THE 31 MOST REPRESENTATIVE CAPITALIST COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD - HISTORY - 2025

The capitalist countries are those whose system of social and economic organization based on private ownership of the means of production. Currently, capitalism is the most widespread economic order in world countries. Capital is the central factor in this entire system and is made up of real estate, machinery, facilities, money, goods and even the workforce.

Unlike other forms of organization, the role of the State is limited, it only regulates the legal provisions so that companies have freedom of action in the market. The economic liberalism of John Locke, Adam Smith or Benjamin Franklin, is the theory that gave rise to capitalism.

Within this doctrine there are different branches, there are those who have more liberal positions and those who seek a combination with other models to give greater preponderance to the role of the State.

In this article, I bring you some of the most representative capitalist countries in the world and in history.

List of countries that represent capitalism

1- United States

The United States could be considered the capitalist model par excellence. It is the main economy in the world, in a close fight with China, and it is the main power in the West.

The process toward capitalism in the country began in the first half of the 19th century with the factory system, the industrial system that rapidly expanded throughout the territory and all economic sectors.

Slowly, the United States began its commercial expansion, which gained momentum with Fordism (the mass production system). After the Safe World War, it established itself as a capitalist country, until it became the current power.

2- France

With the French Revolution at the end of the 18th century and the arrival of the bourgeoisie to power, France began its capitalist history between political and economic ups and downs.

It is currently considered one of the most developed countries in the world for its quality of life. It is the ninth largest economy in the world. Although it has a broad private capital base, state intervention is higher than in other similar countries.

3- Japan

This country begins its adaptation to capitalism towards the end of the 19th century, with the Meiji Restoration. This series of events led to the abolition of feudalism and the adoption of some institutions similar to those of the West.

Japanese expansion was affected after World War II, with the fall of two atomic bombs. However, from these, the eastern power achieved growth levels that make it the fourth largest economy in the world, behind the United States, China and India.

4- Germany

The case of this European country is often explained as the “German miracle”. It was the nation that was defeated in the two World Wars and from 1948, with the country divided, its capitalist expansion began.

After reunification in 1990, Germany became the main economy of the continent and the fifth power in the world.

5- Italy

Rome

It was another of the world powers that began its most solid capitalist transformation after the Second World War. It went through a severe economic crisis in the early 21st century.

At present and thanks to its great industrial development, it is the eleventh economy in the world and the fourth in Europe.

6- Sweden

Although this Nordic country has a strong welfare state, linked to socialism, its economy is capitalist. In addition, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), it is one of the most advanced in the world.

Starting in 1990, Sweden began its turn to a market economy, driven by an economic crisis and by the need to be able to profit from its production of wood, hydropower and iron.

7- Holland

Starting in the 17th century, this country began an economic transformation that was based on the opening of its laws to take advantage of its strategic position.

Since the late 1980s, this process deepened with the reduction of the role of the state in favor of industrial and chemical activity.

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The cradle of capitalism, both for its theoretical production and for its historical economic liberalism and the industrial revolution of the 19th century.

Thanks to its great industrialization and its strong service sector, it is the eighth largest economy in the world.

9- Belgium

It is a case similar to that of the Netherlands, with whom the Netherlands forms. Densely populated and in an area of ​​high industrialization, Belgium has a capitalist market economy.

It was the first European country to develop the industrial revolution and has one of the highest per capita income in the Old Continent.

10- Switzerland

It is a country with high economic freedom, considered one of the most advanced and stable capitalist nations on the planet. As well as, the second most competitive.

With a strong financial services sector and a highly developed industry, Switzerland has a flexible labor market with a low unemployment rate.

11- South Africa

It is part of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), a group of emerging nations. Its economy had a great development in recent decades, despite the major crises and health problems that it had to face.

It is the main economy in Africa thanks to its natural resources, gold and platinum, and one of the 30 most important in the world.

12- Brazil

The South American giant is another member of the BRICS. It is the main economy in Latin America, the second on the continent behind the United States and the seventh in the world.

Its great industrial, mining, manufacturing and service development, added to its large workforce, led it to overcome successive crises.

13- Mexico

It is one of the main economies in the world, it ranks tenth in terms of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), but it has the highest poverty rate in that group, with 42%.

14- Colombia

With a strong service sector, its economy experienced strong growth from the 21st century and is currently one of the emerging powers in the region and the world.

15- Luxembourg

It has the second GDP per capita in the world, behind Qatar. Its developed economy is primarily based on financial services, thanks to the laxest tax regimes in Europe.

16- United Arab Emirates

It is a sum of different emirates that make up one of the richest economies in the world.

With investment in oil development beginning in the 1970s and a liberal economy, it has a high per capita income and one of the highest trade surpluses on the planet.

17- Singapore

This nation bases its political system on a kind of replica of the English model and its economy is not alien to this. With a free market system, like the other “Asian Tigers” (Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan), it has one of the highest GDP per person in the world.

Its main sources of income are exports and refined imports, with a developed industrial sector.

18- Spain

Its transformation to capitalism began with the Industrial Revolution in the 19th century, but it was with a second industrializing wave in the 20th century that it consolidated its model.

Spain is one of the examples that capitalism can fail, after successive crises in the last decades the country reached a stability that places it as the fourteenth world economy.

19- Hong Kong

Since the 2010s, it has been one of the world leaders in the capitalist economy.

It is going through its greatest moment of monetary freedom since British colonialism and the degree of autonomy from China, making it one of the richest countries in terms of personal wealth.

20- India

The adoption of capitalism in India began in the 1990s, after almost half a century of a failed socialist trial.

With the change in the model and the opening of markets, the Asian country became one of the fastest growing countries today.

With a strong service sector, a developed industry, accompanied by strong agriculture and a large workforce of more than 500 million people, India is the third largest economy in the world. It is also part of the BRICS.

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Irish flag. (Drawn by User: SKopp, via Wikimedia Commons).

After Switzerland, it is considered the most capitalist country in Europe. Although it already embraced liberalism in the 1970s, after the 2008 crisis, policies were even more supported.

Currently its economic growth is above the European average, standing out for having one of the highest GDP per capita in the world. Companies such as Intel, Google, Yahoo, Twitter, Ryanair or PayPal are based in the Irish capital thanks to its tax advantages.

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After Salvador Allende's socialist essay in 1970, Chile turned towards capitalism to become one of the most stable economies on Earth.

Despite a strong mining sector and a free market economy, it has high rates of inequality.

With the end of the Cold War and the fall of the socialist and communist models, Russia emerged as a capitalist power thanks to the increase in oil prices.

24- Canada

It is one of the richest economies in the world, ranked 13 according to its GDP. Its free market system is considered to be better than that of the United States and the European powers.

With a developed industry and a thriving energy sector, Canada is one of the world's leading exporters.

25- New Zealand

Wellington, capital of New Zealand. Canuck85 at English Wikipedia / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)

After Hong Kong and Singapore, the most liberal economy in the world. After the great reform that the country underwent in the 80s, known as "Rogernomics", the oceanic country has not stopped creating policies related to capitalism.

Reduced taxes, public spending on the decline, customs liberalization, labor flexibility, in any of these sections it is very common to see New Zealanders leading the rankings.

26- Iran

Iran is another case of countries whose capitalist economy emerged thanks to oil. It was in the 20th century that this nation began its growth with the extraction, refinement and production of products derived from crude oil.

27- Malaysia

Its model is similar to that of the "Asian Tigers", but with the difference that it lacks a solid base of manpower, which slowed its development. Its economic system is based on mining, agriculture and the tertiary sector, services.

28- Peru

The Peruvian case is one of the most emblematic today, with the second lowest inflation rate in the world and a level of growth only comparable to China.

With a free market economy and a strong mining sector, it is one of the strongest countries in the world and the sixth most important in Latin America.

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With a highly skilled workforce and a thriving industry, South Korea is one of the most developed economies in the world, thanks to its expansion in the late 20th century.

Its ability to export high-quality manufactured products, especially related to technology, makes it the twelfth largest economy in the world.

30- Australia

City of Sydney, the main Australian economic center. Phil Whitehouse from London, UK, aka Phillie Casablanca on Flickr

Source: Wikimedia Commons

The oceanic country occupies the top positions in the rankings of capitalist countries for several decades. The origin of this model occurred when in the 80s the exchange rate to the Australian dollar was released and in the 90s there was a significant financial deregulation.

Today it is one of the countries in which the state intervenes the least in the market, which is why it has earned the nickname "liberal kangaroo."

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It is currently the strongest economy in the world. Until 1940, its economy was based on fishing and pearl gathering, but the oil and gas boom gave it an unusual economic boost.

Other countries that were once capitalist

Congo

It is considered the poorest capitalist country in the world. Despite being endowed with great natural resources, especially miners, the Congo suffers from internal conflicts that undermined its development possibilities.

Argentina

Argentina is, along with Brazil, one of the South American giants, due to its size and economic activity. However, its development never really took off and during the last two decades of the 20th century it experienced fierce crises.

It is one of the main soy and meat producers in the world and is part of the G20, which is made up of the 20 world powers.

Chad

This African country is one of the mistakes of capitalism. According to the UN, it is the fifth poorest nation in the world with 80% of the population below the poverty line.

Its economy is based almost entirely on agriculture and in the last decade a development of the oil sector began, but internal ethnic differences jeopardize any attempt at growth.

Greece

Another of the victims of capitalism, after a strong crisis and failed recipes from world organizations put the country on the brink of bankruptcy in the first decade of the 21st century.

With a service-based economy it ranks among the 50 most powerful countries in the world and is the most developed in the Balkan region.

Some reflections on capitalism

Capitalism was the system of social and economic organization that replaced the feudal state. Etymologically it owes its name to the idea of ​​capital and usufruct of private property in the means of production.

Merchants and the market for the exchange of goods or services have existed since the very beginning of civilization, but capitalism as a doctrine emerged in the 17th century in England.

The objective of the defenders of capitalism is the accumulation of capital, the profits that result from products or services remain in the hands of private capital, owners of the means of production.

In this type of economy, the market plays a fundamental role, since it is there where the relationships between the parties are established and the variables of the economy are governed.

The market, as a whole, depends on the interaction between supply and demand, on the exchange of goods in order to survive. In this scenario, the term competition is central, since it is what regulates markets economically.

Boosters

Milton Friedman. If you want to hunt down a thief, call another to catch him. The virtue of free enterprise capitalism is that which places one entrepreneur against another, and that is the most effective method of control.

Friedrich Hayek. "The idea comes from yesteryear that those who adopt competitive market practices achieved greater demographic growth and displaced other groups that followed different customs… Only groups that behave according to this moral order manage to survive and prosper."

Detractors

Friedrich Nietzsche. "Look at those superfluous, they get rich and yet they get poorer."

Karl Marx. "For capitalism freedom means freedom to trade, freedom to buy and sell, not true freedom."