Australia vs United States: Poverty: Share of population living on less than $40 a day
Australia
22.8%
in 2020
United States
22.6%
in 2024
Australia rank
108th
United States rank
109th
Poverty: Share of population living on less than $40 a day over time
- Australia
- United States
How they compare
Australia currently reports 22.8% against 22.6% in United States, a difference of 0.2%.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 13 shared years of data; in 1981 it was Australia ahead.
Australia ranks 108th and United States ranks 109th of 120 countries.
Across the 5 decades both report, Australia averaged higher in 4 and United States in 1.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Australia | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 57.3% | 37.8% | 19.6% | Australia |
| 1990s | 61.0% | 34.6% | 26.4% | Australia |
| 2000s | 45.1% | 30.1% | 15.0% | Australia |
| 2010s | 27.2% | 28.8% | 1.6% | United States |
| 2020s | 22.8% | 19.8% | 3.0% | Australia |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher poverty: share of population living on less than $40 a day, Australia or United States?
- Australia, at 22.8% against 22.6% in United States as of 2020.
- What is the difference in poverty: share of population living on less than $40 a day between Australia and United States?
- 0.2%, with Australia ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Australia and United States?
- 13 years are reported by both, from 1981 to 2020.
- How do Australia and United States rank globally for poverty: share of population living on less than $40 a day?
- Australia ranks 108th and United States ranks 109th 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 Poverty: Share of population living on less than $40 a day. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Percentage of population living in households with an income or consumption below $40 per day.