Income share of the richest 10% vs. Gini coefficient (before tax) in Sweden
Sweden: Income share of the richest 10% vs. Gini coefficient (before tax) was 29.7% in 2022. ▼ Falling
Latest (2022)
29.7%
Change on year
down 1.6%
World rank
109th
of 113 countries
All-time high
37.6%
in 1935
All-time low
25.5%
in 1979
Years of data
83
1935–2022
Income share of the richest 10% vs. Gini coefficient (before tax) in Sweden, 1935–2022
Source: World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Sweden recorded 29.7% for income share of the richest 10% vs. gini coefficient (before tax) in 2022.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.6% on the previous year and down 0.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, income share of the richest 10% vs. gini coefficient (before tax) in Sweden peaked at 37.6% in 1935 and was at its lowest, 25.5%, in 1979.
That places Sweden 109th out of 113 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 83 years of available data.
Income share of the richest 10% vs. Gini coefficient (before tax) in Sweden, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1935 | 37.6% | — |
| 1940 | 35.6% | -5.5% |
| 1941 | 35.1% | -1.3% |
| 1943 | 34.6% | -1.5% |
| 1944 | 34.0% | -1.6% |
| 1945 | 33.4% | -1.8% |
| 1946 | 33.4% | +0.0% |
| 1947 | 32.4% | -2.9% |
| 1948 | 31.7% | -2.3% |
| 1949 | 31.2% | -1.6% |
| 1950 | 30.9% | -0.9% |
| 1951 | 30.8% | -0.5% |
| 1952 | 30.8% | +0.1% |
| 1953 | 30.5% | -1.0% |
| 1954 | 30.5% | +0.1% |
| 1955 | 30.5% | +0.1% |
| 1956 | 30.3% | -0.8% |
| 1957 | 30.4% | +0.4% |
| 1958 | 30.4% | +0.1% |
| 1959 | 30.6% | +0.5% |
| 1960 | 30.4% | -0.4% |
| 1961 | 30.3% | -0.6% |
| 1962 | 29.9% | -1.1% |
| 1963 | 29.9% | -0.1% |
| 1964 | 29.6% | -0.9% |
| 1965 | 29.3% | -1.2% |
| 1966 | 29.2% | -0.1% |
| 1967 | 29.1% | -0.6% |
| 1968 | 28.6% | -1.4% |
| 1969 | 28.8% | +0.5% |
| 1970 | 29.5% | +2.4% |
| 1971 | 27.9% | -5.4% |
| 1972 | 27.3% | -2.1% |
| 1973 | 27.6% | +1.0% |
| 1974 | 27.2% | -1.4% |
| 1975 | 26.6% | -2.0% |
| 1976 | 26.6% | -0.0% |
| 1977 | 26.2% | -1.6% |
| 1978 | 25.8% | -1.5% |
| 1979 | 25.5% | -1.2% |
| 1980 | 25.6% | +0.4% |
| 1981 | 25.6% | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 26.7% | +4.3% |
| 1983 | 27.0% | +1.2% |
| 1984 | 28.4% | +5.1% |
| 1985 | 28.2% | -0.7% |
| 1986 | 28.1% | -0.5% |
| 1987 | 28.1% | +0.3% |
| 1988 | 28.8% | +2.4% |
| 1989 | 28.1% | -2.7% |
| 1990 | 26.6% | -5.3% |
| 1991 | 27.2% | +2.3% |
| 1992 | 26.8% | -1.4% |
| 1993 | 27.7% | +3.4% |
| 1994 | 30.6% | +10.4% |
| 1995 | 31.5% | +3.0% |
| 1996 | 30.7% | -2.6% |
| 1997 | 31.7% | +3.4% |
| 1998 | 31.8% | +0.3% |
| 1999 | 32.0% | +0.6% |
| 2000 | 31.1% | -2.9% |
| 2001 | 29.8% | -4.2% |
| 2002 | 30.2% | +1.2% |
| 2003 | 31.2% | +3.6% |
| 2004 | 31.8% | +1.9% |
| 2005 | 32.6% | +2.5% |
| 2006 | 33.8% | +3.5% |
| 2007 | 33.0% | -2.2% |
| 2008 | 31.9% | -3.3% |
| 2009 | 30.5% | -4.5% |
| 2010 | 31.6% | +3.7% |
| 2011 | 31.1% | -1.6% |
| 2012 | 30.0% | -3.7% |
| 2013 | 30.1% | +0.2% |
| 2014 | 30.3% | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 31.1% | +2.7% |
| 2016 | 29.3% | -5.7% |
| 2017 | 30.3% | +3.2% |
| 2018 | 29.6% | -2.1% |
| 2019 | 30.5% | +2.9% |
| 2020 | 30.5% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 30.2% | -1.0% |
| 2022 | 29.7% | -1.6% |
Sweden compared with similar countries
- Sweden's 29.7% is below the median for high income countries, which is 35.3%, 84% of the median. (45 countries reporting)
- Sweden's 29.7% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 34.7%, 86% of the median. (42 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 37.6% | 37.6% | 37.6% | 1 |
| 1940s | 33.5% | 31.2% | 35.6% | 9 |
| 1950s | 30.6% | 30.3% | 30.9% | 10 |
| 1960s | 29.5% | 28.6% | 30.4% | 10 |
| 1970s | 27.0% | 25.5% | 29.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 27.5% | 25.6% | 28.8% | 10 |
| 1990s | 29.6% | 26.6% | 32.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 31.6% | 29.8% | 33.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 30.4% | 29.3% | 31.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 30.1% | 29.7% | 30.5% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Sweden
More poverty & inequality data for Sweden
- 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 4,456 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 -27.03 % change on previous year (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 41.37 (2023)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 41.4% (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is income share of the richest 10% vs. gini coefficient (before tax) in Sweden?
- Income share of the richest 10% vs. gini coefficient (before tax) in Sweden was 29.7% in 2022, according to World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest income share of the richest 10% vs. gini coefficient (before tax) recorded in Sweden?
- The highest recorded value was 37.6% in 1935.
- What is the lowest income share of the richest 10% vs. gini coefficient (before tax) recorded in Sweden?
- The lowest recorded value was 25.5% in 1979.
- How does Sweden rank for income share of the richest 10% vs. gini coefficient (before tax)?
- Sweden ranks 109th out of 113 countries with data for 2022.
- Is income share of the richest 10% vs. gini coefficient (before tax) rising or falling in Sweden?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sweden data come from?
- The figures come from World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Income share of the richest 10% vs. Gini coefficient (before tax). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Share of income received by the richest 10% of the population. Income here is measured before taxes and benefits.