Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in India
India: Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) was 23.1% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in India, 1923–2022
Source: World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in India is 23.1%, measured in 2022. That is the highest value across all 75 years on record.
The figure is up 4.2% on the previous year and up 6.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in India peaked at 23.1% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 6.3%, in 1982.
That places India 9th out of 113 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 75 years of available data.
Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in India, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1923 | 15.9% | — |
| 1924 | 15.0% | -6.1% |
| 1925 | 15.0% | +0.1% |
| 1926 | 14.4% | -3.9% |
| 1927 | 14.2% | -1.0% |
| 1928 | 14.1% | -1.3% |
| 1929 | 13.3% | -5.1% |
| 1930 | 13.7% | +2.2% |
| 1931 | 14.6% | +6.7% |
| 1932 | 14.8% | +1.9% |
| 1933 | 16.1% | +8.1% |
| 1934 | 16.4% | +2.2% |
| 1935 | 16.7% | +1.9% |
| 1936 | 17.1% | +2.5% |
| 1937 | 17.6% | +2.6% |
| 1938 | 18.6% | +5.7% |
| 1939 | 19.0% | +2.1% |
| 1940 | 19.5% | +2.7% |
| 1941 | 18.3% | -5.9% |
| 1944 | 15.8% | -13.6% |
| 1945 | 15.4% | -2.6% |
| 1948 | 13.0% | -15.8% |
| 1949 | 11.8% | -9.3% |
| 1950 | 11.7% | -0.5% |
| 1954 | 12.8% | +9.6% |
| 1955 | 13.9% | +8.5% |
| 1956 | 14.1% | +1.0% |
| 1957 | 14.4% | +2.6% |
| 1958 | 13.9% | -3.5% |
| 1959 | 13.3% | -4.7% |
| 1960 | 13.5% | +2.0% |
| 1961 | 13.0% | -3.8% |
| 1962 | 12.9% | -0.9% |
| 1965 | 13.0% | +0.6% |
| 1966 | 13.3% | +2.1% |
| 1967 | 12.9% | -2.4% |
| 1968 | 12.5% | -3.7% |
| 1971 | 11.7% | -6.0% |
| 1974 | 10.4% | -11.0% |
| 1975 | 10.7% | +2.7% |
| 1976 | 10.6% | -1.3% |
| 1977 | 10.0% | -5.2% |
| 1978 | 9.5% | -4.9% |
| 1979 | 8.2% | -13.4% |
| 1980 | 7.5% | -8.5% |
| 1981 | 6.9% | -8.8% |
| 1982 | 6.3% | -8.7% |
| 1983 | 10.6% | +68.3% |
| 1984 | 9.1% | -13.7% |
| 1985 | 10.7% | +17.5% |
| 1986 | 11.1% | +3.5% |
| 1987 | 10.6% | -4.5% |
| 1988 | 11.4% | +7.6% |
| 1989 | 11.3% | -0.8% |
| 1990 | 10.7% | -5.0% |
| 1991 | 10.4% | -2.8% |
| 1992 | 10.3% | -1.6% |
| 1993 | 12.8% | +24.5% |
| 1994 | 12.7% | -0.9% |
| 1995 | 13.3% | +5.4% |
| 1996 | 13.6% | +1.6% |
| 1997 | 14.2% | +4.6% |
| 1998 | 14.7% | +3.8% |
| 2005 | 19.7% | +33.8% |
| 2012 | 21.7% | +10.1% |
| 2013 | 22.0% | +1.4% |
| 2014 | 21.7% | -1.2% |
| 2015 | 22.1% | +1.7% |
| 2016 | 22.6% | +2.4% |
| 2017 | 22.6% | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 22.8% | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 22.0% | -3.3% |
| 2020 | 22.0% | -0.2% |
| 2021 | 22.1% | +0.6% |
| 2022 | 23.1% | +4.2% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 23.1% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 16.2%, 1.4× the median. (24 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in India 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | +68.3% | 6.3% | 10.6% |
| 2005 | +33.8% | 14.7% | 19.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920s | 14.6% | 13.3% | 15.9% | 7 |
| 1930s | 16.5% | 13.7% | 19.0% | 10 |
| 1940s | 15.6% | 11.8% | 19.5% | 6 |
| 1950s | 13.5% | 11.7% | 14.4% | 7 |
| 1960s | 13.0% | 12.5% | 13.5% | 7 |
| 1970s | 10.2% | 8.2% | 11.7% | 7 |
| 1980s | 9.6% | 6.3% | 11.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 12.5% | 10.3% | 14.7% | 9 |
| 2000s | 19.7% | 19.7% | 19.7% | 1 |
| 2010s | 22.2% | 21.7% | 22.8% | 8 |
| 2020s | 22.4% | 22.0% | 23.1% | 3 |
Countries ranked near India
More reference data data for India
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 20.88 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 68.88 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 246.78 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 15.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 246.78 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 70.02 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 19.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 309.05 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1,063 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 85.03 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in India?
- Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in India was 23.1% 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 India?
- The highest recorded value was 23.1% in 2022.
- What is the lowest income share of the richest 1% (before tax) recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.3% in 1982.
- How does India rank for income share of the richest 1% (before tax)?
- India ranks 9th out of 113 countries with data for 2022.
- Is income share of the richest 1% (before tax) rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this India 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 — 75 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.