Colombia vs South Africa: Number of people living in extreme poverty
Colombia
48.39 million people
in 2024
South Africa
52.09 million people
in 2022
Colombia rank
25th
South Africa rank
23rd
Number of people living in extreme poverty over time
- Colombia
- South Africa
How they compare
South Africa currently reports 52.09 million people against 48.39 million people in Colombia, a difference of 3.70 million people.
That makes South Africa's figure about 1.1 times Colombia's.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 6 shared years of data; in 2000 it was Colombia ahead.
Colombia ranks 25th and South Africa ranks 23rd of 120 countries.
Across the 3 decades both report, Colombia averaged higher in 2 and South Africa in 1.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Colombia | South Africa | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 33.81 million people | 28.84 million people | 4.97 million people | Colombia |
| 2010s | 40.14 million people | 39.27 million people | 871,200 people | Colombia |
| 2020s | 46.94 million people | 52.09 million people | 5.14 million people | South Africa |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher number of people living in extreme poverty, Colombia or South Africa?
- South Africa, at 52.09 million people against 48.39 million people in Colombia as of 2022.
- What is the difference in number of people living in extreme poverty between Colombia and South Africa?
- 3.70 million people, with South Africa ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Colombia and South Africa?
- 6 years are reported by both, from 2000 to 2022.
- How do Colombia and South Africa rank globally for number of people living in extreme poverty?
- Colombia ranks 25th and South Africa ranks 23rd of 120 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Number of people living in extreme poverty. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Number of people living in households with an income or consumption above $3 per day.