Three metrics of inequality in Ireland
Ireland: Three metrics of inequality was 47.92 in 2022. ▼ Falling
Latest (2022)
47.92
Change on year
up 0.1%
World rank
88th
of 113 countries
All-time high
51.6
in 1922
All-time low
39.01
in 1977
Years of data
89
1922–2022
Three metrics of inequality in Ireland, 1922–2022
Source: World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Ireland recorded 47.92 for three metrics of inequality in 2022.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.1% on the previous year and up 9.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, three metrics of inequality in Ireland peaked at 51.6 in 1922 and was at its lowest, 39.01, in 1977.
That places Ireland 88th out of 113 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 89 years of available data.
Three metrics of inequality in Ireland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1922 | 51.6 | — |
| 1923 | 51.49 | -0.2% |
| 1924 | 50.41 | -2.1% |
| 1925 | 50.04 | -0.7% |
| 1926 | 49.19 | -1.7% |
| 1927 | 48.74 | -0.9% |
| 1929 | 47.47 | -2.6% |
| 1930 | 47.04 | -0.9% |
| 1931 | 47.54 | +1.1% |
| 1932 | 47.24 | -0.6% |
| 1933 | 48.05 | +1.7% |
| 1934 | 47.87 | -0.4% |
| 1935 | 47.62 | -0.5% |
| 1936 | 48.31 | +1.4% |
| 1937 | 48.18 | -0.3% |
| 1938 | 47.97 | -0.4% |
| 1939 | 48.3 | +0.7% |
| 1940 | 47.86 | -0.9% |
| 1941 | 47.43 | -0.9% |
| 1942 | 46.7 | -1.5% |
| 1943 | 45.63 | -2.3% |
| 1944 | 45.64 | +0.0% |
| 1945 | 45.1 | -1.2% |
| 1946 | 44.81 | -0.6% |
| 1947 | 44.25 | -1.2% |
| 1948 | 43.46 | -1.8% |
| 1949 | 42.87 | -1.4% |
| 1950 | 42.17 | -1.6% |
| 1951 | 41.94 | -0.5% |
| 1952 | 42.17 | +0.5% |
| 1953 | 41.71 | -1.1% |
| 1964 | 41.57 | -0.3% |
| 1965 | 41.58 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 41.56 | -0.0% |
| 1967 | 41.3 | -0.6% |
| 1968 | 40.92 | -0.9% |
| 1969 | 40.62 | -0.7% |
| 1970 | 40.46 | -0.4% |
| 1971 | 40.19 | -0.7% |
| 1972 | 40.3 | +0.3% |
| 1973 | 39.52 | -1.9% |
| 1975 | 39.67 | +0.4% |
| 1976 | 39.07 | -1.5% |
| 1977 | 39.01 | -0.2% |
| 1978 | 39.1 | +0.2% |
| 1979 | 39.78 | +1.7% |
| 1980 | 41.37 | +4.0% |
| 1981 | 40.99 | -0.9% |
| 1982 | 42.64 | +4.0% |
| 1983 | 43.4 | +1.8% |
| 1984 | 42.07 | -3.1% |
| 1985 | 41.85 | -0.5% |
| 1986 | 41.61 | -0.6% |
| 1987 | 42.29 | +1.6% |
| 1988 | 41.38 | -2.2% |
| 1989 | 41.32 | -0.1% |
| 1990 | 41.78 | +1.1% |
| 1991 | 42.95 | +2.8% |
| 1992 | 42.85 | -0.2% |
| 1993 | 43.42 | +1.3% |
| 1994 | 44.65 | +2.8% |
| 1995 | 44.31 | -0.8% |
| 1996 | 42.17 | -4.8% |
| 1997 | 42.97 | +1.9% |
| 1998 | 44.89 | +4.5% |
| 1999 | 45.04 | +0.3% |
| 2000 | 46.39 | +3.0% |
| 2001 | 45.51 | -1.9% |
| 2002 | 45.26 | -0.5% |
| 2003 | 46.33 | +2.4% |
| 2004 | 46.89 | +1.2% |
| 2005 | 46.99 | +0.2% |
| 2006 | 47.87 | +1.9% |
| 2007 | 48.11 | +0.5% |
| 2008 | 45.2 | -6.0% |
| 2009 | 43.53 | -3.7% |
| 2010 | 44.16 | +1.4% |
| 2011 | 44.27 | +0.2% |
| 2012 | 43.65 | -1.4% |
| 2013 | 45.25 | +3.7% |
| 2014 | 45.88 | +1.4% |
| 2015 | 47.67 | +3.9% |
| 2016 | 47.86 | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 46.65 | -2.5% |
| 2018 | 47.15 | +1.1% |
| 2019 | 47.7 | +1.2% |
| 2020 | 47.7 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 47.87 | +0.4% |
| 2022 | 47.92 | +0.1% |
Ireland compared with similar countries
- Ireland's 47.92 is above the median for high income countries, which is 47.06, 1.0× the median. (45 countries reporting)
- Ireland's 47.92 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 46.7, 1.0× the median. (42 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920s | 49.85 | 47.47 | 51.6 | 7 |
| 1930s | 47.81 | 47.04 | 48.31 | 10 |
| 1940s | 45.38 | 42.87 | 47.86 | 10 |
| 1950s | 42 | 41.71 | 42.17 | 4 |
| 1960s | 41.26 | 40.62 | 41.58 | 6 |
| 1970s | 39.68 | 39.01 | 40.46 | 9 |
| 1980s | 41.89 | 40.99 | 43.4 | 10 |
| 1990s | 43.5 | 41.78 | 45.04 | 10 |
| 2000s | 46.21 | 43.53 | 48.11 | 10 |
| 2010s | 46.02 | 43.65 | 47.86 | 10 |
| 2020s | 47.83 | 47.7 | 47.92 | 3 |
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 three metrics of inequality in Ireland?
- Three metrics of inequality in Ireland was 47.92 in 2022, according to World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest three metrics of inequality recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 51.6 in 1922.
- What is the lowest three metrics of inequality recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 39.01 in 1977.
- How does Ireland rank for three metrics of inequality?
- Ireland ranks 88th out of 113 countries with data for 2022.
- Is three metrics of inequality rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ireland 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 Three metrics of inequality. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 89 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
The Gini coefficient measures inequality on a scale from 0 to 1. Higher values indicate higher inequality. Inequality is measured here in terms of income before taxes and benefits.