Share living with less than upper middle income poverty line in Australia

Australia: Share living with less than upper middle income poverty line was 1.5 in 2020. ▼ Falling

Latest (2020)
1.5
Change on year
up 25.0%
World rank
98th
of 120 countries
All-time high
2.3
in 1989
All-time low
0.9
in 2008
Years of data
13
1981–2020

Share living with less than upper middle income poverty line in Australia, 1981–2020

00.511.522.51981200020201981: 21985: 2.21989: 2.31995: 22001: 1.82003: 1.92004: 1.32008: 0.92010: 12014: 12016: 12018: 1.22020: 1.5

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for share living with less than upper middle income poverty line in Australia is 1.5, measured in 2020.

That represents a change of up 25.0% on the previous year and up 50.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share living with less than upper middle income poverty line in Australia peaked at 2.3 in 1989 and was at its lowest, 0.9, in 2008.

That places Australia 98th out of 120 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 13 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 2.17 2 2.3 3
1990s 2 2 2 1
2000s 1.48 0.9 1.9 4
2010s 1.05 1 1.2 4
2020s 1.5 1.5 1.5 1

Countries ranked near Australia

  1. 95 Italy 1.92 compare
  2. 96 United States 1.8 compare
  3. 97 Germany 1.6 compare
  4. 99 Sweden 1.48 compare
  5. 100 Estonia 1.31 compare
  6. 101 Poland 1.09 compare

See the full ranking of 120 places →

More poverty & inequality data for Australia

All data for Australia →

Frequently asked questions

What is share living with less than upper middle income poverty line in Australia?
Share living with less than upper middle income poverty line in Australia was 1.5 in 2020, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest share living with less than upper middle income poverty line recorded in Australia?
The highest recorded value was 2.3 in 1989.
What is the lowest share living with less than upper middle income poverty line recorded in Australia?
The lowest recorded value was 0.9 in 2008.
How does Australia rank for share living with less than upper middle income poverty line?
Australia ranks 98th out of 120 countries with data for 2020.
Is share living with less than upper middle income poverty line rising or falling in Australia?
Over the last ten years it is up 50.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Australia data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Share living with less than upper middle income poverty line. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Share living with less than upper middle income poverty line in Australia. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 22 August 2026, from https://poverty.statizoid.com/stat/share-living-with-less-than-upper-middle-income-poverty-line/australia/

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About this data

Indicator
Share living with less than upper middle income poverty line
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
120 places, 2,148 data points, 1963–2025
Last refreshed