Share of population living on less than $4.20 per day vs. share in Malawi
Malawi: Share of population living on less than $4.20 per day vs. share was 87.3% in 2019. ▲ Rising
Share of population living on less than $4.20 per day vs. share in multidimensional poverty in Malawi, 1997–2019
Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Malawi recorded 87.3% for share of population living on less than $4.20 per day vs. share in multidimensional poverty in 2019. That is the highest value across all 5 years on record.
That represents a change of up 2.6% on the previous year and up 2.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population living on less than $4.20 per day vs. share in multidimensional poverty in Malawi peaked at 87.3% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 79.8%, in 1997.
Malawi ranks 2nd of 120 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
Share of population living on less than $4.20 per day vs. share in Malawi, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1997 | 79.8% | — |
| 2004 | 86.7% | +8.7% |
| 2010 | 85.2% | -1.8% |
| 2016 | 85.1% | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 87.3% | +2.6% |
Malawi compared with similar countries
- Malawi's 87.3% is above the median for low income countries, which is 64.6%, 1.4× the median. (13 countries reporting)
- Malawi's 87.3% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 62.1%, 1.4× the median. (26 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 79.8% | 79.8% | 79.8% | 1 |
| 2000s | 86.7% | 86.7% | 86.7% | 1 |
| 2010s | 85.9% | 85.1% | 87.3% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Malawi
- 1 Mozambique 89.1% compare
- 3 Burundi 87.2% compare
- 4 Madagascar 83.9% compare
- 5 Zambia 81.4% compare
More poverty & inequality data for Malawi
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 2 surveys (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per person (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty 3.65 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 1,857 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 -4.49 % change on previous year (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 15.06 (2023)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 15.1% (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 on less than $4.20 per day vs. share in multidimensional poverty in Malawi?
- Share of population living on less than $4.20 per day vs. share in multidimensional poverty in Malawi was 87.3% in 2019, according to World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of population living on less than $4.20 per day vs. share in multidimensional poverty recorded in Malawi?
- The highest recorded value was 87.3% in 2019.
- What is the lowest share of population living on less than $4.20 per day vs. share in multidimensional poverty recorded in Malawi?
- The lowest recorded value was 79.8% in 1997.
- How does Malawi rank for share of population living on less than $4.20 per day vs. share in multidimensional poverty?
- Malawi ranks 2nd out of 120 countries with data for 2019.
- Is share of population living on less than $4.20 per day vs. share in multidimensional poverty rising or falling in Malawi?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malawi 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 Share of population living on less than $4.20 per day vs. share in multidimensional poverty. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Percentage of population living in households with an income or consumption below $4.20 per day.