Overview
The United States and Ireland enjoy longstanding political, economic, and commercial relations and a close cultural affinity. The large U.S.-Ireland commercial relationship, which exceeded $1 trillion in 2024, is significant by international standards and is particularly large relative to Ireland’s population of over five million people.
Ireland is one of the world’s wealthiest countries with an open and export-driven economy. In GDP per capita terms, Ireland is the second richest economy in the world, but this measure is distorted by the impact of multinational companies’ transactions and booking of profits. Companies seeking to measure the strength of the Irish economy should also look to alternative measures used by Ireland’s national statistics agency the Central Statistics Office (CSO), including modified gross national income (GNI*) or modified domestic demand (MDD), which provide a more accurate assessment of the strength of the domestic economy. Ireland has a high life expectancy and quality of life by international standards, with highly developed health and education systems, and strong labor force participation.
All measures showed the Irish economy grew strongly in 2024, with GDP growth of 2.6 percent, MDD growth of 1.8 percent, and GNI* growth of 4.8 percent. Due to one-off tax receipts arising from a legal judgement, Ireland ran a large budget surplus of 4.3 percent of GDP in 2024, and as of November 2025, the government projected it would run a surplus of 1.6 percent of GDP in 2025 and 0.8 percent of GDP in 2026. However, much of Ireland’s surplus was based on windfall corporate tax revenues which are not guaranteed to persist into the future. Ireland’s labor market remains strong, with unemployment of 5.0 percent in October 2025 resulting in strong consumption demand in the country.
Like most European countries, Ireland was impacted by high inflation which resulted from global supply chain challenges arising from the pandemic, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Despite this, inflation fell to 2.0 percent as of August 2025 but remained high in the food and beverage sectors (5.1 percent) with energy prices being high by EU standards. Ireland’s electricity supply relies considerably on generators powered by natural gas, over 80 percent of which is imported from the UK.
U.S. companies raise planning and infrastructure challenges in housing, water, energy, and transport as being amongst their most pertinent challenges in the Irish market. Ireland’s government recognizes these challenges and has committed to an ambitious capital spending program until 2040 to address Ireland’s infrastructure capacity constraints. It has also passed new laws to reform its planning process.
In 2024, U.S. goods exports to Ireland exceeded $16 billion and included chemicals and pharmaceuticals, computers and electronic products, aircraft and transportation equipment, power generation technology, medical devices, and electrical equipment. U.S. service exports to Ireland in 2024 were $90 billion, with much of this is accounted for by intellectual property.
In 2024, Ireland’s total investment stock in the United States was valued at $390 billion, ranking it as the fifth largest FDI investor in the United States. Over 700 Irish firms employed more than 375,000 people across all 50 states in sectors such as agri-food/nutrition, construction, healthcare, ICT, and professional and engineering services. Conversely, the total stock of U.S. investment in Ireland was $467 billion in 2024. Almost 1,000 U.S. firms in Ireland employed 211,000 people in 2024.
U.S. Embassy Dublin works closely with local partners including the American Chamber in Ireland (AmCham), the Irish Business and Employers Confederation (Ibec), Enterprise Ireland, the Irish Exporters Association, Ireland Inc., and local Chambers of Commerce as well as the Irish government and national agencies to advance the U.S.-Ireland economic relationship and forge joint prosperity between both countries.
Top reasons Why U.S. Companies Should Consider Exporting to Ireland
Ireland’s high receptiveness to U.S. products and services creates a fertile market for U.S. brands across sectors. U.S. goods and services are perceived to be of high quality, and U.S. companies receive positive support from local partners, helping to further their export goals.
Ireland is a viable test market for U.S. companies looking to export for the first time to the European Union. Ireland’s strategic geographical location positions the country as a gateway to the European Union with access to a wider market of 400 million consumers.
Ireland has, for the past number of years, been among the fastest growing economies in the European Union and almost all economic forecasts in 2024 showed the Irish economy was expected to continue to grow in the years ahead, supporting strong consumer consumption and industrial demand.
President Trump’s August 2025 United States-European Union framework agreement on reciprocal, fair and balanced trade has helped create a competitive advantage for U.S. products entering the European Union market, removing barriers to entry and improving product competitiveness.
Political Environment
Visit the State Department’s website for background on Ireland’s political and economic environment.