Abstract

Purpose- The aim of this research is to examine existing literature and upcoming research trends and to develop a comprehensive outline of the knowledge framework in the domain of educational spending through bibliometric analysis. Design/methodology/approach- This study presents an extensive bibliometric examination by using performance analysis and science mapping of academic literature on educational expenditure. It consists of 434 publications indexed in the Web of Science from 2000 to 2025 after the exclusion criterion. By using the advanced bibliometric visualization tool VOSviewer and applying various analytical techniques such as co-citation, co-authorship, bibliographic coupling, and keyword co-occurrence analysis. Findings- The study reveals the core characteristics of the existing body of knowledge on educational expenditure, identifying the most influential publications, institutions, journals, countries, and authors, as well as the evolution of key research themes over time. The study concludes by discussing the dominant research topics, authors, journals and highlighting emerging areas that need further exploration in future studies related to educational expenditure. Research limitations/implications- The study is limited to publications indexed in the Web of Science database, which may exclude relevant studies from other databases such as Scopus or Google Scholar. Additionally, the analysis is confined to bibliometric techniques, which provide quantitative insights but do not capture the qualitative depth of research content. We have considered the existing literature published during 2000-2025. Originality/value- This study provides one of the most comprehensive bibliometric analyses of educational expenditure research covering a 25-year period (2000–2025). By integrating performance analysis and science mapping through advanced visualization tools like VOSviewer, it offers novel insights into the intellectual structure, influential contributors, and emerging themes within this field.