Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Japan
Japan: Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median was 13.4% in 2020. ▬ Flat
Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% 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 50% of the median in Japan stood at 13.4%.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.8% on the previous year and up 10.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Japan peaked at 15.4% in 2008 and was at its lowest, 10.7%, in 2014.
Japan ranks 39th of 120 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Japan, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 15.4% | — |
| 2009 | 13.3% | -13.6% |
| 2010 | 12.1% | -9.0% |
| 2011 | 13.2% | +9.1% |
| 2012 | 12.3% | -6.8% |
| 2013 | 12.8% | +4.1% |
| 2014 | 10.7% | -16.4% |
| 2015 | 11.3% | +5.6% |
| 2016 | 12.5% | +10.6% |
| 2017 | 11.7% | -6.4% |
| 2018 | 14.2% | +21.4% |
| 2019 | 13.3% | -6.3% |
| 2020 | 13.4% | +0.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 14.4% | 13.3% | 15.4% | 2 |
| 2010s | 12.4% | 10.7% | 14.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 13.4% | 13.4% | 13.4% | 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 50% of the median in Japan?
- Relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Japan was 13.4% 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 Japan?
- The highest recorded value was 15.4% in 2008.
- What is the lowest relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median recorded in Japan?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.7% in 2014.
- How does Japan rank for relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median?
- Japan ranks 39th out of 120 countries with data for 2020.
- Is relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median rising or falling in Japan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 10.7%. 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 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.