Share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities in India

India: Share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities was 85.9% in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
85.9%
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
31st
of 113 countries
All-time high
85.9%
in 2023
All-time low
44.8%
in 2010
Years of data
15
2010–2024

Share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities in India, 2010–2024

0204060802010201720242010: 44.8 %2011: 44.8 %2012: 44.8 %2013: 44.8 %2014: 44.8 %2015: 49.3 %2016: 53.9 %2017: 58.5 %2018: 63.1 %2019: 67.6 %2020: 72.2 %2021: 76.8 %2022: 81.3 %2023: 85.9 %2024: 85.9 %

Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

In 2024, share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities in India stood at 85.9%. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 91.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities in India peaked at 85.9% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 44.8%, in 2010.

That places India 31st out of 113 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 51.6% 44.8% 67.6% 10
2020s 80.4% 72.2% 85.9% 5

Countries ranked near India

  1. 28 Saint Lucia 87.2% compare
  2. 29 Sri Lanka 86.3% compare
  3. 30 Cambodia 86.2% compare
  4. 32 Guyana 85.4% compare
  5. 33 Ecuador 84.9% compare
  6. 34 Vietnam 84.9% compare

See the full ranking of 113 places →

More reference data data for India

All data for India →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities in India?
Share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities in India was 85.9% in 2024, according to WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities recorded in India?
The highest recorded value was 85.9% in 2023.
What is the lowest share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities recorded in India?
The lowest recorded value was 44.8% in 2010.
How does India rank for share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities?
India ranks 31st out of 113 countries with data for 2024.
Is share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities rising or falling in India?
Over the last ten years it is up 91.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this India data come from?
The figures come from WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Share of rural population with access to basic handwashing facilities
Unit
%
Source
WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
113 places, 1,715 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

Proportion of people with access to a handwashing facility with soap and water available at home.