Proportion of population living below the national poverty line in Malta
Malta: Proportion of population living below the national poverty line was 16.7% in 2021. ▲ Rising
Proportion of population living below the national poverty line in Malta, 2004–2021
Source: United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2021, proportion of population living below the national poverty line in Malta stood at 16.7%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.2% on the previous year and up 10.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, proportion of population living below the national poverty line in Malta peaked at 17.1% in 2018 and was at its lowest, 14.2%, in 2005.
Malta ranks 38th of 73 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 18 years of available data.
Proportion of population living below the national poverty line in Malta, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 14.3% | — |
| 2005 | 14.2% | -0.7% |
| 2006 | 15.1% | +6.3% |
| 2007 | 15.3% | +1.3% |
| 2008 | 14.9% | -2.6% |
| 2009 | 15.5% | +4.0% |
| 2010 | 15.6% | +0.6% |
| 2011 | 15.1% | -3.2% |
| 2012 | 15.8% | +4.6% |
| 2013 | 15.8% | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 16.6% | +5.1% |
| 2015 | 16.5% | -0.6% |
| 2016 | 16.7% | +1.2% |
| 2017 | 16.8% | +0.6% |
| 2018 | 17.1% | +1.8% |
| 2019 | 16.9% | -1.2% |
| 2020 | 16.9% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 16.7% | -1.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 14.9% | 14.2% | 15.5% | 6 |
| 2010s | 16.3% | 15.1% | 17.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.8% | 16.7% | 16.9% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Malta
More poverty & inequality data for Malta
- 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 1.1 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 4,880 kg per hectare (2017)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2017)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, annual growth rate 1.23 % change on previous year (2017)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 32.81 (2009)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 32.8% (2009)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2009)
Frequently asked questions
- What is proportion of population living below the national poverty line in Malta?
- Proportion of population living below the national poverty line in Malta was 16.7% in 2021, according to United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database.
- What is the highest proportion of population living below the national poverty line recorded in Malta?
- The highest recorded value was 17.1% in 2018.
- What is the lowest proportion of population living below the national poverty line recorded in Malta?
- The lowest recorded value was 14.2% in 2005.
- How does Malta rank for proportion of population living below the national poverty line?
- Malta ranks 38th out of 73 countries with data for 2021.
- Is proportion of population living below the national poverty line rising or falling in Malta?
- Over the last ten years it is up 10.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malta data come from?
- The figures come from United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database, published as part of Proportion of population living below the national poverty line (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 18 observations, free to reuse under UN SDG Global Database (open, attribution requested).