Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Switzerland
Switzerland: Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median was 11.6% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Switzerland, 1982–2023
Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Switzerland recorded 11.6% for relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 3.0% on the previous year and up 15.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Switzerland peaked at 11.9% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 8.7%, in 2004.
Switzerland ranks 57th of 120 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 23 years of available data.
Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Switzerland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1982 | 9.1% | — |
| 1992 | 10.0% | +9.9% |
| 2000 | 9.1% | -9.0% |
| 2002 | 9.4% | +3.3% |
| 2004 | 8.7% | -7.4% |
| 2006 | 11.2% | +28.9% |
| 2007 | 11.3% | +1.0% |
| 2008 | 11.3% | +0.1% |
| 2009 | 10.0% | -11.5% |
| 2010 | 11.0% | +9.5% |
| 2011 | 10.4% | -5.2% |
| 2012 | 9.5% | -8.8% |
| 2013 | 10.0% | +5.3% |
| 2014 | 10.4% | +3.6% |
| 2015 | 10.9% | +5.2% |
| 2016 | 11.1% | +1.4% |
| 2017 | 10.9% | -1.3% |
| 2018 | 11.2% | +3.0% |
| 2019 | 11.1% | -1.7% |
| 2020 | 10.4% | -5.7% |
| 2021 | 11.2% | +7.5% |
| 2022 | 11.9% | +6.4% |
| 2023 | 11.6% | -3.0% |
Switzerland compared with similar countries
- Switzerland's 11.6% is above the median for high income countries, which is 11.5%, 1.0× the median. (42 countries reporting)
- Switzerland's 11.6% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 10.9%, 1.1× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 9.1% | 9.1% | 9.1% | 1 |
| 1990s | 10.0% | 10.0% | 10.0% | 1 |
| 2000s | 10.2% | 8.7% | 11.3% | 7 |
| 2010s | 10.6% | 9.5% | 11.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 11.3% | 10.4% | 11.9% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Switzerland
More poverty & inequality data for Switzerland
- 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 1.43 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 5,706 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 -6.17 % change on previous year (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 26.79 (2023)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 26.8% (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Switzerland?
- Relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Switzerland was 11.6% in 2023, 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 Switzerland?
- The highest recorded value was 11.9% in 2022.
- What is the lowest relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median recorded in Switzerland?
- The lowest recorded value was 8.7% in 2004.
- How does Switzerland rank for relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median?
- Switzerland ranks 57th out of 120 countries with data for 2023.
- Is relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median rising or falling in Switzerland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 15.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Switzerland 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.