Distribution of population between different poverty lines in Ireland
Ireland: Distribution of population between different poverty lines was 3.69 million people in 2023. ▲ Rising
Distribution of population between different poverty lines in Ireland, 1987–2023
Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
Ireland recorded 3.69 million people for distribution of population between different poverty lines in 2023. That is the highest value across all 27 years on record.
That represents a change of up 3.6% on the previous year and up 88.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, distribution of population between different poverty lines in Ireland peaked at 3.69 million people in 2023 and was at its lowest, 258,424 people, in 1987.
Ireland ranks 36th of 120 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.
Distribution of population between different poverty lines in Ireland, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 258,424 people | — |
| 1994 | 678,583 people | +162.6% |
| 1995 | 757,857 people | +11.7% |
| 1996 | 814,802 people | +7.5% |
| 2000 | 1.33 million people | +63.0% |
| 2002 | 1.73 million people | +30.6% |
| 2003 | 1.78 million people | +2.6% |
| 2004 | 1.89 million people | +6.0% |
| 2005 | 2.00 million people | +6.1% |
| 2006 | 2.31 million people | +15.4% |
| 2007 | 2.39 million people | +3.6% |
| 2008 | 2.26 million people | -5.8% |
| 2009 | 2.15 million people | -4.6% |
| 2010 | 2.09 million people | -3.1% |
| 2011 | 1.96 million people | -6.0% |
| 2012 | 1.99 million people | +1.4% |
| 2013 | 1.96 million people | -1.4% |
| 2014 | 2.17 million people | +10.5% |
| 2015 | 2.36 million people | +9.2% |
| 2016 | 2.52 million people | +6.5% |
| 2017 | 2.87 million people | +14.0% |
| 2018 | 3.01 million people | +4.9% |
| 2019 | 3.19 million people | +6.1% |
| 2020 | 3.46 million people | +8.4% |
| 2021 | 3.58 million people | +3.4% |
| 2022 | 3.56 million people | -0.5% |
| 2023 | 3.69 million people | +3.6% |
Ireland compared with similar countries
- Ireland's 3.69 million people is below the median for high income countries, which is 4.96 million people, 74% of the median. (42 countries reporting)
- Ireland's 3.69 million people is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 1.67 million people, 2.2× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Distribution of population between different poverty lines in Ireland changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | +162.6% | 258,424 people | 678,583 people |
| 2000 | +63.0% | 814,802 people | 1.33 million people |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 258,424 people | 258,424 people | 258,424 people | 1 |
| 1990s | 750,414 people | 678,583 people | 814,802 people | 3 |
| 2000s | 1.98 million people | 1.33 million people | 2.39 million people | 9 |
| 2010s | 2.41 million people | 1.96 million people | 3.19 million people | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.57 million people | 3.46 million people | 3.69 million people | 4 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More poverty & inequality data for Ireland
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 8 surveys (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per person (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty 1.6 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 7,325 kg per hectare (2024)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, annual growth rate 3.71 % change on previous year (2024)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 21.9 (2023)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 21.9% (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is distribution of population between different poverty lines in Ireland?
- Distribution of population between different poverty lines in Ireland was 3.69 million people in 2023, according to World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest distribution of population between different poverty lines recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 3.69 million people in 2023.
- What is the lowest distribution of population between different poverty lines recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 258,424 people in 1987.
- How does Ireland rank for distribution of population between different poverty lines?
- Ireland ranks 36th out of 120 countries with data for 2023.
- Is distribution of population between different poverty lines rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 88.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Distribution of population between different poverty lines. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 27 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of people living in households with an income or consumption above $40 per day.