Dominican Republic poverty rate for 2023 was 16.90%, a 3.3% decline from 2022.

<ul style='margin-top:20px;'>

<li>Dominican Republic poverty rate for 2022 was <strong>20.20%</strong>, a <strong>1.6% decline</strong> from 2021.</li>
<li>Dominican Republic poverty rate for 2021 was <strong>21.80%</strong>, a <strong>0.1% increase</strong> from 2020.</li>
<li>Dominican Republic poverty rate for 2020 was <strong>21.70%</strong>, a <strong>2.9% increase</strong> from 2019.</li>
</ul>Poverty headcount ratio at $5.50 a day is the percentage of the population living on less than $5.50 a day at 2011 international prices. As a result of revisions in PPP exchange rates, poverty rates for individual countries cannot be compared with poverty rates reported in earlier editions.

The share of population living on less than 3.2 U.S. dollars per day in the Dominican Republic decreased by 0.3 percentage points (-6.98 percent) in 2022 in comparison to the previous year. This was the first time during the observed period that the share declined in the Dominican Republic. Nevertheless, the last two years recorded a significantly higher share than the preceding years.The poverty headcount ratio refers to the share of the total population living on less than an average of 3.2 dollars per day. 2011 international dollars and purchasing power parity (PPP) have been used to allow comparisons over extended periods without the influence of monetary inflation.Find more statistics on other topics about the Dominican Republic with key insights such as poverty headcount ratio at national poverty lines.

The poverty headcount ratio at national poverty lines in the Dominican Republic increased by 0.5 percentage points (+2.14 percent) in 2021 in comparison to the previous year. With 23.9 percent, the poverty headcount ratio thereby reached its highest value in the observed period. Notably, the poverty headcount ratio continuously increased over the last years.These figures refer to the share of the population living below the poverty line, based on parameters set by relevant authorities.Find more statistics on other topics about the Dominican Republic with key insights such as percentage of income held by the richest 20 percent of the population.

Poverty headcount ratio at national poverty lines (% of population) in Dominican Republic was reported at 23 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Dominican Republic - 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.

Dominican Republic Poverty Headcount Ratio at Societal Poverty Lines: % of Population data was reported at 21.400 % in 2022. This records an increase from the previous number of 20.400 % for 2021. Dominican Republic Poverty Headcount Ratio at Societal Poverty Lines: % of Population data is updated yearly, averaging 29.500 % from Dec 1986 (Median) to 2022, with 28 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 36.300 % in 1989 and a record low of 20.400 % in 2021. Dominican Republic 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 Dominican Republic – Table DO.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).

Dominican Republic DO: Survey Mean Consumption or Income per Capita: Bottom 40% of Population: Annualized Average Growth Rate data was reported at 4.460 % in 2016. Dominican Republic DO: Survey Mean Consumption or Income per Capita: Bottom 40% of Population: Annualized Average Growth Rate data is updated yearly, averaging 4.460 % from Dec 2016 (Median) to 2016, with 1 observations. Dominican Republic DO: Survey Mean Consumption or Income per Capita: Bottom 40% of Population: Annualized Average Growth Rate data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Dominican Republic – Table DO.World Bank: Poverty. The growth rate in the welfare aggregate of the bottom 40% is computed as the annualized average growth rate in per capita real consumption or income of the bottom 40% of the population in the income distribution in a country from household surveys over a roughly 5-year period. Mean per capita real consumption or income is measured at 2011 Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) using the PovcalNet (http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet). For some countries means are not reported due to grouped and/or confidential data. The annualized growth rate is computed as (Mean in final year/Mean in initial year)^(1/(Final year - Initial year)) - 1. The reference year is the year in which the underlying household survey data was collected. In cases for which the data collection period bridged two calendar years, the first year in which data were collected is reported. The initial year refers to the nearest survey collected 5 years before the most recent survey available, only surveys collected between 3 and 7 years before the most recent survey are considered. The final year refers to the most recent survey available between 2011 and 2015. Growth rates for Iraq are based on survey means of 2005 PPP$. The coverage and quality of the 2011 PPP price data for Iraq and most other North African and Middle Eastern countries were hindered by the exceptional period of instability they faced at the time of the 2011 exercise of the International Comparison Program. See PovcalNet for detailed explanations.; ; World Bank, Global Database of Shared Prosperity (GDSP) circa 2010-2015 (http://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/poverty/brief/global-database-of-shared-prosperity).; ; The comparability of welfare aggregates (consumption or income) for the chosen years T0 and T1 is assessed for every country. If comparability across the two surveys is a major concern for a country, the selection criteria are re-applied to select the next best survey year(s). Annualized growth rates are calculated between the survey years, using a compound growth formula. The survey years defining the period for which growth rates are calculated and the type of welfare aggregate used to calculate the growth rates are noted in the footnotes.

The Dominican Republic experienced strong economic growth with improvements in the quality of life in the 1990s. Poverty declined from the early 1990s to 1998, albeit modestly, and there was important progress in social indicators that put the country on track to some of the Millennium Development Goals. Since then the country continued to experience impressive economic growth that started to decelerate in 2000 and ended up in a major financial and economic crisis. This report finds that poverty and the incomes of the poor saw virtually no improvements during the growth bonanza of 1997-2002 and that the 2003-2004 economic crisis brought a dramatic deterioration of real incomes and poverty levels. About 16 percent of the Dominican population (1.5 million) became poor and about 7 percent (670 thousand) fell in extreme poverty (incomes too low to afford the food basket of minimum caloric intake) in the last two years. In 2004, 42 out of each 100 Dominicans were poor, and 16 of them were living in extreme poverty. Income inequality remained unchanged over the last 7 years at a Gini coefficient of 0.52, the average for Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), the most unequal region in the world. The report finds five principal sets of factors behind the limited poverty reduction in the late 1990s and persistent inequality, and derives a set of policy options in three core directions: (i) promoting growth opportunities for the poor; (ii) strengthening social services delivery and strategic investments in the poor; and, (iii) improving fiscal equity and revamping social protection to protect the poor and vulnerable groups against risks.

Dominican Republic DO: Poverty Gap at $3.20 a Day: 2011 PPP: % data was reported at 1.700 % in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 2.000 % for 2015. Dominican Republic DO: Poverty Gap at $3.20 a Day: 2011 PPP: % data is updated yearly, averaging 4.400 % from Dec 1986 (Median) to 2016, with 22 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 11.000 % in 1989 and a record low of 1.700 % in 2016. Dominican Republic DO: Poverty Gap at $3.20 a Day: 2011 PPP: % data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Dominican Republic – Table DO.World Bank.WDI: Poverty. Poverty gap at $3.20 a day (2011 PPP) is the mean shortfall in income or consumption from the poverty line $3.20 a day (counting the nonpoor as having zero shortfall), expressed as a percentage of the poverty line. This measure reflects the depth of poverty as well as its incidence.; ; 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. The aggregated numbers for low- and middle-income countries correspond to the totals of 6 regions in PovcalNet, which include 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). See PovcalNet (http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet/WhatIsNew.aspx) for definitions of geographical regions and industrialized countries.

Since its recovery of macroeconomic stability in 1991, the Dominican Republic has experienced a period of notable economic growth. Poverty has declined in the 1990s. Nevertheless, a segment of the population-mainly in rural areas-does not seem to have benefited from this growth. Poverty in this country in 1998 is less than that of other countries if one adjusts for the level of economic development. The principal poverty characteristics are the following: Disparity in poverty levels in rural areas relative to the rest of the country. Destitution in the "bateyes," the communities arising near the sugar cane plantations, that are mainly composed of women, children, and the aged. Urban vulnerability to environmental problems while access to basic services is restricted. Vulnerability to natural disasters that destroy the means of production. Poverty is high among children--especially those who have abandoned formal education-female-headed households, and the aged-the latter due to lack of social safety nets and the absence of pension systems. There is a strong correlation between poverty and health indicators like the presence of malnutrition, and poverty and education, and poverty and the absence of basic services. Government transfers and foreign remittances play an important role in reducing poverty.

In recent decades, economic growth in the Dominican Republic (DR) has been steady. However, growth has not occurred in such a way as to make the benefits widely and evenly available. In fact, although the DR economy grew faster than that of other LAC countries before the Covid-19 pandemic, its poverty rates and social outcomes remain broadly similar to them. This report seeks to explain this conundrum, as well as to expand the knowledge base to improve the effectiveness of ongoing poverty reduction policies in the DR. The Poverty Assessment draws primarily on new analytical work conducted in the DR, structured around four background notes on: (i) trends in monetary poverty and inequality, as well as the key drivers of those changes; (ii) nonmonetary poverty and its spatial dimensions; (iii) social assistance programs and their role in mitigating poverty; and (iv) climate change and its interaction with poverty. By helping to reduce the evidence gap in each of these areas, our analysis hopes to inform government policies and the national dialogue on poverty reduction. In addition, the note integrates existing analytical work and evidence produced inside and outside the Bank, including from its operations in the country.

In recent decades, economic growth in the Dominican Republic (DR) has been steady. However, growth has not occurred in such a way as to make the benefits widely and evenly available. In fact, although the DR economy grew faster than that of other LAC countries before the Covid-19 pandemic, its poverty rates and social outcomes remain broadly similar to them. This report seeks to explain this conundrum, as well as to expand the knowledge base to improve the effectiveness of ongoing poverty reduction policies in the DR. The Poverty Assessment draws primarily on new analytical work conducted in the DR, structured around four background notes on: (i) trends in monetary poverty and inequality, as well as the key drivers of those changes; (ii) nonmonetary poverty and its spatial dimensions; (iii) social assistance programs and their role in mitigating poverty; and (iv) climate change and its interaction with poverty. By helping to reduce the evidence gap in each of these areas, our analysis hopes to inform government policies and the national dialogue on poverty reduction. In addition, the note integrates existing analytical work and evidence produced inside and outside the Bank, including from its operations in the country.

In the majority of the analyzed countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, the share of the population living in extreme poverty was expected to grow in 2022 compared to 2021. Colombia presented the most adverse situation, as extreme poverty in the country was expected to increase by 2.5 percentage points. On the flip side, it was forecasted that exreme poverty would decline in four countries: Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Panama and Bolivia.

In recent decades, economic growth in the Dominican Republic (DR) has been steady. However, growth has not occurred in such a way as to make the benefits widely and evenly available. In fact, although the DR economy grew faster than that of other LAC countries before the Covid-19 pandemic, its poverty rates and social outcomes remain broadly similar to them. This report seeks to explain this conundrum, as well as to expand the knowledge base to improve the effectiveness of ongoing poverty reduction policies in the DR. The Poverty Assessment draws primarily on new analytical work conducted in the DR, structured around four background notes on: (i) trends in monetary poverty and inequality, as well as the key drivers of those changes; (ii) nonmonetary poverty and its spatial dimensions; (iii) social assistance programs and their role in mitigating poverty; and (iv) climate change and its interaction with poverty. By helping to reduce the evidence gap in each of these areas, our analysis hopes to inform government policies and the national dialogue on poverty reduction. In addition, the note integrates existing analytical work and evidence produced inside and outside the Bank, including from its operations in the country.

Dominican Republic DO: Poverty Gap at $1.90 a Day: 2011 PPP: % data was reported at 0.400 % in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 0.500 % for 2015. Dominican Republic DO: Poverty Gap at $1.90 a Day: 2011 PPP: % data is updated yearly, averaging 1.300 % from Dec 1986 (Median) to 2016, with 22 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 3.400 % in 1989 and a record low of 0.400 % in 2016. Dominican Republic DO: Poverty Gap at $1.90 a Day: 2011 PPP: % data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Dominican Republic – Table DO.World Bank.WDI: Poverty. Poverty gap at $1.90 a day (2011 PPP) is the mean shortfall in income or consumption from the poverty line $1.90 a day (counting the nonpoor as having zero shortfall), expressed as a percentage of the poverty line. This measure reflects the depth of poverty as well as its incidence. As a result of revisions in PPP exchange rates, poverty rates for individual countries cannot be compared with poverty rates reported in earlier editions.; ; 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. The aggregated numbers for low- and middle-income countries correspond to the totals of 6 regions in PovcalNet, which include 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). See PovcalNet (http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet/WhatIsNew.aspx) for definitions of geographical regions and industrialized countries.

The percentage of income held by the richest 20 percent of the population in the Dominican Republic decreased to 44 percent compared to the previous year. This marks the lowest percentage of income held during the observed period. These figures refer to the share of total income held by the top fifth of earners in a given population.Find more statistics on other topics about the Dominican Republic with key insights such as poverty headcount ratio at national poverty lines.

Dominican Republic DO: Survey Mean Consumption or Income per Capita: Total Population: Annualized Average Growth Rate data was reported at 3.530 % in 2016. Dominican Republic DO: Survey Mean Consumption or Income per Capita: Total Population: Annualized Average Growth Rate data is updated yearly, averaging 3.530 % from Dec 2016 (Median) to 2016, with 1 observations. Dominican Republic DO: Survey Mean Consumption or Income per Capita: Total Population: Annualized Average Growth Rate data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Dominican Republic – Table DO.World Bank: Poverty. The growth rate in the welfare aggregate of the total population is computed as the annualized average growth rate in per capita real consumption or income of the total population in the income distribution in a country from household surveys over a roughly 5-year period. Mean per capita real consumption or income is measured at 2011 Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) using the PovcalNet (http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet). For some countries means are not reported due to grouped and/or confidential data. The annualized growth rate is computed as (Mean in final year/Mean in initial year)^(1/(Final year - Initial year)) - 1. The reference year is the year in which the underlying household survey data was collected. In cases for which the data collection period bridged two calendar years, the first year in which data were collected is reported. The initial year refers to the nearest survey collected 5 years before the most recent survey available, only surveys collected between 3 and 7 years before the most recent survey are considered. The final year refers to the most recent survey available between 2011 and 2015. Growth rates for Iraq are based on survey means of 2005 PPP$. The coverage and quality of the 2011 PPP price data for Iraq and most other North African and Middle Eastern countries were hindered by the exceptional period of instability they faced at the time of the 2011 exercise of the International Comparison Program. See PovcalNet for detailed explanations.; ; World Bank, Global Database of Shared Prosperity (GDSP) circa 2010-2015 (http://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/poverty/brief/global-database-of-shared-prosperity).; ; The comparability of welfare aggregates (consumption or income) for the chosen years T0 and T1 is assessed for every country. If comparability across the two surveys is a major concern for a country, the selection criteria are re-applied to select the next best survey year(s). Annualized growth rates are calculated between the survey years, using a compound growth formula. The survey years defining the period for which growth rates are calculated and the type of welfare aggregate used to calculate the growth rates are noted in the footnotes.

Dominican Republic DO: Multidimensional Poverty Headcount Ratio: Children: % of population aged 0-17 data was reported at 23.100 % in 2019. This records a decrease from the previous number of 26.700 % for 2018. Dominican Republic DO: Multidimensional Poverty Headcount Ratio: Children: % of population aged 0-17 data is updated yearly, averaging 35.550 % from Dec 2010 (Median) to 2019, with 10 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 44.700 % in 2010 and a record low of 23.100 % in 2019. Dominican Republic DO: Multidimensional Poverty Headcount Ratio: Children: % of population aged 0-17 data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Dominican Republic – Table DO.World Bank.WDI: Social: Poverty and Inequality. ;Government statistical agencies. Data for EU countires are from the EUROSTAT;;

Dominican Republic DO: Poverty Headcount Ratio at $1.90 a Day: 2011 PPP: % of Population data was reported at 1.600 % in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 1.900 % for 2015. Dominican Republic DO: Poverty Headcount Ratio at $1.90 a Day: 2011 PPP: % of Population data is updated yearly, averaging 4.500 % from Dec 1986 (Median) to 2016, with 22 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 13.400 % in 1989 and a record low of 1.600 % in 2016. Dominican Republic DO: Poverty Headcount Ratio at $1.90 a Day: 2011 PPP: % of Population data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Dominican Republic – Table DO.World Bank.WDI: Poverty. Poverty headcount ratio at $1.90 a day is the percentage of the population living on less than $1.90 a day at 2011 international prices. As a result of revisions in PPP exchange rates, poverty rates for individual countries cannot be compared with poverty rates reported in earlier editions.; ; 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. The aggregated numbers for low- and middle-income countries correspond to the totals of 6 regions in PovcalNet, which include 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). See PovcalNet (http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet/WhatIsNew.aspx) for definitions of geographical regions and industrialized countries.

Dominican Republic DO: Poverty Headcount Ratio at $5.50 a Day: 2011 PPP: % of Population data was reported at 21.000 % in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 22.700 % for 2015. Dominican Republic DO: Poverty Headcount Ratio at $5.50 a Day: 2011 PPP: % of Population data is updated yearly, averaging 31.800 % from Dec 1986 (Median) to 2016, with 22 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 54.700 % in 1989 and a record low of 21.000 % in 2016. Dominican Republic DO: Poverty Headcount Ratio at $5.50 a Day: 2011 PPP: % of Population data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Dominican Republic – Table DO.World Bank.WDI: Poverty. Poverty headcount ratio at $5.50 a day is the percentage of the population living on less than $5.50 a day at 2011 international prices. As a result of revisions in PPP exchange rates, poverty rates for individual countries cannot be compared with poverty rates reported in earlier editions.; ; 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. The aggregated numbers for low- and middle-income countries correspond to the totals of 6 regions in PovcalNet, which include 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). See PovcalNet (http://iresearch.worldbank.org/PovcalNet/WhatIsNew.aspx) for definitions of geographical regions and industrialized countries.

Dominican Republic DO: Proportion of Population Pushed Below the $3.20: Poverty Line by Out-of-Pocket Health Care Expenditure: 2011 PPP: % data was reported at 0.162 % in 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 1.744 % for 2007. Dominican Republic DO: Proportion of Population Pushed Below the $3.20: Poverty Line by Out-of-Pocket Health Care Expenditure: 2011 PPP: % data is updated yearly, averaging 0.953 % from Dec 2007 (Median) to 2018, with 2 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1.744 % in 2007 and a record low of 0.162 % in 2018. Dominican Republic DO: Proportion of Population Pushed Below the $3.20: Poverty Line by Out-of-Pocket Health Care Expenditure: 2011 PPP: % data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Dominican Republic – Table DO.World Bank.WDI: Social: Poverty and Inequality. Proportion of population pushed below the $3.20 ($2011 PPP) poverty line by out-of-pocket health care expenditure. This indicator shows the fraction of a country’s population experiencing out-of-pocket health impoverishing expenditures, defined as expenditures without which the household they live in would have been above the $3.20 poverty line, but because of the expenditures is below the poverty line. Out-of-pocket health expenditure is defined as any spending incurred by a household when any member uses a health good or service to receive any type of care (preventive, curative, rehabilitative, long-term or palliative care); provided by any type of provider; for any type of disease, illness or health condition; in any type of setting (outpatient, inpatient, at home).; ; World Health Organization and World Bank. 2021. Global Monitoring Report on Financial Protection in Health 2021.; Weighted Average; This indicator is related to Sustainable Development Goal 3.8.2 [https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/metadata/].