Relative poverty: Share of population below 60% of the median in Ireland
Ireland: Relative poverty: Share of population below 60% of the median was 11.7% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Relative poverty: Share of population below 60% of the median in Ireland, 1987–2023
Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2023, relative poverty: share of population below 60% of the median in Ireland stood at 11.7%. That is the lowest value across all 27 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 7.9% on the previous year and down 38.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, relative poverty: share of population below 60% of the median in Ireland peaked at 21.9% in 1987 and was at its lowest, 11.7%, in 2023.
Ireland ranks 110th of 120 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 27 years of available data.
Relative poverty: Share of population below 60% of the median in Ireland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 21.9% | — |
| 1994 | 19.6% | -10.5% |
| 1995 | 19.4% | -1.0% |
| 1996 | 19.4% | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 17.4% | -10.3% |
| 2002 | 16.9% | -2.9% |
| 2003 | 17.9% | +6.1% |
| 2004 | 17.4% | -2.8% |
| 2005 | 16.7% | -4.4% |
| 2006 | 16.6% | -0.6% |
| 2007 | 15.7% | -5.5% |
| 2008 | 15.5% | -0.8% |
| 2009 | 17.7% | +14.2% |
| 2010 | 17.9% | +0.9% |
| 2011 | 18.0% | +0.5% |
| 2012 | 19.0% | +5.6% |
| 2013 | 19.0% | +0.2% |
| 2014 | 16.8% | -11.9% |
| 2015 | 16.4% | -2.3% |
| 2016 | 15.4% | -6.0% |
| 2017 | 14.8% | -3.7% |
| 2018 | 13.7% | -8.0% |
| 2019 | 13.1% | -3.9% |
| 2020 | 13.5% | +2.6% |
| 2021 | 13.5% | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 12.8% | -5.2% |
| 2023 | 11.7% | -7.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 21.9% | 21.9% | 21.9% | 1 |
| 1990s | 19.5% | 19.4% | 19.6% | 3 |
| 2000s | 16.9% | 15.5% | 17.9% | 9 |
| 2010s | 16.4% | 13.1% | 19.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 12.9% | 11.7% | 13.5% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More poverty & inequality data for Ireland
- 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 1.6 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 7,325 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 3.71 % change on previous year (2024)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 21.9 (2023)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 21.9% (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 60% of the median in Ireland?
- Relative poverty: share of population below 60% of the median in Ireland was 11.7% 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 60% of the median recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 21.9% in 1987.
- What is the lowest relative poverty: share of population below 60% of the median recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.7% in 2023.
- How does Ireland rank for relative poverty: share of population below 60% of the median?
- Ireland ranks 110th out of 120 countries with data for 2023.
- Is relative poverty: share of population below 60% of the median rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 38.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ireland 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 60% of the median. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 27 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 60% of the median.