According to the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) October 2025 outlook, the 2026 world economy faces a delicate balancing act. The global expansion that characterized the early 2020s has entered a phase of measured restraint, shaped by rising protectionism, fiscal tightening, and political fragmentation.
The IMF warns of a significant slowdown and a real risk of further decline, along with an increase in the potential power of tech companies, at the expense of certain institutions.
Thus, with the help of 'DataMapper', the IMF has estimated which will be the world's largest economies in 2026, that is, which countries will have the highest Gross Domestic Product (GDP). As expected, there are few surprises at the top of the list, although there are a few further down. These are (or will be) the world's largest economies in 2026:
Major economies of 2026
1 - United States - 31.82 trillion dollars
2 - China - 20.65 trillion dollars
3 - Germany - 5.32 trillion dollars
4 - India - 4.5 trillion dollars
5 - Japan - 4.46 trillion dollars
6 - United Kingdom - 4.22 trillion dollars
7 - France - 3.55 trillion dollars
8 - Italy - 2.7 trillion dollars
9 - Russia - 2.5 trillion dollars
10 - Canada - 2.42 trillion dollars
11 - Brazil - 2.29 trillion dollars
12 - Spain - 2.04 trillion dollars
13 - Mexico - 2.03 trillion dollars
14 - Australia - 1.94 trillion dollars
15 - South Korea - 1.93 trillion dollars
16 - Türkiye - 1.57 trillion dollars
17 - Indonesia - 1.55 trillion dollars
18 - Netherlands - 1.41 trillion dollars
19 - Saudi Arabia - 1.31 trillion dollars
20 - Poland - 1.1 trillion dollars
The dominance of the United States and China is overwhelming. However, the two countries are experiencing very different realities. While the United States is aiming for moderate growth due to Donald Trump's trade wars and rising consumer prices, the Chinese economy is projected to grow by 4%.
However, what for many countries would be considered a luxury of growth, in this case represents the slowest multi-year growth rate in the last four decades. This fact clearly explains the Asian giant's differential growth over the last half-century. Despite this, an aging population and a challenging real estate market have slowed growth that had become accustomed to double digits.
Following them, India consolidates its position as the world's fourth largest economy, surpassing Japan thanks to strong domestic demand. Meanwhile, Indonesia and Türkiye also climb the rankings, positions they hope to solidify in the coming years.