Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Australia
Australia: Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) was 11.0% in 2022. ▬ Flat
Latest (2022)
11.0%
Change on year
up 0.2%
World rank
87th
of 113 countries
All-time high
16.9%
in 1950
All-time low
5.2%
in 1976
Years of data
76
1910–2022
Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Australia, 1910–2022
Source: World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2022, income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Australia stood at 11.0%.
The figure is up 0.2% on the previous year and up 3.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Australia peaked at 16.9% in 1950 and was at its lowest, 5.2%, in 1976.
That places Australia 87th out of 113 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the bottom quarter.
Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Australia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1910 | 16.7% | — |
| 1930 | 12.0% | -28.1% |
| 1940 | 12.7% | +5.7% |
| 1950 | 16.9% | +33.3% |
| 1951 | 10.8% | -36.3% |
| 1952 | 10.6% | -1.4% |
| 1953 | 10.1% | -5.1% |
| 1954 | 9.5% | -5.3% |
| 1955 | 8.9% | -6.1% |
| 1956 | 9.4% | +4.9% |
| 1957 | 8.2% | -12.6% |
| 1958 | 8.9% | +8.4% |
| 1959 | 8.3% | -6.6% |
| 1960 | 8.0% | -4.2% |
| 1961 | 7.9% | -1.3% |
| 1962 | 8.0% | +2.3% |
| 1963 | 8.4% | +4.1% |
| 1964 | 8.0% | -4.2% |
| 1965 | 7.7% | -3.5% |
| 1966 | 7.3% | -6.1% |
| 1967 | 7.5% | +3.0% |
| 1968 | 7.3% | -2.8% |
| 1969 | 7.3% | -0.1% |
| 1970 | 6.9% | -4.8% |
| 1971 | 6.8% | -2.5% |
| 1972 | 6.9% | +1.6% |
| 1973 | 6.6% | -3.9% |
| 1974 | 5.8% | -11.7% |
| 1975 | 5.4% | -7.6% |
| 1976 | 5.2% | -3.3% |
| 1977 | 5.3% | +2.5% |
| 1978 | 5.3% | -0.9% |
| 1979 | 5.5% | +3.4% |
| 1980 | 5.5% | +0.2% |
| 1981 | 5.3% | -3.7% |
| 1982 | 5.3% | +0.8% |
| 1983 | 5.3% | -0.4% |
| 1984 | 5.6% | +6.6% |
| 1985 | 6.0% | +6.2% |
| 1986 | 6.4% | +6.3% |
| 1987 | 7.5% | +17.9% |
| 1988 | 9.2% | +22.8% |
| 1989 | 7.6% | -17.9% |
| 1990 | 7.1% | -6.7% |
| 1991 | 7.0% | -0.8% |
| 1992 | 6.9% | -1.9% |
| 1993 | 7.2% | +5.2% |
| 1994 | 7.6% | +5.0% |
| 1995 | 7.9% | +3.8% |
| 1996 | 8.3% | +5.2% |
| 1997 | 7.5% | -9.4% |
| 1998 | 8.1% | +8.3% |
| 1999 | 8.3% | +2.5% |
| 2000 | 8.9% | +7.2% |
| 2001 | 8.9% | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 9.4% | +5.0% |
| 2003 | 9.5% | +1.0% |
| 2004 | 9.9% | +4.6% |
| 2005 | 10.1% | +2.1% |
| 2006 | 10.0% | -1.3% |
| 2007 | 10.8% | +7.9% |
| 2008 | 10.5% | -2.6% |
| 2009 | 10.9% | +4.1% |
| 2010 | 10.7% | -1.9% |
| 2011 | 10.9% | +1.4% |
| 2012 | 10.6% | -2.2% |
| 2013 | 10.4% | -2.3% |
| 2014 | 10.7% | +3.3% |
| 2015 | 10.2% | -5.0% |
| 2016 | 9.7% | -5.2% |
| 2017 | 10.0% | +3.7% |
| 2018 | 9.7% | -3.5% |
| 2019 | 9.9% | +2.5% |
| 2020 | 10.0% | +1.1% |
| 2021 | 11.0% | +9.6% |
| 2022 | 11.0% | +0.2% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 11.0% is below the median for high income countries, which is 11.8%, 93% of the median. (45 countries reporting)
- Australia's 11.0% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 16.1%, 68% of the median. (14 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Australia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 | -36.3% | 16.9% | 10.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1910s | 16.7% | 16.7% | 16.7% | 1 |
| 1930s | 12.0% | 12.0% | 12.0% | 1 |
| 1940s | 12.7% | 12.7% | 12.7% | 1 |
| 1950s | 10.2% | 8.2% | 16.9% | 10 |
| 1960s | 7.7% | 7.3% | 8.4% | 10 |
| 1970s | 6.0% | 5.2% | 6.9% | 10 |
| 1980s | 6.4% | 5.3% | 9.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 7.6% | 6.9% | 8.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 9.9% | 8.9% | 10.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 10.3% | 9.7% | 10.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 10.7% | 10.0% | 11.0% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Australia
- 84 Moldova 11.8% compare
- 85 Guinea-Bissau 11.0% compare
- 86 Luxembourg 11.0% compare
- 88 Malta 10.9% compare
- 89 Switzerland 10.6% compare
- 90 Ethiopia 10.5% compare
More reference data data for Australia
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.21 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 28.02 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 38.41 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 38.41 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 4.07 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 6.14 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 118.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 170.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 13.9 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Australia?
- Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Australia was 11.0% in 2022, according to World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest income share of the richest 1% (before tax) recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 16.9% in 1950.
- What is the lowest income share of the richest 1% (before tax) recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.2% in 1976.
- How does Australia rank for income share of the richest 1% (before tax)?
- Australia ranks 87th out of 113 countries with data for 2022.
- Is income share of the richest 1% (before tax) rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Income share of the richest 1% (before tax). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 76 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of income received by the richest 1%. Income here is measured before taxes and benefits.