Income share held by highest 20% in Ireland
Ireland: Income share held by highest 20% was 38.3% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Income share held by highest 20% in Ireland, 1987–2023
Source: World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income econ.
Analysis
Ireland recorded 38.3% for income share held by highest 20% in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 27 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.5% on the previous year and down 7.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, income share held by highest 20% in Ireland peaked at 44.5% in 1995 and was at its lowest, 38.3%, in 2020.
Ireland ranks 100th of 123 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 27 years of available data.
Income share held by highest 20% in Ireland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 42.7% | — |
| 1994 | 44.4% | +4.0% |
| 1995 | 44.5% | +0.2% |
| 1996 | 43.2% | -2.9% |
| 2000 | 41.0% | -5.1% |
| 2002 | 40.2% | -2.0% |
| 2003 | 40.8% | +1.5% |
| 2004 | 41.3% | +1.2% |
| 2005 | 41.8% | +1.2% |
| 2006 | 40.7% | -2.6% |
| 2007 | 40.3% | -1.0% |
| 2008 | 39.3% | -2.5% |
| 2009 | 40.7% | +3.6% |
| 2010 | 40.2% | -1.2% |
| 2011 | 40.7% | +1.2% |
| 2012 | 41.1% | +1.0% |
| 2013 | 41.3% | +0.5% |
| 2014 | 40.1% | -2.9% |
| 2015 | 40.2% | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 41.2% | +2.5% |
| 2017 | 40.0% | -2.9% |
| 2018 | 39.7% | -0.7% |
| 2019 | 39.2% | -1.3% |
| 2020 | 38.3% | -2.3% |
| 2021 | 38.5% | +0.5% |
| 2022 | 38.9% | +1.0% |
| 2023 | 38.3% | -1.5% |
Ireland compared with similar countries
- Ireland's 38.3% is below the median for high income countries, which is 39.9%, 96% of the median. (42 countries reporting)
- Ireland's 38.3% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 39.1%, 98% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 42.7% | 42.7% | 42.7% | 1 |
| 1990s | 44.0% | 43.2% | 44.5% | 3 |
| 2000s | 40.7% | 39.3% | 41.8% | 9 |
| 2010s | 40.4% | 39.2% | 41.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 38.5% | 38.3% | 38.9% | 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 income share held by highest 20% in Ireland?
- Income share held by highest 20% in Ireland was 38.3% in 2023, according to World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income econ.
- What is the highest income share held by highest 20% recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 44.5% in 1995.
- What is the lowest income share held by highest 20% recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 38.3% in 2020.
- How does Ireland rank for income share held by highest 20%?
- Ireland ranks 100th out of 123 countries with data for 2023.
- Is income share held by highest 20% rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income econ, published as part of Income share held by highest 20%. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 27 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Percentage share of income or consumption is the share that accrues to subgroups of population indicated by deciles or quintiles. Percentage shares by quintile may not sum to 100 because of rounding.