Income Inequality by Country
The Income Inequality by Country ranking compares nations by year-over-year changes in the Gini index, ranking those with the largest reductions higher to reflect progress in fair economic growth and improved living standards.
Bolivia ranks #1 in 2021, showing a positive change from 43.6 to 40.9. Kyrgyzstan takes #2 with a positive change from 28.8 to 26.4, and Serbia is #3, showing a positive change from 35.0 to 33.1.
Meanwhile, United States, Paraguay, and Kenya are at the bottom of the ranking. United States shows a negative change from 39.7 to 41.3, Paraguay sees a negative change from 42.9 to 45.1, and Kenya has a negative change from 36.2 to 38.7.
Rank | Country | Most Recent Year | Previous Year | Change |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Bolivia | 40.9 (2021) | 43.6 (2020) | -2.70 pts |
2 | Kyrgyzstan | 26.4 (2022) | 28.8 (2021) | -2.40 pts |
3 | Serbia | 33.1 (2021) | 35.0 (2020) | -1.90 pts |
4 | Argentina | 40.7 (2022) | 42.4 (2021) | -1.70 pts |
5 | Bulgaria | 39.0 (2021) | 40.5 (2020) | -1.50 pts |
6 | Dominican Republic | 37.0 (2022) | 38.5 (2021) | -1.50 pts |
7 | Latvia | 34.3 (2021) | 35.7 (2020) | -1.40 pts |
8 | China | 35.7 (2021) | 37.1 (2020) | -1.40 pts |
9 | Montenegro | 34.3 (2021) | 35.4 (2020) | -1.10 pts |
10 | Iceland | 26.1 (2017) | 27.2 (2016) | -1.10 pts |
11 | India | 32.8 (2021) | 33.8 (2020) | -1.00 pts |
12 | Spain | 33.9 (2021) | 34.9 (2020) | -1.00 pts |
13 | Ukraine | 25.6 (2020) | 26.6 (2019) | -1.00 pts |
14 | Belarus | 24.4 (2020) | 25.3 (2019) | -0.90 pts |
15 | Brazil | 52.0 (2022) | 52.9 (2021) | -0.90 pts |
16 | Ecuador | 44.6 (2023) | 45.5 (2022) | -0.90 pts |
17 | Canada | 31.7 (2019) | 32.5 (2018) | -0.80 pts |
18 | Albania | 29.4 (2020) | 30.1 (2019) | -0.70 pts |
19 | Georgia | 33.5 (2022) | 34.2 (2021) | -0.70 pts |
20 | Greece | 32.9 (2021) | 33.6 (2020) | -0.70 pts |
21 | Iran | 34.8 (2022) | 35.5 (2021) | -0.70 pts |
22 | Romania | 33.9 (2021) | 34.6 (2020) | -0.70 pts |
23 | Honduras | 48.2 (2019) | 48.9 (2018) | -0.70 pts |
24 | Luxembourg | 32.7 (2021) | 33.4 (2020) | -0.70 pts |
25 | Croatia | 28.9 (2021) | 29.5 (2020) | -0.60 pts |
26 | Costa Rica | 46.7 (2023) | 47.2 (2022) | -0.50 pts |
27 | Hungary | 29.2 (2021) | 29.7 (2020) | -0.50 pts |
28 | Italy | 34.8 (2021) | 35.2 (2020) | -0.40 pts |
29 | Cyprus | 31.3 (2021) | 31.7 (2020) | -0.40 pts |
30 | Colombia | 54.8 (2022) | 55.1 (2021) | -0.30 pts |
31 | Netherlands | 25.7 (2021) | 26.0 (2020) | -0.30 pts |
32 | Switzerland | 33.7 (2020) | 34.0 (2019) | -0.30 pts |
33 | El Salvador | 38.8 (2022) | 39.0 (2021) | -0.20 pts |
34 | United Kingdom | 32.4 (2021) | 32.6 (2020) | -0.20 pts |
35 | Uruguay | 40.6 (2022) | 40.8 (2021) | -0.20 pts |
36 | Portugal | 34.6 (2021) | 34.7 (2020) | -0.10 pts |
37 | Thailand | 34.9 (2021) | 35.0 (2020) | -0.10 pts |
38 | Slovakia | 24.1 (2021) | 24.2 (2020) | -0.10 pts |
39 | Armenia | 27.9 (2022) | 27.9 (2021) | +0.00 pts |
40 | Czech Republic | 26.2 (2021) | 26.2 (2020) | +0.00 pts |
41 | Poland | 28.5 (2021) | 28.5 (2020) | +0.00 pts |
42 | Norway | 27.7 (2019) | 27.6 (2018) | +0.10 pts |
43 | Israel | 37.9 (2021) | 37.8 (2020) | +0.10 pts |
44 | South Korea | 32.9 (2021) | 32.7 (2020) | +0.20 pts |
45 | Peru | 40.3 (2022) | 40.1 (2021) | +0.20 pts |
46 | Slovenia | 24.3 (2021) | 24.0 (2020) | +0.30 pts |
47 | Malta | 31.4 (2020) | 31.0 (2019) | +0.40 pts |
48 | Kazakhstan | 29.2 (2021) | 28.7 (2020) | +0.50 pts |
49 | North Macedonia | 33.5 (2019) | 33.0 (2018) | +0.50 pts |
50 | Finland | 27.7 (2021) | 27.1 (2020) | +0.60 pts |
51 | Germany | 32.4 (2020) | 31.8 (2019) | +0.60 pts |
52 | Belgium | 26.6 (2021) | 26.0 (2020) | +0.60 pts |
53 | Indonesia | 36.1 (2023) | 35.5 (2022) | +0.60 pts |
54 | Lithuania | 36.7 (2021) | 36.0 (2020) | +0.70 pts |
55 | Denmark | 28.3 (2021) | 27.5 (2020) | +0.80 pts |
56 | France | 31.5 (2021) | 30.7 (2020) | +0.80 pts |
57 | Austria | 30.7 (2021) | 29.8 (2020) | +0.90 pts |
58 | Ireland | 30.1 (2021) | 29.2 (2020) | +0.90 pts |
59 | Sweden | 29.8 (2021) | 28.9 (2020) | +0.90 pts |
60 | Estonia | 31.8 (2021) | 30.7 (2020) | +1.10 pts |
61 | Russia | 35.1 (2021) | 33.7 (2020) | +1.40 pts |
62 | Türkiye | 44.4 (2021) | 43.0 (2020) | +1.40 pts |
63 | United States | 41.3 (2022) | 39.7 (2021) | +1.60 pts |
64 | Paraguay | 45.1 (2022) | 42.9 (2021) | +2.20 pts |
65 | Kenya | 38.7 (2021) | 36.2 (2020) | +2.50 pts |
Source: World Bank. Only countries with consecutive data in the past 10 years are shown.