South Africa vs Uruguay: Wealth share of the richest 1%
South Africa
54.9%
in 2024
Uruguay
40.5%
in 2024
South Africa rank
1st
Uruguay rank
4th
Wealth share of the richest 1% over time
- South Africa
- Uruguay
How they compare
South Africa currently reports 54.9% against 40.5% in Uruguay, a difference of 14.4%.
That makes South Africa's figure about 1.4 times Uruguay's.
Across all 45 years both countries report, South Africa has been ahead every year.
South Africa ranks 1st and Uruguay ranks 4th of 215 countries.
South Africa has averaged higher in every one of the 5 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | South Africa | Uruguay | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 48.9% | 39.8% | 9.1% | South Africa |
| 1990s | 48.8% | 39.8% | 9.1% | South Africa |
| 2000s | 50.4% | 41.2% | 9.2% | South Africa |
| 2010s | 55.6% | 38.7% | 16.9% | South Africa |
| 2020s | 54.8% | 39.9% | 14.8% | South Africa |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher wealth share of the richest 1%, South Africa or Uruguay?
- South Africa, at 54.9% against 40.5% in Uruguay as of 2024.
- What is the difference in wealth share of the richest 1% between South Africa and Uruguay?
- 14.4%, with South Africa ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for South Africa and Uruguay?
- 45 years are reported by both, from 1980 to 2024.
- How do South Africa and Uruguay rank globally for wealth share of the richest 1%?
- South Africa ranks 1st and Uruguay ranks 4th of 215 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Wealth share of the richest 1%. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
The share of wealth owned by the richest 1% of the population. Wealth is defined as the total value of non-financial and financial assets (housing, land, deposits, bonds, equities, etc.) held by households, minus their debts.