February 2026 | Latest insight
Profit share
What is profit share?
Profit share describes what proportion of industry revenue is left for firms after they have paid all their costs.
We use a common proxy measure for profit share using national accounts data: calculated as total industry Gross Operating Surplus as a share of total industry Gross Value Added. Further detail is provided on the Methodology page.
Why does it matter?
Higher or rising profit share indicates less competition, because where firms retain more of their revenue and pay less out in costs, it suggests that:
- they do not need to compete as fiercely on price to keep or win customers;
- they do not need to compete as fiercely with other firms to attract workers by offering better pay or conditions; or
- they do not need to compete as fiercely with other firms for other inputs, such as a logistics firm renting warehouse space.
However, profit share can be high even where competition is strong. For example, in industries where large upfront investment is needed and these investments are not fully reflected in firm costs, a high profit share can reflect these upfront costs being recouped over time (OECD, 2021).
What is happening with profit share?
Long term
Profit share has increased in the long run, with short-term volatility.
Short termProfit share rose to a decades-long peak in the early 2020s at the time of the COVID pandemic, and has since fallen back to around its long-run average.
Profit share has increased in the long run, with short-run volatility
Gross Operating Surplus share of Gross Value Added
February 2026 | In-depth look
Change in profit share by industry
Profit share by industry
Profit share index (FY 1989-90 = 100)