A new study in Vaccines provides comprehensive estimates of what the world actually spent on COVID-19 vaccination between 2020 and 2023. Using data from 234 countries and territories, researchers calculate both vaccine procurement and delivery costs. By 31 December 2023, global COVID-19 vaccination programs had cost an estimated USD 246.2 billion, including USD 140.2 billion for vaccine procurement and USD 96.4 billion for administration. In total, about 150.6 billion doses were used (after accounting for 10% wastage), corresponding to an average of 1.73 doses per person worldwide. The mean global cost per capita was USD 17.70 for procurement and USD 12.16 for delivery, for a combined average of USD 29.85 per person.
The analysis reveals stark inequities in what countries paid, both in total and per capita. High-income countries spent an average of USD 76.90 per person on COVID-19 vaccination, compared with just USD 7.20 in low-income settings; lower-middle- and upper-middle-income countries fell in between at USD 15.02 and USD 28.21 per capita, respectively. Regionally, the Americas recorded the highest total cost at USD 70.8 billion and a per capita cost of USD 65.23, while the African region spent USD 10.8 billion in total, or USD 8.85 per capita. The authors conclude that procurement costs placed a proportionally greater burden on low- and lower-middle-income countries, whereas delivery costs dominated in higher-income settings, underscoring persistent fiscal inequities and the need for stronger international coordination, more transparent pricing, and better-prepared financing mechanisms for future large-scale vaccination efforts.
Thumbnail image credit: Shutterstock / PradeepGaurs
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