Centre (Bolt and van Zanden 2024, doi:10.34894/INZBF2) (the textbook uses Angus Maddison’s earlier historical statistics). Prepared files: data/ch03/fig3-9.csv and data/ch03/maddison_world.csv (see the data notes). Chart: inspired by Fig. 3.9 in Jones (2024), Macroeconomics, 6th ed.

Fig. 9, other countries: population, GDP and per capita GDP

Move the slider to choose a country; GDP growth is about per capita growth plus population growth, so Niger’s fast GDP growth hides stagnant incomes.

Sources. Data: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis via FRED: real GDP (GDPCA), population (B230RC0A052NBEA) and GDP deflator (A191RD3A086NBEA), from 1929; before 1929 and for every other country: Maddison Project Database 2023, GDP per capita (gdppc) and population, Groningen Growth and Development Centre (Bolt and van Zanden 2024, doi:10.34894/INZBF2) (the textbook uses Angus Maddison’s earlier historical statistics). Prepared files: data/ch03/fig3-9.csv and data/ch03/maddison_world.csv (see the data notes). Chart: inspired by Fig. 3.9 in Jones (2024), Macroeconomics, 6th ed.