Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Taiwan

Taiwan: Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) was 19.3% in 2017. ▲ Rising

Latest (2017)
19.3%
Change on year
down 4.4%
World rank
23rd
of 113 countries
All-time high
21.6%
in 2014
All-time low
9.9%
in 1986
Years of data
36
1982–2017

Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Taiwan, 1982–2017

051015201982199920171982: 10.1 %1983: 10.1 %1984: 10 %1985: 10.3 %1986: 9.9 %1987: 10.8 %1988: 10.7 %1989: 11.4 %1990: 11.4 %1991: 12 %1992: 11 %1993: 10.8 %1994: 12 %1995: 12.1 %1996: 11.7 %1997: 12.1 %1998: 12.8 %1999: 13.2 %2000: 14.6 %2001: 17.4 %2002: 16.5 %2003: 18.4 %2004: 18 %2005: 18.2 %2006: 17.2 %2007: 17.6 %2008: 16.2 %2009: 17.2 %2010: 19.2 %2011: 18.2 %2012: 18.7 %2013: 18.3 %2014: 21.6 %2015: 18.3 %2016: 20.2 %2017: 19.3 %

Source: World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

In 2017, income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Taiwan stood at 19.3%.

That represents a change of down 4.4% on the previous year and up 9.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Taiwan peaked at 21.6% in 2014 and was at its lowest, 9.9%, in 1986.

That places Taiwan 23rd out of 113 countries with data for 2017, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 36 years of available data.

Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Taiwan, year by year

Annual values for Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Taiwan, 1982 to 2017.
Year % Change
1982 10.1%
1983 10.1% -0.7%
1984 10.0% -0.7%
1985 10.3% +3.3%
1986 9.9% -4.1%
1987 10.8% +8.9%
1988 10.7% -1.3%
1989 11.4% +7.2%
1990 11.4% -0.2%
1991 12.0% +5.0%
1992 11.0% -8.0%
1993 10.8% -2.1%
1994 12.0% +11.1%
1995 12.1% +1.2%
1996 11.7% -3.5%
1997 12.1% +3.1%
1998 12.8% +6.1%
1999 13.2% +3.0%
2000 14.6% +10.8%
2001 17.4% +19.0%
2002 16.5% -5.2%
2003 18.4% +12.0%
2004 18.0% -2.4%
2005 18.2% +1.3%
2006 17.2% -5.6%
2007 17.6% +2.1%
2008 16.2% -7.7%
2009 17.2% +5.8%
2010 19.2% +11.5%
2011 18.2% -4.8%
2012 18.7% +2.2%
2013 18.3% -1.9%
2014 21.6% +17.9%
2015 18.3% -15.1%
2016 20.2% +10.4%
2017 19.3% -4.4%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 10.4% 9.9% 11.4% 8
1990s 11.9% 10.8% 13.2% 10
2000s 17.1% 14.6% 18.4% 10
2010s 19.2% 18.2% 21.6% 8

Countries ranked near Taiwan

  1. 20 Lebanon 19.9% compare
  2. 21 Thailand 19.8% compare
  3. 22 Laos 19.7% compare
  4. 24 South Africa 19.3% compare
  5. 25 Egypt 19.1% compare
  6. 26 Rwanda 18.9% compare

See the full ranking of 113 places →

More reference data data for Taiwan

All data for Taiwan →

Frequently asked questions

What is income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Taiwan?
Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Taiwan was 19.3% in 2017, 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 Taiwan?
The highest recorded value was 21.6% in 2014.
What is the lowest income share of the richest 1% (before tax) recorded in Taiwan?
The lowest recorded value was 9.9% in 1986.
How does Taiwan rank for income share of the richest 1% (before tax)?
Taiwan ranks 23rd out of 113 countries with data for 2017.
Is income share of the richest 1% (before tax) rising or falling in Taiwan?
Over the last ten years it is up 9.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Taiwan 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 — 36 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Taiwan. Statizoid, drawing on World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 24 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/incomes-of-the-richest/taiwan/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/incomes-of-the-richest/taiwan/">Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Taiwan</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Income share of the richest 1% (before tax)
Unit
%
Source
World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
113 places, 3,075 data points, 1820–2024
Last refreshed

Share of income received by the richest 1%. Income here is measured before taxes and benefits.