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For most of history, almost everyone everywhere was very poor. Hunger was common, half of the children died, and, as the chart shows, average incomes were low across all regions.

The chart also shows how people’s incomes have changed over the last two centuries. The chart highlights a stark divergence: while average incomes in every region have increased, the pace of this growth has varied enormously. Western Europe and the “Western Offshoots” (like the US and Australia) experienced early and sustained economic growth. Meanwhile, Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia grew much more slowly.

Two hundred years ago, people in all regions were similarly poor. Today, the average incomes of people in Australia, the US, or Denmark are more than 15 times higher than those in Sub-Saharan Africa.

I wrote an article on how economic growth is possible and why it is important: “What is economic growth?” →

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One of the most pressing problems I hear from European friends is that they cannot find an affordable place to live. Housing costs represent one of the largest expenses for most Europeans. While many people rent, purchasing a home remains a goal for some.

The chart shows the change in house prices of residential properties purchased by households in 12 countries across the European Union since 2010. In many, prices have increased sharply (even after inflation). Portugal shows the most dramatic increase, with prices rising by 50%.

But this large increase has not happened everywhere. Rises have been more modest in France and Belgium, and prices have actually fallen considerably in Romania and Italy.

These huge differences matter to young Europeans hoping to find their first home after leaving their family house.

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The Ipsos Housing Monitor 2025 surveyed people across 30 countries, asking: “In general, do you think that your country is on the right track or the wrong track when it comes to housing?”.

The chart shows results for European countries, where housing prices dipped after the 2008 global financial crisis, before starting to rise again around 2013, with particularly large increases since 2015.

The Netherlands and Spain stand out, with nearly 80% believing their country is on the wrong track.

People in Poland and Sweden are less concerned than in other countries. But even in these nations, the majority feels like their country is on the wrong track.

Explore more data on optimism and pessimism about the future →

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The chart shows how incomes are spread in several countries in different world regions. The data comes from the excellent Luxembourg Income Study.

Blue points show the monthly after-tax income of someone who falls just inside the richest 10% of their country's population. Red points show the income of someone who falls just inside the poorest 10%. To allow for comparisons, all incomes are shown in international dollars, which account for differences in cost of living across countries.

The ratio between these two numbers gives us a measure of inequality known as the “P90/P10 ratio”.

In Norway, a country with very low inequality, this ratio is around 3. A person just inside the richest 10% has a monthly income of $5,490 — a little more than 3 times the $1,760 earned by someone just inside the poorest 10%.

In the United States, inequality is much higher, and the ratio is twice as large — around 6. The chart shows that the richest 10% are much richer than those in Norway, with incomes above $7,440. But, the poorest are also poorer, with incomes of less than $1,240.

In many countries, the ratio is between 4 and 6. But in the most unequal countries, it is much higher. In South Africa, the ratio is 22. Those in the bottom decile are among the poorest people in the world, living on less than $110 per month. In contrast, the richest 10% earn $2,490 or above — higher than the incomes of half the UK population and nearly a third of the US population.

Explore incomes across the distribution for other countries in our dedicated Data Explorer →

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Globally, there are large differences in the estimated share of income received by the richest 1% of the population. In Norway and Slovakia, it’s 7%; 27% in Mexico, and 31% in Mozambique and the Central African Republic.

You might expect these numbers to be strongly correlated to a country's level of economic development. But this isn't always the case. In the United States, for example, 1% of its population takes home 21% of national income. This is relatively high globally.

The data comes from the World Inequality Database, and we just updated our charts with their latest data. The data above is based on income before taxes and benefits, but after-tax incomes show a broadly similar inequality map.

Explore this data →