Wealth share of the richest 1% in North Korea

North Korea: Wealth share of the richest 1% was 24.3% in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
24.3%
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
161st
of 215 countries
All-time high
25.2%
in 2010
All-time low
23.4%
in 1980
Years of data
45
1980–2024

Wealth share of the richest 1% in North Korea, 1980–2024

01020301980200220241980: 23.4 %1981: 23.4 %1982: 23.4 %1983: 23.4 %1984: 23.4 %1985: 23.4 %1986: 23.4 %1987: 23.4 %1988: 23.4 %1989: 23.4 %1990: 23.4 %1991: 23.4 %1992: 23.5 %1993: 23.6 %1994: 23.6 %1995: 23.6 %1996: 23.6 %1997: 23.6 %1998: 23.6 %1999: 23.7 %2000: 23.8 %2001: 24 %2002: 24.5 %2003: 24.5 %2004: 24.5 %2005: 24.5 %2006: 24.5 %2007: 24.5 %2008: 24.6 %2009: 24.9 %2010: 25.2 %2011: 24.8 %2012: 24.3 %2013: 24.4 %2014: 24.2 %2015: 24.2 %2016: 24.3 %2017: 24.3 %2018: 24.3 %2019: 24.3 %2020: 24.3 %2021: 24.3 %2022: 24.3 %2023: 24.3 %2024: 24.3 %

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

Analysis

In 2024, wealth share of the richest 1% in North Korea stood at 24.3%.

The figure is up 0.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, wealth share of the richest 1% in North Korea peaked at 25.2% in 2010 and was at its lowest, 23.4%, in 1980.

That places North Korea 161st out of 215 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 23.4% 23.4% 23.4% 10
1990s 23.6% 23.4% 23.7% 10
2000s 24.4% 23.8% 24.9% 10
2010s 24.4% 24.2% 25.2% 10
2020s 24.3% 24.3% 24.3% 5

Countries ranked near North Korea

  1. 158 Benin 24.4% compare
  2. 159 Lithuania 24.4% compare
  3. 160 Gabon 24.3% compare
  4. 162 Greece 24.3% compare
  5. 163 Liberia 24.3% compare
  6. 164 Romania 24.2% compare

See the full ranking of 215 places →

More reference data data for North Korea

All data for North Korea →

Frequently asked questions

What is wealth share of the richest 1% in North Korea?
Wealth share of the richest 1% in North Korea was 24.3% in 2024, according to World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest wealth share of the richest 1% recorded in North Korea?
The highest recorded value was 25.2% in 2010.
What is the lowest wealth share of the richest 1% recorded in North Korea?
The lowest recorded value was 23.4% in 1980.
How does North Korea rank for wealth share of the richest 1%?
North Korea ranks 161st out of 215 countries with data for 2024.
Is wealth share of the richest 1% rising or falling in North Korea?
Over the last ten years it is up 0.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this North Korea 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 Wealth share of the richest 1%. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 45 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Wealth share of the richest 1%
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
215 places, 10,553 data points, 1800–2024
Last refreshed

The share of wealth owned by the richest 1% of the population. Wealth is defined as the total value of non-financial and financial assets (housing, land, deposits, bonds, equities, etc.) held by households, minus their debts.