Wealth share of the richest 1% in Kuwait
Kuwait: Wealth share of the richest 1% was 24.7% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Wealth share of the richest 1% in Kuwait, 1980–2024
Source: World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Kuwait recorded 24.7% for wealth share of the richest 1% in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 45 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, wealth share of the richest 1% in Kuwait peaked at 38.4% in 1998 and was at its lowest, 24.7%, in 2022.
Kuwait ranks 152nd of 215 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 45 years of available data.
Wealth share of the richest 1% in Kuwait, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 32.2% | — |
| 1981 | 32.3% | +0.2% |
| 1982 | 32.3% | -0.0% |
| 1983 | 32.2% | -0.2% |
| 1984 | 32.2% | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 32.3% | +0.2% |
| 1986 | 32.2% | -0.2% |
| 1987 | 32.3% | +0.2% |
| 1988 | 37.5% | +16.2% |
| 1989 | 35.8% | -4.6% |
| 1990 | 35.5% | -0.9% |
| 1991 | 32.3% | -9.0% |
| 1992 | 32.3% | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 32.2% | -0.2% |
| 1994 | 32.2% | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 32.3% | +0.1% |
| 1996 | 32.4% | +0.2% |
| 1997 | 38.3% | +18.4% |
| 1998 | 38.4% | +0.2% |
| 1999 | 32.9% | -14.4% |
| 2000 | 33.0% | +0.4% |
| 2001 | 33.1% | +0.4% |
| 2002 | 33.2% | +0.3% |
| 2003 | 32.5% | -2.0% |
| 2004 | 33.8% | +3.8% |
| 2005 | 33.3% | -1.4% |
| 2006 | 34.0% | +1.9% |
| 2007 | 33.9% | -0.1% |
| 2008 | 35.9% | +5.9% |
| 2009 | 33.1% | -7.7% |
| 2010 | 32.0% | -3.3% |
| 2011 | 32.8% | +2.4% |
| 2012 | 31.7% | -3.4% |
| 2013 | 31.5% | -0.5% |
| 2014 | 25.1% | -20.5% |
| 2015 | 24.9% | -0.7% |
| 2016 | 24.7% | -0.8% |
| 2017 | 24.7% | +0.1% |
| 2018 | 24.7% | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 24.7% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 24.7% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 24.7% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 24.7% | -0.0% |
| 2023 | 24.7% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 24.7% | +0.0% |
Kuwait compared with similar countries
- Kuwait's 24.7% is below the median for high income countries, which is 27.5%, 90% of the median. (79 countries reporting)
- Kuwait's 24.7% is below the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 28.6%, 86% of the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 33.1% | 32.2% | 37.5% | 10 |
| 1990s | 33.9% | 32.2% | 38.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 33.6% | 32.5% | 35.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 27.7% | 24.7% | 32.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 24.7% | 24.7% | 24.7% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Kuwait
More reference data data for Kuwait
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.092 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.2888 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 0.385 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.001 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 0.385 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.3086 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.1086 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.53 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.96 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.0052 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is wealth share of the richest 1% in Kuwait?
- Wealth share of the richest 1% in Kuwait was 24.7% 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 Kuwait?
- The highest recorded value was 38.4% in 1998.
- What is the lowest wealth share of the richest 1% recorded in Kuwait?
- The lowest recorded value was 24.7% in 2022.
- How does Kuwait rank for wealth share of the richest 1%?
- Kuwait ranks 152nd out of 215 countries with data for 2024.
- Is wealth share of the richest 1% rising or falling in Kuwait?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Kuwait 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
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About this data
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.