Poverty gap index at $3 a day in Iran
Iran: Poverty gap index at $3 a day was 0.5% in 2023. ◆ Volatile
Poverty gap index at $3 a day in Iran, 1986–2023
Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Iran recorded 0.5% for poverty gap index at $3 a day in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 12.9% on the previous year and up 37.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, poverty gap index at $3 a day in Iran peaked at 6.7% in 1986 and was at its lowest, 0.3%, in 2012.
That places Iran 59th out of 120 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Poverty gap index at $3 a day in Iran, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | 6.7% | — |
| 1990 | 6.5% | -3.2% |
| 1994 | 3.8% | -41.3% |
| 1998 | 3.8% | -1.7% |
| 2005 | 1.0% | -73.1% |
| 2006 | 1.0% | -3.8% |
| 2009 | 1.3% | +37.5% |
| 2011 | 0.5% | -61.6% |
| 2012 | 0.3% | -33.6% |
| 2013 | 0.4% | +4.7% |
| 2014 | 0.7% | +97.4% |
| 2015 | 0.6% | -16.7% |
| 2016 | 0.6% | -0.7% |
| 2017 | 0.5% | -17.5% |
| 2018 | 0.7% | +41.9% |
| 2019 | 0.9% | +29.5% |
| 2020 | 1.0% | +9.9% |
| 2021 | 0.8% | -19.9% |
| 2022 | 0.6% | -27.9% |
| 2023 | 0.5% | -12.9% |
Iran compared with similar countries
- Iran's 0.5% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.4%, 1.2× the median. (35 countries reporting)
- Iran's 0.5% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 0.3%, 1.9× the median. (10 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 6.7% | 6.7% | 6.7% | 1 |
| 1990s | 4.7% | 3.8% | 6.5% | 3 |
| 2000s | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.3% | 3 |
| 2010s | 0.6% | 0.3% | 0.9% | 9 |
| 2020s | 0.7% | 0.5% | 1.0% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Iran
More poverty & inequality data for Iran
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 8 surveys (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per person (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty 1.7 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 2,420 kg per hectare (2023)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, annual growth rate 4.44 % change on previous year (2023)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via -11.11 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gender Inequality Index 0.482 (2023)
- Share of government consumption in GDP vs. share of population living in extreme poverty 29.4% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is poverty gap index at $3 a day in Iran?
- Poverty gap index at $3 a day in Iran was 0.5% in 2023, according to World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest poverty gap index at $3 a day recorded in Iran?
- The highest recorded value was 6.7% in 1986.
- What is the lowest poverty gap index at $3 a day recorded in Iran?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.3% in 2012.
- How does Iran rank for poverty gap index at $3 a day?
- Iran ranks 59th out of 120 countries with data for 2023.
- Is poverty gap index at $3 a day rising or falling in Iran?
- Over the last ten years it is up 37.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Iran 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 Poverty gap index at $3 a day. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 20 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
The poverty gap index is a poverty measure that reflects both the prevalence and the depth of poverty. It is calculated as the share of population in poverty multiplied by the average shortfall from the poverty line (expressed as a % of the poverty line).