Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median was 11.7% in 2021. ▲ Rising
Latest (2021)
11.7%
Change on year
up 2.6%
World rank
55th
of 120 countries
All-time high
13.5%
in 1993
All-time low
4.4%
in 1968
Years of data
54
1968–2021
Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in United Kingdom, 1968–2021
Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2021, relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in United Kingdom stood at 11.7%.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.6% on the previous year and up 1.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in United Kingdom peaked at 13.5% in 1993 and was at its lowest, 4.4%, in 1968.
United Kingdom ranks 55th of 120 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 54 years of available data.
Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1968 | 4.4% | — |
| 1969 | 5.2% | +18.2% |
| 1970 | 4.8% | -7.7% |
| 1971 | 6.4% | +33.3% |
| 1972 | 7.3% | +14.1% |
| 1973 | 5.3% | -27.4% |
| 1974 | 6.3% | +18.9% |
| 1975 | 6.1% | -3.2% |
| 1976 | 6.0% | -1.6% |
| 1977 | 6.0% | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 7.0% | +16.7% |
| 1979 | 6.0% | -14.3% |
| 1980 | 7.0% | +16.7% |
| 1981 | 8.2% | +17.1% |
| 1982 | 8.5% | +3.7% |
| 1983 | 8.4% | -1.2% |
| 1984 | 8.7% | +3.6% |
| 1985 | 9.0% | +3.4% |
| 1986 | 10.2% | +13.3% |
| 1987 | 10.8% | +5.9% |
| 1988 | 10.2% | -5.6% |
| 1989 | 11.1% | +8.8% |
| 1990 | 12.1% | +9.0% |
| 1991 | 12.1% | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 13.1% | +8.3% |
| 1993 | 13.5% | +3.1% |
| 1994 | 12.7% | -5.9% |
| 1995 | 12.5% | -1.6% |
| 1996 | 12.8% | +2.4% |
| 1997 | 13.0% | +1.6% |
| 1998 | 12.8% | -1.5% |
| 1999 | 13.1% | +2.3% |
| 2000 | 12.4% | -5.3% |
| 2001 | 12.1% | -2.4% |
| 2002 | 12.0% | -0.8% |
| 2003 | 12.0% | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 11.6% | -3.3% |
| 2005 | 12.6% | +8.6% |
| 2006 | 12.4% | -1.6% |
| 2007 | 12.9% | +4.0% |
| 2008 | 12.7% | -1.6% |
| 2009 | 11.9% | -6.3% |
| 2010 | 11.2% | -5.9% |
| 2011 | 11.5% | +2.7% |
| 2012 | 11.1% | -3.5% |
| 2013 | 11.1% | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 11.8% | +6.3% |
| 2015 | 11.9% | +0.8% |
| 2016 | 12.2% | +2.5% |
| 2017 | 12.5% | +2.5% |
| 2018 | 12.3% | -1.6% |
| 2019 | 13.0% | +5.7% |
| 2020 | 11.4% | -12.3% |
| 2021 | 11.7% | +2.6% |
United Kingdom compared with similar countries
- United Kingdom's 11.7% is above the median for high income countries, which is 11.5%, 1.0× the median. (42 countries reporting)
- United Kingdom's 11.7% 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 4.8% | 4.4% | 5.2% | 2 |
| 1970s | 6.1% | 4.8% | 7.3% | 10 |
| 1980s | 9.2% | 7.0% | 11.1% | 10 |
| 1990s | 12.8% | 12.1% | 13.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 12.3% | 11.6% | 12.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 11.9% | 11.1% | 13.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 11.6% | 11.4% | 11.7% | 2 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
More poverty & inequality data for United Kingdom
- 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 1.56 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 7,138 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 -7.54 % change on previous year (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 34.91 (2023)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 34.9% (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 United Kingdom?
- Relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in United Kingdom was 11.7% 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 United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 13.5% in 1993.
- What is the lowest relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.4% in 1968.
- How does United Kingdom rank for relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median?
- United Kingdom ranks 55th out of 120 countries with data for 2021.
- Is relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United Kingdom 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 — 54 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.