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

Tanzania: Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) was 18.1% in 2017. ▼ Falling

Latest (2017)
18.1%
World rank
30th
of 113 countries
All-time high
22.0%
in 1960
All-time low
11.6%
in 1991
Years of data
28
1948–2017

Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Tanzania, 1948–2017

051015201948198220171948: 19.9 %1949: 19.5 %1950: 20 %1951: 20.6 %1952: 20.4 %1953: 20.1 %1954: 20.4 %1955: 20.9 %1956: 20.5 %1957: 20.9 %1958: 21.4 %1959: 21 %1960: 22 %1961: 21.6 %1962: 21 %1963: 20.2 %1964: 19.4 %1965: 19.2 %1966: 18.1 %1967: 17.8 %1968: 17.5 %1969: 16.5 %1970: 16.1 %1991: 11.6 %2000: 12.7 %2007: 16.1 %2011: 16.4 %2017: 18.1 %

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 Tanzania stood at 18.1%.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 12.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Tanzania peaked at 22.0% in 1960 and was at its lowest, 11.6%, in 1991.

That places Tanzania 30th out of 113 countries with data for 2017, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 28 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1940s 19.7% 19.5% 19.9% 2
1950s 20.6% 20.0% 21.4% 10
1960s 19.3% 16.5% 22.0% 10
1970s 16.1% 16.1% 16.1% 1
1990s 11.6% 11.6% 11.6% 1
2000s 14.4% 12.7% 16.1% 2
2010s 17.3% 16.4% 18.1% 2

Countries ranked near Tanzania

  1. 27 Dominican Republic 18.7% compare
  2. 28 Bulgaria 18.3% compare
  3. 29 Cambodia 18.2% compare
  4. 31 Kyrgyzstan 18.1% compare
  5. 32 Zambia 18.0% compare
  6. 33 Indonesia 17.9% compare

See the full ranking of 113 places →

More reference data data for Tanzania

All data for Tanzania →

Frequently asked questions

What is income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Tanzania?
Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) in Tanzania was 18.1% 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 Tanzania?
The highest recorded value was 22.0% in 1960.
What is the lowest income share of the richest 1% (before tax) recorded in Tanzania?
The lowest recorded value was 11.6% in 1991.
How does Tanzania rank for income share of the richest 1% (before tax)?
Tanzania ranks 30th out of 113 countries with data for 2017.
Is income share of the richest 1% (before tax) rising or falling in Tanzania?
Over the last ten years it is up 12.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Tanzania 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 — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

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

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