Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income (%) in India
India: Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income (%) was 2.4% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in India, 1977–2023
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. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in India is 2.4%, measured in 2023. That is the lowest value across all 9 years on record.
The figure is down 29.4% on the previous year and down 35.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in India peaked at 7.2% in 1977 and was at its lowest, 2.4%, in 2023.
India ranks 122nd of 123 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income (%) in India, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1977 | 7.2% | — |
| 1983 | 6.5% | -9.7% |
| 1987 | 4.8% | -26.2% |
| 1993 | 3.6% | -25.0% |
| 2004 | 3.0% | -16.7% |
| 2009 | 3.3% | +10.0% |
| 2011 | 3.7% | +12.1% |
| 2022 | 3.4% | -8.1% |
| 2023 | 2.4% | -29.4% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 2.4% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 10.8%, 22% of the median. (29 countries reporting)
- India's 2.4% is below the median for South Asia, which is 7.9%, 30% of the median. (5 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 7.2% | 7.2% | 7.2% | 1 |
| 1980s | 5.7% | 4.8% | 6.5% | 2 |
| 1990s | 3.6% | 3.6% | 3.6% | 1 |
| 2000s | 3.1% | 3.0% | 3.3% | 2 |
| 2010s | 3.7% | 3.7% | 3.7% | 1 |
| 2020s | 2.9% | 2.4% | 3.4% | 2 |
Countries ranked near India
- 119 Egypt 4.4% compare
- 120 Belarus 3.9% compare
- 121 Kazakhstan 3.1% compare
- 123 Azerbaijan 0.9% compare
More poverty & inequality data for India
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 2 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 1.98 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 3,632 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 0.8468 % change on previous year (2024)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 17.32 (2023)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 17.3% (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in India?
- Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in India was 2.4% 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 proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 7.2% in 1977.
- What is the lowest proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.4% in 2023.
- How does India rank for proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income?
- India ranks 122nd out of 123 countries with data for 2023.
- Is proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is down 35.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this India 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 Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 9 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
The percentage of people in the population who live in households whose per capita income or consumption is below half of the median income or consumption per capita. The median is measured at 2021 Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) using the Poverty and Inequality Platform (http://www.pip.worldbank.org). For some countries, medians are not reported due to grouped and/or confidential data. The reference year is the year in which the underlying household survey data was collected. In cases for which the data collection period bridged two calendar years, the first year in which data were collected is reported.