Three metrics of inequality in New Zealand
New Zealand: Three metrics of inequality was 46.49 in 2022. ▼ Falling
Latest (2022)
46.49
Change on year
down 7.0%
World rank
93rd
of 113 countries
All-time high
68.05
in 1930
All-time low
40.8
in 2018
Years of data
102
1921–2022
Three metrics of inequality in New Zealand, 1921–2022
Source: World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
Analysis
New Zealand recorded 46.49 for three metrics of inequality in 2022.
That represents a change of down 7.0% on the previous year and up 5.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, three metrics of inequality in New Zealand peaked at 68.05 in 1930 and was at its lowest, 40.8, in 2018.
New Zealand ranks 93rd of 113 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 102 years of available data.
Three metrics of inequality in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1921 | 64.9 | — |
| 1922 | 62.06 | -4.4% |
| 1923 | 63.63 | +2.5% |
| 1924 | 63.44 | -0.3% |
| 1925 | 64.72 | +2.0% |
| 1926 | 65.46 | +1.1% |
| 1927 | 65.43 | -0.0% |
| 1928 | 65.69 | +0.4% |
| 1929 | 66.3 | +0.9% |
| 1930 | 68.05 | +2.6% |
| 1931 | 68.02 | -0.0% |
| 1932 | 67.99 | -0.0% |
| 1933 | 67.91 | -0.1% |
| 1934 | 67.72 | -0.3% |
| 1935 | 65.74 | -2.9% |
| 1936 | 64.19 | -2.4% |
| 1937 | 59.74 | -6.9% |
| 1938 | 56.65 | -5.2% |
| 1939 | 59.09 | +4.3% |
| 1940 | 57.86 | -2.1% |
| 1941 | 57.03 | -1.4% |
| 1942 | 56.19 | -1.5% |
| 1943 | 55.35 | -1.5% |
| 1944 | 54.51 | -1.5% |
| 1945 | 53.66 | -1.6% |
| 1946 | 55.92 | +4.2% |
| 1947 | 57.49 | +2.8% |
| 1948 | 58.01 | +0.9% |
| 1949 | 58.88 | +1.5% |
| 1950 | 60.66 | +3.0% |
| 1951 | 58.49 | -3.6% |
| 1952 | 59.45 | +1.6% |
| 1953 | 59.45 | +0.0% |
| 1954 | 58.97 | -0.8% |
| 1955 | 57.85 | -1.9% |
| 1956 | 58.75 | +1.6% |
| 1957 | 57.75 | -1.7% |
| 1958 | 55.83 | -3.3% |
| 1959 | 56.53 | +1.3% |
| 1960 | 56.11 | -0.7% |
| 1961 | 56.06 | -0.1% |
| 1962 | 55.98 | -0.1% |
| 1963 | 56.01 | +0.1% |
| 1964 | 56.43 | +0.7% |
| 1965 | 55.16 | -2.3% |
| 1966 | 54.86 | -0.5% |
| 1967 | 55.06 | +0.4% |
| 1968 | 55.27 | +0.4% |
| 1969 | 55.14 | -0.2% |
| 1970 | 54.93 | -0.4% |
| 1971 | 54.94 | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 55.58 | +1.2% |
| 1973 | 56.09 | +0.9% |
| 1974 | 55.03 | -1.9% |
| 1975 | 52.28 | -5.0% |
| 1976 | 53.94 | +3.2% |
| 1977 | 51.56 | -4.4% |
| 1978 | 51.48 | -0.2% |
| 1979 | 50.73 | -1.5% |
| 1980 | 51.13 | +0.8% |
| 1981 | 51.07 | -0.1% |
| 1982 | 51.54 | +0.9% |
| 1983 | 52.78 | +2.4% |
| 1984 | 52.04 | -1.4% |
| 1985 | 50.86 | -2.3% |
| 1986 | 49.81 | -2.1% |
| 1987 | 49.36 | -0.9% |
| 1988 | 49.78 | +0.9% |
| 1989 | 51.79 | +4.0% |
| 1990 | 54.16 | +4.6% |
| 1991 | 53.18 | -1.8% |
| 1992 | 54.38 | +2.3% |
| 1993 | 55 | +1.1% |
| 1994 | 54.94 | -0.1% |
| 1995 | 54.84 | -0.2% |
| 1996 | 53.74 | -2.0% |
| 1997 | 54.71 | +1.8% |
| 1998 | 56.28 | +2.9% |
| 1999 | 52.99 | -5.8% |
| 2000 | 49.75 | -6.1% |
| 2001 | 50.74 | +2.0% |
| 2002 | 48.37 | -4.7% |
| 2003 | 48.04 | -0.7% |
| 2004 | 49.56 | +3.2% |
| 2005 | 46.19 | -6.8% |
| 2006 | 41.21 | -10.8% |
| 2007 | 42.2 | +2.4% |
| 2008 | 43.67 | +3.5% |
| 2009 | 46.79 | +7.1% |
| 2010 | 50.77 | +8.5% |
| 2011 | 47.17 | -7.1% |
| 2012 | 43.92 | -6.9% |
| 2013 | 43.08 | -1.9% |
| 2014 | 42.9 | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 42.72 | -0.4% |
| 2016 | 42.54 | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 41.92 | -1.5% |
| 2018 | 40.8 | -2.7% |
| 2019 | 44.44 | +8.9% |
| 2020 | 48.19 | +8.4% |
| 2021 | 49.99 | +3.7% |
| 2022 | 46.49 | -7.0% |
New Zealand compared with similar countries
- New Zealand's 46.49 is below the median for high income countries, which is 47.06, 99% of the median. (45 countries reporting)
- New Zealand's 46.49 is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 56.06, 83% of the median. (14 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920s | 64.63 | 62.06 | 66.3 | 9 |
| 1930s | 64.51 | 56.65 | 68.05 | 10 |
| 1940s | 56.49 | 53.66 | 58.88 | 10 |
| 1950s | 58.37 | 55.83 | 60.66 | 10 |
| 1960s | 55.61 | 54.86 | 56.43 | 10 |
| 1970s | 53.66 | 50.73 | 56.09 | 10 |
| 1980s | 51.02 | 49.36 | 52.78 | 10 |
| 1990s | 54.42 | 52.99 | 56.28 | 10 |
| 2000s | 46.65 | 41.21 | 50.74 | 10 |
| 2010s | 44.03 | 40.8 | 50.77 | 10 |
| 2020s | 48.22 | 46.49 | 49.99 | 3 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
More poverty & inequality data for New Zealand
- Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty 1.67 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 9,102 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 7.22 % change on previous year (2024)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 34.71 (2023)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 34.7% (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, annual growth rate 1.22 % change on previous year (2023)
- Gender Inequality Index 0.082 (2023)
- Share of government consumption in GDP vs. share of population living in extreme poverty 24.9% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is three metrics of inequality in New Zealand?
- Three metrics of inequality in New Zealand was 46.49 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 New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 68.05 in 1930.
- What is the lowest three metrics of inequality recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 40.8 in 2018.
- How does New Zealand rank for three metrics of inequality?
- New Zealand ranks 93rd out of 113 countries with data for 2022.
- Is three metrics of inequality rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this New Zealand 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 — 102 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.