* indicates monthly or quarterly data series

Patent applications by residents, 2021:

The average for 2021 based on 14 countries was 517 patent applications. The highest value was in Brazil: 4666 patent applications and the lowest value was in El Salvador: 2 patent applications. The indicator is available from 1980 to 2021. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Measure: patent applications; Source: The World Intellectual Property Organization
Select indicator
* indicates monthly or quarterly data series


Countries Patent applications by residents, 2021 Global rank Available data
Brazil 4666 1 1980 - 2021
Mexico 1117 2 1980 - 2021
Colombia 432 3 1980 - 2021
Argentina 406 4 1980 - 2021
Chile 402 5 1980 - 2021
Peru 94 6 1980 - 2021
Ecuador 35 7 1980 - 2021
Panama 35 8 1980 - 2021
Costa Rica 15 9 1980 - 2021
Paraguay 10 10 1983 - 2021
Guatemala 9 11 1982 - 2021
Domin. Rep. 7 12 1983 - 2021
Bolivia 5 13 1980 - 2021
El Salvador 2 14 1980 - 2021



Definition: Patent applications are worldwide patent applications filed through the Patent Cooperation Treaty procedure or with a national patent office for exclusive rights for an invention--a product or process that provides a new way of doing something or offers a new technical solution to a problem. A patent provides protection for the invention to the owner of the patent for a limited period, generally 20 years.

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