Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan: Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median was 3.1% in 2021. ◆ Volatile
Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Kazakhstan, 1993–2021
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 Kazakhstan is 3.1%, measured in 2021. That is the lowest value across all 23 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 3.2% on the previous year and down 36.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Kazakhstan peaked at 16.5% in 2005 and was at its lowest, 3.1%, in 2021.
Kazakhstan ranks 118th of 120 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Kazakhstan, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1993 | 13.4% | — |
| 1996 | 12.8% | -4.0% |
| 2001 | 14.2% | +10.3% |
| 2002 | 12.0% | -15.5% |
| 2003 | 11.7% | -2.2% |
| 2004 | 9.1% | -22.0% |
| 2005 | 16.5% | +80.5% |
| 2006 | 6.4% | -61.2% |
| 2007 | 6.5% | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 5.2% | -18.7% |
| 2009 | 5.8% | +10.6% |
| 2010 | 5.1% | -12.9% |
| 2011 | 4.9% | -3.4% |
| 2012 | 5.1% | +4.5% |
| 2013 | 4.3% | -14.8% |
| 2014 | 4.3% | -0.8% |
| 2015 | 3.7% | -14.0% |
| 2016 | 4.5% | +22.7% |
| 2017 | 4.0% | -12.9% |
| 2018 | 3.8% | -5.1% |
| 2019 | 3.7% | -3.0% |
| 2020 | 3.2% | -12.6% |
| 2021 | 3.1% | -3.2% |
Kazakhstan compared with similar countries
- Kazakhstan's 3.1% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 13.4%, 23% of the median. (35 countries reporting)
- Kazakhstan's 3.1% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 10.9%, 28% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Kazakhstan changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | +80.5% | 9.1% | 16.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 13.1% | 12.8% | 13.4% | 2 |
| 2000s | 9.7% | 5.2% | 16.5% | 9 |
| 2010s | 4.3% | 3.7% | 5.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.1% | 3.1% | 3.2% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Kazakhstan
More poverty & inequality data for Kazakhstan
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 6 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 3.01 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 1,530 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 48.73 % change on previous year (2024)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 20.46 (2022)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 20.5% (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 Kazakhstan?
- Relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Kazakhstan was 3.1% in 2021, 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 Kazakhstan?
- The highest recorded value was 16.5% in 2005.
- What is the lowest relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median recorded in Kazakhstan?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.1% in 2021.
- How does Kazakhstan rank for relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median?
- Kazakhstan ranks 118th out of 120 countries with data for 2021.
- Is relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median rising or falling in Kazakhstan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 36.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Kazakhstan 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 — 23 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.