Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Australia
Australia: Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median was 11.3% in 2020. ▬ Flat
Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Australia, 1981–2020
Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Australia is 11.3%, measured in 2020.
That represents a change of down 3.4% on the previous year and up 7.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Australia peaked at 11.7% in 2018 and was at its lowest, 9.6%, in 2004.
That places Australia 60th out of 120 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.
Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Australia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 10.5% | — |
| 1985 | 10.7% | +1.9% |
| 1989 | 11.2% | +4.7% |
| 1995 | 10.2% | -8.9% |
| 2001 | 10.2% | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 10.3% | +1.0% |
| 2004 | 9.6% | -6.8% |
| 2008 | 10.2% | +6.2% |
| 2010 | 10.5% | +2.9% |
| 2014 | 9.8% | -6.7% |
| 2016 | 10.7% | +9.2% |
| 2018 | 11.7% | +9.3% |
| 2020 | 11.3% | -3.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 10.8% | 10.5% | 11.2% | 3 |
| 1990s | 10.2% | 10.2% | 10.2% | 1 |
| 2000s | 10.1% | 9.6% | 10.3% | 4 |
| 2010s | 10.7% | 9.8% | 11.7% | 4 |
| 2020s | 11.3% | 11.3% | 11.3% | 1 |
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 relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Australia?
- Relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Australia was 11.3% 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 50% of the median recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 11.7% in 2018.
- What is the lowest relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.6% in 2004.
- How does Australia rank for relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median?
- Australia ranks 60th out of 120 countries with data for 2020.
- Is relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this Australia 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 50% of the median. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 13 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 50% of the median.