Poverty: Share of population living on less than $30 a day … 2011 in Australia
Australia: Poverty: Share of population living on less than $30 a day … 2011 was 20.2% in 2018. ▼ Falling
Poverty: Share of population living on less than $30 a day (2011 prices) in Australia, 1981–2018
Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for poverty: share of population living on less than $30 a day (2011 prices) in Australia is 20.2%, measured in 2018.
The figure is down 4.7% on the previous year and down 23.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, poverty: share of population living on less than $30 a day (2011 prices) in Australia peaked at 55.2% in 1995 and was at its lowest, 20.2%, in 2014.
Australia ranks 104th of 119 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 12 years of available data.
Poverty: Share of population living on less than $30 a day … 2011 in Australia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 52.5% | — |
| 1985 | 51.3% | -2.2% |
| 1989 | 49.7% | -3.1% |
| 1995 | 55.2% | +11.1% |
| 2001 | 46.7% | -15.4% |
| 2003 | 44.5% | -4.8% |
| 2004 | 38.7% | -12.9% |
| 2008 | 26.3% | -32.0% |
| 2010 | 25.0% | -5.1% |
| 2014 | 20.2% | -19.1% |
| 2016 | 21.2% | +5.0% |
| 2018 | 20.2% | -4.7% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 20.2% is below the median for high income countries, which is 27.5%, 74% of the median. (41 countries reporting)
- Australia's 20.2% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 94.5%, 21% of the median. (10 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 51.2% | 49.7% | 52.5% | 3 |
| 1990s | 55.2% | 55.2% | 55.2% | 1 |
| 2000s | 39.1% | 26.3% | 46.7% | 4 |
| 2010s | 21.7% | 20.2% | 25.0% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More poverty & inequality data for Australia
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 3 surveys (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per person (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty 1.64 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 2,690 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 -0.0446 % change on previous year (2024)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 30.36 (2022)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 30.4% (2022)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is poverty: share of population living on less than $30 a day (2011 prices) in Australia?
- Poverty: share of population living on less than $30 a day (2011 prices) in Australia was 20.2% in 2018, according to World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest poverty: share of population living on less than $30 a day (2011 prices) recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 55.2% in 1995.
- What is the lowest poverty: share of population living on less than $30 a day (2011 prices) recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 20.2% in 2014.
- How does Australia rank for poverty: share of population living on less than $30 a day (2011 prices)?
- Australia ranks 104th out of 119 countries with data for 2018.
- Is poverty: share of population living on less than $30 a day (2011 prices) rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 23.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Poverty: Share of population living on less than $30 a day (2011 prices). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Percentage of population living in households with an income or consumption below $30 per day.