Over 42 percent of Argentine households located in large metropolitan areas were found to live under the poverty line in the first half of 2023, 12.9 percentage points more in comparison to the same period a year earlier. When compared to the first semester of 2018, the share of urban households living under the poverty line in the South American country rose over 20 percentage points. According to the latest data available, 2.54 percent of the Argentinian population is living on less than 3.65 U.S. dollars per day.

Argentina Poverty Line: Total Basic Basket data was reported at 356,073.460 USD in Mar 2025. This records an increase from the previous number of 342,370.040 USD for Feb 2025. Argentina Poverty Line: Total Basic Basket data is updated monthly, averaging 15,716.435 USD from Apr 2016 (Median) to Mar 2025, with 108 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 356,073.460 USD in Mar 2025 and a record low of 3,663.660 USD in Apr 2016. Argentina Poverty Line: Total Basic Basket data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Institute of Statistics and Censuses. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Argentina – Table AR.G013: Indigence and Poverty Lines: National Statistics & Census Institute.

Poverty headcount ratio at national poverty lines (% of population) in Argentina was reported at 41.7 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Argentina - Poverty headcount ratio at national poverty line (% of population) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

In 2002, almost 24 percent of the urban population in Argentina were living on less than 3.65 dollars per day, the highest figure at least since 1980. The figure decreased significantly in recent years to less than 2.6 percent of the population in 2022. In nominal terms, excluding the impact of inflation, household income per capita in Argentina has increased since 2015.

Argentina Poverty: Under Poverty Line: Percentage of Population: Urban: Agglomerate: More than 500000 Inhabitant data was reported at 37.400 % in Dec 2024. This records a decrease from the previous number of 52.200 % for Jun 2024. Argentina Poverty: Under Poverty Line: Percentage of Population: Urban: Agglomerate: More than 500000 Inhabitant data is updated semiannually, averaging 37.400 % from Dec 2016 (Median) to Dec 2024, with 17 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 52.200 % in Jun 2024 and a record low of 25.500 % in Dec 2017. Argentina Poverty: Under Poverty Line: Percentage of Population: Urban: Agglomerate: More than 500000 Inhabitant data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Institute of Statistics and Censuses. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Argentina – Table AR.G017: Below Poverty Line.

Regardless of the employment status, the percentage of the population in Argentina whose average per capita income was below the poverty line experienced a downward trend between 2002 and 2017. In the case of the unemployed population, the share fell from 75.2 to 33.3 percent. However, the share of people living under the poverty line grew from 2017 and 2020 across all groups. In 2023, 30.8 percent of the economically inactive population was living in poverty. That year, 18 percent of employees in Argentina, the group with the lowest share throughout the whole analyzed period, was living under the poverty line.

Historical dataset showing Argentina poverty rate by year from 1980 to 2023.

Argentina Poverty: Under Poverty Line: Percentage of Households: Urban: Agglomerate: More than 500000 Inhabitant data was reported at 28.000 % in Dec 2024. This records a decrease from the previous number of 41.900 % for Jun 2024. Argentina Poverty: Under Poverty Line: Percentage of Households: Urban: Agglomerate: More than 500000 Inhabitant data is updated semiannually, averaging 27.900 % from Dec 2016 (Median) to Dec 2024, with 17 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 41.900 % in Jun 2024 and a record low of 17.700 % in Dec 2017. Argentina Poverty: Under Poverty Line: Percentage of Households: Urban: Agglomerate: More than 500000 Inhabitant data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Institute of Statistics and Censuses. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Argentina – Table AR.G017: Below Poverty Line.

During the second quarter of 2023, approximately three out of ten people living in urban areas in Argentina were below the poverty line. And more than one out of ten individuals were considered to live below the indigence line. Even though poverty and indigence rates were lower among households, it was estimated that over 23 percent of urban households in Argentina were below the poverty line.

Argentina Poverty Headcount Ratio at Societal Poverty Lines: % of Population data was reported at 22.800 % in 2022. This records a decrease from the previous number of 23.800 % for 2021. Argentina Poverty Headcount Ratio at Societal Poverty Lines: % of Population data is updated yearly, averaging 25.250 % from Dec 1980 (Median) to 2022, with 34 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 34.300 % in 2002 and a record low of 21.400 % in 1986. Argentina Poverty Headcount Ratio at Societal Poverty Lines: % of Population data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Argentina – Table AR.World Bank.WDI: Social: Poverty and Inequality. The poverty headcount ratio at societal poverty line is the percentage of a population living in poverty according to the World Bank's Societal Poverty Line. The Societal Poverty Line is expressed in purchasing power adjusted 2017 U.S. dollars and defined as max($2.15, $1.15 + 0.5*Median). This means that when the national median is sufficiently low, the Societal Poverty line is equivalent to the extreme poverty line, $2.15. For countries with a sufficiently high national median, the Societal Poverty Line grows as countries’ median income grows.;World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income economies are mostly from the Luxembourg Income Study database. For more information and methodology, please see http://pip.worldbank.org.;;The World Bank’s internationally comparable poverty monitoring database now draws on income or detailed consumption data from more than 2000 household surveys across 169 countries. See the Poverty and Inequality Platform (PIP) for details (www.pip.worldbank.org).

Unemployment Rate in Argentina increased to 7.90 percent in the first quarter of 2025 from 6.40 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024. This dataset provides - Argentina Unemployment Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

In November 2024, the main problem for the country detected by the population in Argentina was poverty with an overall 38 percent answering it as one of the main problems, followed by low wages, crime, and job shortage. During this survey, other issues like climate change dropped to the bottom of the list, with less than one percent of people mentioning them as problem. Inflation in Argentina For the first month of 2023, one of the categories with the highest consumer price index (CPI) was clothing and footwear recording an inflation rate of 120.6. Some basic basket products also recorded high year-on-year price increases, like the food and non-alcoholic drinks sector recorded between 50 and 70 index points increases from January to June 2022. Overall, the price increase has been exponential when considering previous years, for example, the health services industry recorded an increase of 1,231.5 points in approximately six years. Crime in Argentina Other most common worries for the Argentinian population were crime and violence. In 2020, the country registered around 2,416 cases of intentional murders and, in 2022, approximately 212 femicides. Nonetheless, Argentina ranks as one of the Latin American countries with the lowest homicide rate, only with more than its western neighbor, Chile. Property crimes are actually the main concern for the country, only in 2021 more than a quarter of a million thefts were registered.

Argentina Poverty: Under Poverty Line: Percentage of Population: Urban data was reported at 38.100 % in Dec 2024. This records a decrease from the previous number of 52.900 % for Jun 2024. Argentina Poverty: Under Poverty Line: Percentage of Population: Urban data is updated semiannually, averaging 37.300 % from Dec 2016 (Median) to Dec 2024, with 17 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 52.900 % in Jun 2024 and a record low of 25.700 % in Dec 2017. Argentina Poverty: Under Poverty Line: Percentage of Population: Urban data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Institute of Statistics and Censuses. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Argentina – Table AR.G017: Below Poverty Line.

The index provides the only comprehensive measure available for non-income poverty, which has become a critical underpinning of the SDGs. Critically the MPI comprises variables that are already reported under the Demographic Health Surveys (DHS) and Multi-Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) The resources subnational multidimensional poverty data from the data tables published by the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI), University of Oxford. The global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) measures multidimensional poverty in over 100 developing countries, using internationally comparable datasets and is updated annually. The measure captures the severe deprivations that each person faces at the same time using information from 10 indicators, which are grouped into three equally weighted dimensions: health, education, and living standards. The global MPI methodology is detailed in Alkire, Kanagaratnam & Suppa (2023)

This report attempts to analyze selected topics, chosen in collaboration with the Argentine authorities, regarding the inter-linkages between economic growth, income distribution and poverty, as well as the respective roles of these factors in explaining the historical underperformance of the Argentine economy. The report aims to identify relevant issues for policy formulation and further economic work. Its emphasis is on longer-term structural factors which are thought to determine productivity and income distribution. The report is organized as follows. Chapter 2 briefly reviews the time-dynamics o f economic growth, poverty and inequality in Argentina. Sections of the chapter study the evolution of poverty and inequality. It is noted that inequality has increased dramatically, though not monotonically, since 1990 and, notably, increases in inequality were observed in periods of both growth and recession. Chapter 3 reviews the latest episode o f economic volatility in Argentina, a period that started with the sharp decline o f economic activity in 2002 and continued with a recovery since 2003. Special attention is paid to the impact of this recent volatility on economic growth, poverty and inequality. The sections study the social impact of the recent crisis and recovery; employing different methodologies to test whether the recent recovery was pro-poor. It also analyzes the recession and recovery at the sector level, while identifying the economic sectors that contributed most to poverty reduction during the latest upturn o f the economy. Chapter 4 then turns to a selected set of government policies that could help to deliver high economic growth. The section highlights the idea that macroeconomic stability is crucial to reducing poverty rates since the empirical evidence indicates that economic crises disproportionately affect the poor. Another major lesson from this section is that tax policy is not a good tool for redistribution in developing countries. Further it analyzes the potential impact of various trade initiatives on employment opportunities for relatively unskilled workers in Argentina; and presents the results o f a recent study on the returns to education for workers across income groups. Finally, it reviews some key issues involved in ensuring a favorable environment for private sector development.

Both the value of the basic food basket and the basic consumer basket in Argentina have been increasing since January 2018, experiencing a particularly steep growth from the beginning of 2022 onwards. The value of the basic food basket, which establishes the extreme poverty line, stood at 146,726 Argentine pesos in January 2025.

Vulnerable employment in relation to total employment in Argentina dropped between 2002 and 2011, falling from 24.56 to 18.62 percent. Nevertheless, from that year onwards it grew on an annual basis, reaching 24.1 percent in 2023. Furthermore, working men in Argentina had a higher rate of vulnerable employment than their female counterparts.According to the source, the category of vulnerable employment includes contributing family workers and own-account workers. Both economic groups face significant economic risks, and are the most likely to fall into poverty, due to their low chances to have formal work arrangements and to have social protection and safety nets to guard against economic shocks. Furthermore, they often lack the means to generate sufficient savings to offset these shocks..

In 2023, the percentage of informal employment in Argentina stood at 50 percent of the total employed population. The share of employment informality has decreased slightly in comparison to the previous year. Argentina is among the countries with the lowest share of informal employment in Latin America.

Vulnerability of the population The main issues of informal employment are the lack of job security, social security, and the low quality of jobs. All factors heavily impact the vulnerability of the population under such conditions. During the last few years, Argentina increased the share of households under the poverty line, in fact, during the first half of 2024, the percentage exceeded 40 percent of homes, more than double the 2018th rate. Labor force and unemployment During the past four decades, the labor participation rate in Argentina has been significantly higher among the male population than their female counterparts. For males, around 70 percent of working age people were part of the workforce, while only around half of females did the same. Nevertheless, the unemployment rate has been decreasing considerably, reaching its lowest point in 2023 since at least 2004.

Argentina Poverty: Under Poverty Line: Percentage of Population: Urban: Interior Agglomerate data was reported at 39.000 % in Dec 2024. This records a decrease from the previous number of 53.000 % for Jun 2024. Argentina Poverty: Under Poverty Line: Percentage of Population: Urban: Interior Agglomerate data is updated semiannually, averaging 37.300 % from Dec 2016 (Median) to Dec 2024, with 17 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 53.000 % in Jun 2024 and a record low of 25.800 % in Dec 2017. Argentina Poverty: Under Poverty Line: Percentage of Population: Urban: Interior Agglomerate data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by National Institute of Statistics and Censuses. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Argentina – Table AR.G017: Below Poverty Line.

The Consumer Price Index gauges the price changes in a basket of goods and services in a defined time period. During August 2024, the product category with the highest Consumer Price Index (CPI) increase compared with the previous month in Argentina was household, water, electricity, gas and other fuels with a ***** percent increase. Followed by education with a *** percent increase. Nonetheless, when compared with the previous year, communications registered the highest price increase with over *** percent year-over-year. The expectation of inflation Despite Argentina’s efforts to reduce inflation, the country ranks in the top three Latin American countries with the highest rate, only with a lower figure than Venezuela and Suriname. The situation is not a recent one, the inflation rate has been reaching double digits every year since 2012, reaching over ** percent in 2019, making the constant rising prices nothing out of the ordinary for Argentinian families. The expectation of inflation is one of the main causes of inflation with low central bank interest-rates and increases in the money supply, which helps to explain the chronic inflation of the country. Both firms and people expect inflation in their lives, workers demand increasing wages to coop with inflation, while companies increase prices of goods and services because they expect production costs to grow, creating a vicious circle in the economy. Inflation and poverty Inflation negatively affects consumers and savers alike. For the latter, 100 Argentinian pesos in 2020 was worth just under ** pesos in 2021, after adjusting for the ***** percent inflation rate. For the consumers, rising prices of the basic products increase the vulnerability of the population. In January 2023, the value of the basic food basket, which establishes the extreme poverty line, stood at ****** pesos, more than ten times higher than during the same month in 2018. Between the first half of 2018 and the first half of 2022, the share of households under the poverty line increased by over * percentage points reaching **** percent.