Relative poverty: Share of population below 40% of the median in Japan
Japan: Relative poverty: Share of population below 40% of the median was 8.8% in 2020. ▬ Flat
Relative poverty: Share of population below 40% of the median in Japan, 2008–2020
Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2020, relative poverty: share of population below 40% of the median in Japan stood at 8.8%.
That represents a change of down 3.3% on the previous year and up 18.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, relative poverty: share of population below 40% of the median in Japan peaked at 10.3% in 2008 and was at its lowest, 6.2%, in 2015.
That places Japan 35th out of 120 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.
Relative poverty: Share of population below 40% of the median in Japan, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 10.3% | — |
| 2009 | 8.5% | -17.5% |
| 2010 | 7.4% | -12.9% |
| 2011 | 8.2% | +10.8% |
| 2012 | 7.7% | -6.1% |
| 2013 | 7.9% | +2.6% |
| 2014 | 6.6% | -16.5% |
| 2015 | 6.2% | -6.1% |
| 2016 | 7.6% | +22.6% |
| 2017 | 8.0% | +5.3% |
| 2018 | 9.4% | +17.5% |
| 2019 | 9.1% | -3.2% |
| 2020 | 8.8% | -3.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 9.4% | 8.5% | 10.3% | 2 |
| 2010s | 7.8% | 6.2% | 9.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 8.8% | 8.8% | 8.8% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Japan
More poverty & inequality data for Japan
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 5 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 1.21 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 6,245 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 -1.18 % change on previous year (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 34.86 (2022)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 34.9% (2022)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is relative poverty: share of population below 40% of the median in Japan?
- Relative poverty: share of population below 40% of the median in Japan was 8.8% in 2020, according to World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest relative poverty: share of population below 40% of the median recorded in Japan?
- The highest recorded value was 10.3% in 2008.
- What is the lowest relative poverty: share of population below 40% of the median recorded in Japan?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.2% in 2015.
- How does Japan rank for relative poverty: share of population below 40% of the median?
- Japan ranks 35th out of 120 countries with data for 2020.
- Is relative poverty: share of population below 40% of the median rising or falling in Japan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 18.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this Japan 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 Relative poverty: Share of population below 40% of the median. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Percentage of population living in households with an income or consumption below 40% of the median.