Prosperity gap in Ireland
Ireland: Prosperity gap was 0.6619 in 2023. ▼ Falling
Prosperity gap in Ireland, 1987–2023
Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for prosperity gap in Ireland is 0.6619, measured in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 27 years on record.
That represents a change of down 8.7% on the previous year and down 52.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prosperity gap in Ireland peaked at 2.29 in 1987 and was at its lowest, 0.6619, in 2023.
That places Ireland 109th out of 120 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 27 years of available data.
Prosperity gap in Ireland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 2.29 | — |
| 1994 | 1.59 | -30.5% |
| 1995 | 1.55 | -2.7% |
| 1996 | 1.37 | -11.2% |
| 2000 | 1.03 | -24.9% |
| 2002 | 0.9698 | -6.0% |
| 2003 | 0.9521 | -1.8% |
| 2004 | 0.8954 | -6.0% |
| 2005 | 0.841 | -6.1% |
| 2006 | 0.8645 | +2.8% |
| 2007 | 0.8056 | -6.8% |
| 2008 | 0.922 | +14.5% |
| 2009 | 1.22 | +32.1% |
| 2010 | 1.23 | +1.1% |
| 2011 | 1.27 | +3.5% |
| 2012 | 1.06 | -16.8% |
| 2013 | 1.39 | +31.4% |
| 2014 | 1.15 | -17.4% |
| 2015 | 1.08 | -6.4% |
| 2016 | 0.8931 | -17.0% |
| 2017 | 0.8948 | +0.2% |
| 2018 | 0.6829 | -23.7% |
| 2019 | 0.6708 | -1.8% |
| 2020 | 0.7166 | +6.8% |
| 2021 | 0.6644 | -7.3% |
| 2022 | 0.7246 | +9.1% |
| 2023 | 0.6619 | -8.7% |
Ireland compared with similar countries
- Ireland's 0.6619 is below the median for high income countries, which is 1.08, 61% of the median. (42 countries reporting)
- Ireland's 0.6619 is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 1.29, 51% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 2.29 | 2.29 | 2.29 | 1 |
| 1990s | 1.5 | 1.37 | 1.59 | 3 |
| 2000s | 0.9444 | 0.8056 | 1.22 | 9 |
| 2010s | 1.03 | 0.6708 | 1.39 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.6919 | 0.6619 | 0.7246 | 4 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More reference data data for Ireland
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.45 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.19 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 4.37 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0921 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 4.37 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 4.87 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 3.37 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 5.6 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 21.02 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.5015 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is prosperity gap in Ireland?
- Prosperity gap in Ireland was 0.6619 in 2023, according to World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest prosperity gap recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 2.29 in 1987.
- What is the lowest prosperity gap recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.6619 in 2023.
- How does Ireland rank for prosperity gap?
- Ireland ranks 109th out of 120 countries with data for 2023.
- Is prosperity gap rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 52.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Prosperity gap. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 27 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Average factor by which incomes need to be multiplied to bring everyone to the prosperity standard of $28 per person per day.