Share of population living below national poverty lines in China
China: Share of population living below national poverty lines was 0.0% in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Share of population living below national poverty lines in China, 2000–2020
Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of population.
Analysis
China recorded 0.0% for share of population living below national poverty lines in 2020. That is the lowest value across all 13 years on record.
That represents a change of down 100.0% on the previous year and down 100.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population living below national poverty lines in China peaked at 49.8% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 2020.
That places China 70th out of 70 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of population living below national poverty lines in China, year by year
| Year | % of population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 49.8% | — |
| 2005 | 30.2% | -39.4% |
| 2010 | 17.2% | -43.0% |
| 2011 | 12.7% | -26.2% |
| 2012 | 10.2% | -19.7% |
| 2013 | 8.5% | -16.7% |
| 2014 | 7.2% | -15.3% |
| 2015 | 5.7% | -20.8% |
| 2016 | 4.5% | -21.1% |
| 2017 | 3.1% | -31.1% |
| 2018 | 1.7% | -45.2% |
| 2019 | 0.6% | -64.7% |
| 2020 | 0.0% | -100.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 40.0% | 30.2% | 49.8% | 2 |
| 2010s | 7.1% | 0.6% | 17.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 1 |
Countries ranked near China
More poverty & inequality data for China
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 7 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 0.999 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 6,418 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 0.5767 % change on previous year (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 22.1 (2023)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 22.1% (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of population living below national poverty lines in China?
- Share of population living below national poverty lines in China was 0.0% in 2020, according to World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of population living below national poverty lines recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 49.8% in 2000.
- What is the lowest share of population living below national poverty lines recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 2020.
- How does China rank for share of population living below national poverty lines?
- China ranks 70th out of 70 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of population living below national poverty lines rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is down 100.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of population living below national poverty lines. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
National poverty headcount ratio is the percentage of the population living below the national poverty lines. National estimates are based on population-weighted subgroup estimates from household surveys.