Income share of the richest 1%: World Inequality Database vs. World Bank in Bulgaria

Bulgaria: Income share of the richest 1%: World Inequality Database vs. World Bank was 17.0% in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
17.0%
Change on year
down 2.8%
World rank
26th
of 109 countries
All-time high
18.5%
in 2017
All-time low
1.9%
in 1988
Years of data
36
1980–2023

Income share of the richest 1%: World Inequality Database vs. World Bank in Bulgaria, 1980–2023

051015201980200120231980: 3 %1981: 3.2 %1982: 4.9 %1983: 4.9 %1984: 4.6 %1987: 2 %1988: 1.9 %1989: 4 %1990: 5 %1993: 9.2 %1994: 11.2 %1995: 12.9 %1996: 11.6 %1997: 10.6 %1998: 10.5 %1999: 9.2 %2000: 8.7 %2001: 9.5 %2002: 10.6 %2003: 9.7 %2006: 10.6 %2009: 11.3 %2010: 11.2 %2011: 11.9 %2012: 13.2 %2013: 11.8 %2014: 12.9 %2015: 13.2 %2016: 15.9 %2017: 18.5 %2018: 17.9 %2019: 15.5 %2020: 15.3 %2021: 16.3 %2022: 17.5 %2023: 17 %

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

Analysis

In 2023, income share of the richest 1%: world inequality database vs. world bank in Bulgaria stood at 17.0%.

The figure is down 2.8% on the previous year and up 43.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, income share of the richest 1%: world inequality database vs. world bank in Bulgaria peaked at 18.5% in 2017 and was at its lowest, 1.9%, in 1988.

Bulgaria ranks 26th of 109 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 3.5% 1.9% 4.9% 8
1990s 10.0% 5.0% 12.9% 8
2000s 10.1% 8.7% 11.3% 6
2010s 14.2% 11.2% 18.5% 10
2020s 16.5% 15.3% 17.5% 4

Countries ranked near Bulgaria

  1. 23 Thailand 17.3% compare
  2. 24 Zambia 17.2% compare
  3. 25 Tanzania 17.1% compare
  4. 27 Taiwan 17.0% compare
  5. 28 Colombia 16.9% compare
  6. 29 Indonesia 16.8% compare

See the full ranking of 109 places →

More reference data data for Bulgaria

All data for Bulgaria →

Frequently asked questions

What is income share of the richest 1%: world inequality database vs. world bank in Bulgaria?
Income share of the richest 1%: world inequality database vs. world bank in Bulgaria was 17.0% in 2023, 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%: world inequality database vs. world bank recorded in Bulgaria?
The highest recorded value was 18.5% in 2017.
What is the lowest income share of the richest 1%: world inequality database vs. world bank recorded in Bulgaria?
The lowest recorded value was 1.9% in 1988.
How does Bulgaria rank for income share of the richest 1%: world inequality database vs. world bank?
Bulgaria ranks 26th out of 109 countries with data for 2023.
Is income share of the richest 1%: world inequality database vs. world bank rising or falling in Bulgaria?
Over the last ten years it is up 43.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Bulgaria 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%: World Inequality Database vs. World Bank. 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).

About this data

Indicator
Income share of the richest 1%: World Inequality Database vs. World Bank
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
109 places, 2,196 data points, 1913–2024
Last refreshed

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