Poverty: Share of population living on less than $10 a day in Australia
Australia: Poverty: Share of population living on less than $10 a day was 1.6% in 2020. ▼ Falling
Poverty: Share of population living on less than $10 a day in Australia, 1981–2020
Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2020, poverty: share of population living on less than $10 a day in Australia stood at 1.6%.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 23.1% on the previous year and up 23.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, poverty: share of population living on less than $10 a day in Australia peaked at 3.0% in 1989 and was at its lowest, 1.0%, in 2008.
Australia ranks 100th of 120 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 13 years of available data.
Poverty: Share of population living on less than $10 a day in Australia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 2.6% | — |
| 1985 | 2.9% | +11.5% |
| 1989 | 3.0% | +3.4% |
| 1995 | 2.7% | -10.0% |
| 2001 | 2.2% | -18.5% |
| 2003 | 2.3% | +4.5% |
| 2004 | 1.5% | -34.8% |
| 2008 | 1.0% | -33.3% |
| 2010 | 1.3% | +30.0% |
| 2014 | 1.2% | -7.7% |
| 2016 | 1.2% | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 1.3% | +8.3% |
| 2020 | 1.6% | +23.1% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 1.6% is below the median for high income countries, which is 1.8%, 90% of the median. (42 countries reporting)
- Australia's 1.6% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 31.1%, 5% of the median. (11 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 2.8% | 2.6% | 3.0% | 3 |
| 1990s | 2.7% | 2.7% | 2.7% | 1 |
| 2000s | 1.8% | 1.0% | 2.3% | 4 |
| 2010s | 1.2% | 1.2% | 1.3% | 4 |
| 2020s | 1.6% | 1.6% | 1.6% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Australia
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 poverty: share of population living on less than $10 a day in Australia?
- Poverty: share of population living on less than $10 a day in Australia was 1.6% in 2020, according to World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest poverty: share of population living on less than $10 a day recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 3.0% in 1989.
- What is the lowest poverty: share of population living on less than $10 a day recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.0% in 2008.
- How does Australia rank for poverty: share of population living on less than $10 a day?
- Australia ranks 100th out of 120 countries with data for 2020.
- Is poverty: share of population living on less than $10 a day rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 23.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Australia 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 Poverty: Share of population living on less than $10 a day. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Percentage of population living in households with an income or consumption below $10 per day.