The average for 2021 based on 71 countries was 27.53 percent. The highest value was in Colombia: 43.7 percent and the lowest value was in Slovakia: 19.1 percent. The indicator is available from 1963 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Over ** million individuals residing in the United States belonged to the global top one percent of ultra-high net worth individuals worldwide in 2022. China ranked second, with over **** million top one percent wealth holders globally. France followed in third.

In the first quarter of 2025, almost two-thirds percent of the total wealth in the United States was owned by the top 10 percent of earners. In comparison, the lowest 50 percent of earners only owned 2.5 percent of the total wealth. Income inequality in the U.S. Despite the idea that the United States is a country where hard work and pulling yourself up by your bootstraps will inevitably lead to success, this is often not the case. In 2023, 7.4 percent of U.S. households had an annual income under 15,000 U.S. dollars. With such a small percentage of people in the United States owning such a vast majority of the country’s wealth, the gap between the rich and poor in America remains stark. The top one percent The United States was the country with the most billionaires in the world in 2025. Elon Musk, with a net worth of 342 billion U.S. dollars, was among the richest people in the United States in 2025. Over the past 50 years, the CEO-to-worker compensation ratio has exploded, causing the gap between rich and poor to grow, with some economists theorizing that this gap is the largest it has been since right before the Great Depression.

Global income is highly unequally divided. While the richest 10 percent earned more than half of the pre-tax national income worldwide, the bottom half earned only eight percent. Global wealth is even more unequally divided.

The world's richest 10 percent holds more than three quarters of the world's total wealth. Although their share decreased by around five percentage points since 1995, this underlines the massive wealth inequalities existing around the world. By comparison, the poorest half of the world population holds less than two percent of global wealth. The richest percent holds more than 40 percent of the global wealth.

By 2030, the middle-class population in Asia-Pacific is expected to increase from **** billion people in 2015 to **** billion people. In comparison, the middle-class population of sub-Saharan Africa is expected to increase from *** million in 2015 to *** million in 2030. Worldwide wealth While the middle-class has been on the rise, there is still a huge disparity in global wealth and income. The United States had the highest number of individuals belonging to the top one percent of wealth holders, and the value of global wealth is only expected to increase over the coming years. Around ** percent of the world’s population had assets valued at less than 10,000 U.S. dollars, while less than *** percent had assets of more than one million U.S. dollars. Asia had the highest percentage of investable assets in the world in 2018, whereas Oceania had the highest percentage of non-investable assets. The middle-class The middle class is the group of people whose income falls in the middle of the scale. China accounted for over half of the global population for middle-class wealth in 2017. In the United States, the debate about the middle class “disappearing” has been a popular topic due to the increase in wealth among the top billionaires in the nation. Due to this, there have been arguments to increase taxes on the rich to help support the middle class.

The average for 2021 based on 31 countries was 24.61 percent. The highest value was in Turkey: 34.7 percent and the lowest value was in Slovakia: 19.1 percent. The indicator is available from 1963 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Globally, about 25 percent of the population is under 15 years of age and 10 percent is over 65 years of age. Africa has the youngest population worldwide. In Sub-Saharan Africa, more than 40 percent of the population is below 15 years, and only three percent are above 65, indicating the low life expectancy in several of the countries. In Europe, on the other hand, a higher share of the population is above 65 years than the population under 15 years. Fertility rates The high share of children and youth in Africa is connected to the high fertility rates on the continent. For instance, South Sudan and Niger have the highest population growth rates globally. However, about 50 percent of the world’s population live in countries with low fertility, where women have less than 2.1 children. Some countries in Europe, like Latvia and Lithuania, have experienced a population decline of one percent, and in the Cook Islands, it is even above two percent. In Europe, the majority of the population was previously working-aged adults with few dependents, but this trend is expected to reverse soon, and it is predicted that by 2050, the older population will outnumber the young in many developed countries. Growing global population As of 2025, there are 8.1 billion people living on the planet, and this is expected to reach more than nine billion before 2040. Moreover, the global population is expected to reach 10 billions around 2060, before slowing and then even falling slightly by 2100. As the population growth rates indicate, a significant share of the population increase will happen in Africa.

Between December 2019 and 2021, the top one percent of earners accumulated 63 percent of all new wealth worldwide. This is more than six times more wealth than accumulated by the bottom 90 percent over the same time period.

Global wealth distribution Newly generated wealth landing in the hands of the few is not a new story and has been the focus of international development policy for many years. Looking at a regional level, Latin America was the region with the starkest distribution of wealth. In this region, 77 percent of the wealth was held by the richest 10 percent in 2021, and only 0.5 percent held by the poorest 50 percent. At an individual level, around 2.82 billion adults worldwide had a net worth of less than 10,000 U.S. dollars in 2021.

Billionaires In 2021, the highest concentration of billionaires could be found in North America. However, China had the largest number of billionaires in its population in 2022, with most living in Beijing. Looking at wealth distribution amongst billionaires themselves, 20 people had fortunes of 50 billion U.S. dollars or more, but the majority of billionaires had a personal fortune between two and five billion U.S. dollars.

In December 2022, Elon Musk slipped from the top spot of richest people on Earth. The number one spot was taken by French magnate, Bernard Arnault of Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton.

United States US: Income Share Held by Highest 10% data was reported at 30.600 % in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 30.100 % for 2013. United States US: Income Share Held by Highest 10% data is updated yearly, averaging 30.100 % from Dec 1979 (Median) to 2016, with 11 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 30.600 % in 2016 and a record low of 25.300 % in 1979. United States US: Income Share Held by Highest 10% data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.World Bank.WDI: Poverty. Percentage share of income or consumption is the share that accrues to subgroups of population indicated by deciles or quintiles.; ; World Bank, Development Research Group. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income economies are from the Luxembourg Income Study database. For more information and methodology, please see PovcalNet (http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet/index.htm).; ; The World Bank’s internationally comparable poverty monitoring database now draws on income or detailed consumption data from more than one thousand six hundred household surveys across 164 countries in six regions and 25 other high income countries (industrialized economies). While income distribution data are published for all countries with data available, poverty data are published for low- and middle-income countries and countries eligible to receive loans from the World Bank (such as Chile) and recently graduated countries (such as Estonia) only. See PovcalNet (http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet/WhatIsNew.aspx) for definitions of geographical regions and industrialized countries.

In the first quarter of 2024, almost two-thirds percent of the total wealth in the United States was owned by the top 10 percent of earners. In comparison, the lowest 50 percent of earners only owned 2.5 percent of the total wealth. Income inequality in the U.S. Despite the idea that the United States is a country where hard work and pulling yourself up by your bootstraps will inevitably lead to success, this is often not the case. In 2023, 7.4 percent of U.S. households had an annual income under 15,000 U.S. dollars. With such a small percentage of people in the United States owning such a vast majority of the country’s wealth, the gap between the rich and poor in America remains stark. The top one percent The United States follows closely behind China as the country with the most billionaires in the world. Elon Musk alone held around 219 billion U.S. dollars in 2022. Over the past 50 years, the CEO-to-worker compensation ratio has exploded, causing the gap between rich and poor to grow, with some economists theorizing that this gap is the largest it has been since right before the Great Depression.

The average for 2021 based on 2 countries was 27.1 percent. The highest value was in Iran: 27.2 percent and the lowest value was in Tunisia: 27 percent. The indicator is available from 1963 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Income share held by highest 10% in United States was reported at 30.4 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. United States - Income share held by highest 10% - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on September of 2025.

Japan JP: Income Share Held by Highest 10% data was reported at 24.700 % in 2008. Japan JP: Income Share Held by Highest 10% data is updated yearly, averaging 24.700 % from Dec 2008 (Median) to 2008, with 1 observations. Japan JP: Income Share Held by Highest 10% data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Japan – Table JP.World Bank.WDI: Poverty. Percentage share of income or consumption is the share that accrues to subgroups of population indicated by deciles or quintiles.; ; World Bank, Development Research Group. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income economies are from the Luxembourg Income Study database. For more information and methodology, please see PovcalNet (http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet/index.htm).; ; The World Bank’s internationally comparable poverty monitoring database now draws on income or detailed consumption data from more than one thousand six hundred household surveys across 164 countries in six regions and 25 other high income countries (industrialized economies). While income distribution data are published for all countries with data available, poverty data are published for low- and middle-income countries and countries eligible to receive loans from the World Bank (such as Chile) and recently graduated countries (such as Estonia) only. See PovcalNet (http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet/WhatIsNew.aspx) for definitions of geographical regions and industrialized countries.

Income share held by highest 10% in Brazil was reported at 40.8 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Brazil - Income share held by highest 10% - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on September of 2025.

Income share held by highest 10% in Croatia was reported at 23 % in 2022, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Croatia - Income share held by highest 10% - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

Income share held by highest 10% in China was reported at 28.2 % in 2021, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. China - Income share held by highest 10% - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on August of 2025.

In 2023, Switzerland led the ranking of countries with the highest average wealth per adult, with approximately 709,600 U.S. dollars per person. Luxembourg was ranked second with an average wealth of around 607,500 U.S. dollars per adult, followed by Hong Kong SAR. However, the figures do not show the actual distribution of wealth. The Gini index shows wealth disparities in countries worldwide. Does wealth guarantee a longer life? As the old adage goes, “money can’t buy you happiness”, yet wealth and income are continuously correlated to the quality of life of individuals in different countries around the world. While greater levels of wealth may not guarantee a higher quality of life, it certainly increases an individual’s chances of having a longer one. Although they do not show the whole picture, life expectancy at birth is higher in the wealthier world regions. Does money bring happiness? A number of the world’s happiest nations also feature in the list of those countries for which average income was highest. Finland, however, which was the happiest country worldwide in 2022, is missing from the list of the top twenty countries with the highest wealth per adult. As such, the explanation for this may be the fact that the larger proportion of the population has access to a high income relative to global levels. Measures of quality of life Criticism of the use of income or wealth as a proxy for quality of life led to the creation of the United Nations’ Human Development Index. Although income is included within the index, it also has other factors taken into account, such as health and education. As such, the countries with the highest human development index can be correlated to those with the highest income levels. That said, none of the above measures seek to assess the physical and mental environmental impact of a high quality of life sourced through high incomes. The happy planet index demonstrates that the inclusion of experienced well-being and ecological footprint in place of income and other proxies for quality of life results in many of the world’s materially poorer nations being included in the happiest.

Pakistan PK: Income Share Held by Highest 10% data was reported at 28.900 % in 2015. This records an increase from the previous number of 26.000 % for 2013. Pakistan PK: Income Share Held by Highest 10% data is updated yearly, averaging 27.100 % from Dec 1987 (Median) to 2015, with 12 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 28.900 % in 2015 and a record low of 25.200 % in 1996. Pakistan PK: Income Share Held by Highest 10% data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Pakistan – Table PK.World Bank.WDI: Poverty. Percentage share of income or consumption is the share that accrues to subgroups of population indicated by deciles or quintiles.; ; World Bank, Development Research Group. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income economies are from the Luxembourg Income Study database. For more information and methodology, please see PovcalNet (http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet/index.htm).; ; The World Bank’s internationally comparable poverty monitoring database now draws on income or detailed consumption data from more than one thousand six hundred household surveys across 164 countries in six regions and 25 other high income countries (industrialized economies). While income distribution data are published for all countries with data available, poverty data are published for low- and middle-income countries and countries eligible to receive loans from the World Bank (such as Chile) and recently graduated countries (such as Estonia) only. See PovcalNet (http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet/WhatIsNew.aspx) for definitions of geographical regions and industrialized countries.

Turkey: Percent income earned by the top 10 percent of earners: The latest value from 2021 is 34.7 percent, an increase from 33 percent in 2020. In comparison, the world average is 27.53 percent, based on data from 71 countries. Historically, the average for Turkey from 2017 to 2021 is 33.64 percent. The minimum value, 32.6 percent, was reached in 2018 while the maximum of 34.7 percent was recorded in 2021.