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Mapped: GDP per Capita Worldwide
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Mapped: Visualizing GDP per Capita Worldwide
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GDP per capita has steadily risen globally over time, and in tandem, the standard of living worldwide has increased immensely.
This map using data from the IMF shows the GDP per capita (nominal) of nearly every country and territory in the world.
GDP per capita is one of the best measures of a country’s wealth as it provides an understanding of how each country’s citizens live on average, showing a representation of the quantity of goods and services created per person.
The Standard of Living Over Time
Looking at history, our standard of living has increased drastically. According to Our World in Data, from 1820 to 2018, the average global GDP per capita increased by almost 15x.
Literacy rates, access to vaccines, and basic education have also improved our quality of life, while things like child mortality rates and poverty have all decreased.
For example, in 1990, 1.9 billion people lived in extreme poverty, which was 36% of the world’s population at the time. Over the last 30 years, the number has been steadily decreasing — by 2030, an estimated 479 million people will be living in extreme poverty, which according to UN population estimates, will represent only 6% of the population.
That said, economic inequality between different regions is still prevalent. In fact, the richest country today (in terms of nominal GDP per capita), Luxembourg, is over 471x more wealthy than the poorest, Burundi.
Here’s a look at the 10 countries with the highest GDP per capita in 2021:
However, not all citizens in Luxembourg are extremely wealthy. In fact:
- 29% of people spend over 40% of their income on housing costs
- 31% would be at risk of falling into poverty if they had to forgo 3 months of income
The cost of living is expensive in Luxembourg — but the standard of living in terms of goods and services produced is the highest in the world. Additionally, only 4% of the population reports low life satisfaction.
Emerging Economies and Developing Countries
Although we have never lived in a more prosperous period, and poverty rates have been declining overall, this year global extreme poverty rose for the first time in over two decades.
About 120 million additional people are living in poverty as a result of the pandemic, with the total expected to rise to about 150 million by the end of 2021.
Many of the poorest countries in the world are also considered Least Developed Countries (LDCs) by the UN. In these countries, more than 75% of the population live below the poverty line.
Here’s a look at the 10 countries with the lowest GDP per capita:
Life in these countries offers a stark contrast compared to the top 10. Here’s a glance at the quality of life in the poorest country, Burundi:
- 80% of the population works in agriculture
- 1 in 3 Burundians are in need of urgent humanitarian assistance
- Average households spend up to two-thirds of their income on food
However, many of the world’s poorest countries can also be classified as emerging markets with immense economic potential in the future.
In fact, China has seen the opportunity in emerging economies. Their confidence in these regions is best exemplified in the Belt and Road initiative which has funneled massive investments into infrastructure projects across multiple African countries.
Continually Raising the Bar
Prosperity is a very recent reality only characterizing the last couple hundred years. In pre-modern societies, the average person was living in conditions that would be considered extreme poverty by today’s standards.
Overall, the standard of living for everyone today is immensely improved compared to even recent history, and some countries will be experiencing rapid economic growth in the future.
GDP per Capita in 2021: Full Dataset
Country | GDP per Capita (Nominal, 2021, USD) |
---|---|
🇱🇺 Luxembourg | $125,923 |
🇮🇪 Ireland | $90,478 |
🇨🇭 Switzerland | $90,358 |
🇳🇴 Norway | $76,408 |
🇺🇸 United States | $66,144 |
🇩🇰 Denmark | $63,645 |
🇸🇬 Singapore | $62,113 |
🇮🇸 Iceland | $58,371 |
🇳🇱 Netherlands | $58,029 |
🇸🇪 Sweden | $57,660 |
Australia | $57,211 |
Qatar | $55,417 |
Austria | $54,820 |
Finland | $54,817 |
Germany | $51,967 |
Belgium | $50,051 |
Macao SAR | $48,207 |
Hong Kong SAR | $47,990 |
Canada | $45,871 |
France | $44,770 |
San Marino | $44,676 |
Israel | $43,439 |
United Kingdom | $42,236 |
New Zealand | $41,793 |
Japan | $40,733 |
Italy | $35,062 |
United Arab Emirates | $32,686 |
South Korea | $32,305 |
Malta | $32,099 |
The Bahamas | $31,532 |
Puerto Rico | $31,207 |
Spain | $31,178 |
Europe | $31,022 |
Cyprus | $29,686 |
Taiwan | $28,890 |
Slovenia | $28,734 |
Estonia | $26,378 |
Brunei | $26,274 |
Czech Republic | $25,991 |
Portugal | $25,097 |
Bahrain | $23,710 |
Kuwait | $23,138 |
Lithuania | $22,752 |
Aruba | $22,710 |
Slovakia | $21,606 |
Saudi Arabia | $20,742 |
Greece | $20,521 |
Latvia | $19,934 |
Hungary | $17,645 |
Barbados | $17,472 |
Poland | $16,740 |
Trinidad and Tobago | $16,622 |
Saint Kitts and Nevis | $16,491 |
Croatia | $16,402 |
Uruguay | $16,297 |
Romania | $14,916 |
Antigua and Barbuda | $14,748 |
Oman | $14,675 |
Panama | $14,390 |
Chile | $14,209 |
Maldives | $14,194 |
Palau | $13,180 |
Seychelles | $12,648 |
Costa Rica | $11,805 |
China | $11,713 |
Malaysia | $11,378 |
Bulgaria | $11,349 |
Russia | $10,793 |
Saint Lucia | $10,636 |
Grenada | $10,211 |
Guyana | $9,913 |
Nauru | $9,865 |
Mauritius | $9,630 |
Kazakhstan | $9,454 |
Montenegro | $9,152 |
Argentina | $9,095 |
Turkmenistan | $8,874 |
Serbia | $8,444 |
Mexico | $8,403 |
Dominica | $8,111 |
Equatorial Guinea | $8,000 |
Gabon | $7,785 |
Dominican Republic | $7,740 |
Thailand | $7,675 |
Iran | $7,668 |
Turkey | $7,659 |
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | $7,401 |
Botswana | $7,036 |
North Macedonia | $6,933 |
Brazil | $6,728 |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | $6,536 |
Belarus | $6,513 |
Peru | $6,229 |
Jamaica | $5,643 |
Ecuador | $5,589 |
Colombia | $5,457 |
South Africa | $5,236 |
Paraguay | $5,207 |
Albania | $5,161 |
Tonga | $4,949 |
Suriname | $4,921 |
Fiji | $4,822 |
Iraq | $4,767 |
Kosovo | $4,753 |
Libya | $4,733 |
Georgia | $4,714 |
Moldova | $4,527 |
Armenia | $4,427 |
Namibia | $4,412 |
Azerbaijan | $4,404 |
Guatemala | $4,385 |
Jordan | $4,347 |
Tuvalu | $4,296 |
Indonesia | $4,287 |
Mongolia | $4,139 |
Marshall Islands | $4,092 |
Samoa | $4,053 |
El Salvador | $4,023 |
Micronesia | $3,995 |
Belize | $3,968 |
Sri Lanka | $3,928 |
Vietnam | $3,759 |
Eswatini | $3,697 |
Cabo Verde | $3,675 |
Bolivia | $3,618 |
Ukraine | $3,615 |
Egypt | $3,606 |
Philippines | $3,602 |
North Africa | $3,560 |
Algeria | $3,449 |
Bhutan | $3,447 |
Morocco | $3,409 |
Tunisia | $3,380 |
Djibouti | $3,275 |
West Bank and Gaza | $3,060 |
Vanuatu | $2,967 |
Laos | $2,614 |
Papua New Guinea | $2,596 |
Honduras | $2,593 |
Côte d'Ivoire | $2,571 |
Solomon Islands | $2,501 |
Ghana | $2,300 |
Republic of Congo | $2,271 |
Nigeria | $2,209 |
São Tomé and Príncipe | $2,133 |
Angola | $2,130 |
Kenya | $2,122 |
India | $2,031 |
Bangladesh | $1,990 |
Uzbekistan | $1,836 |
Nicaragua | $1,828 |
Kiribati | $1,817 |
Mauritania | $1,782 |
Cambodia | $1,680 |
Cameroon | $1,657 |
Senegal | $1,629 |
Venezuela | $1,586 |
Myanmar | $1,441 |
Comoros | $1,431 |
Benin | $1,400 |
Timor-Leste | $1,273 |
Kyrgyzstan | $1,270 |
Nepal | $1,166 |
Tanzania | $1,132 |
Guinea | $1,067 |
Lesotho | $1,018 |
Zambia | $1,006 |
Mali | $992 |
Uganda | $971 |
Ethiopia | $918 |
Tajikistan | $851 |
Burkina Faso | $851 |
Guinea-Bissau | $844 |
Rwanda | $820 |
The Gambia | $809 |
Togo | $759 |
Sudan | $714 |
Chad | $710 |
Haiti | $698 |
Liberia | $646 |
Eritrea | $632 |
Yemen | $573 |
Niger | $567 |
Madagascar | $554 |
Central African Republic | $522 |
Zimbabwe | $516 |
Afghanistan | $506 |
Democratic Republic of the Congo | $478 |
Sierra Leone | $471 |
Mozambique | $431 |
Malawi | $397 |
South Sudan | $323 |
Burundi | $267 |
Editor’s note: Readers have rightly pointed out that Monaco is one of the world’s richest countries in GDP per capita (nominal) terms. This is true, but the IMF dataset excludes Monaco and lists it as “No data” each year. As a result, it is excluded from the visualization(s) above.
Markets
Visualizing Global Inflation Forecasts (2024-2026)
Here are IMF forecasts for global inflation rates up to 2026, highlighting a slow descent of price pressures amid resilient global growth.
Visualizing Global Inflation Forecasts (2024-2026)
Global inflation rates are gradually descending, but progress has been slow.
Today, the big question is if inflation will decline far enough to trigger easing monetary policy. So far, the Federal Reserve has held rates for nine months amid stronger than expected core inflation, which excludes volatile energy and food prices.
Yet looking further ahead, inflation forecasts from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) suggest that inflation will decline as price pressures ease, but the path of disinflation is not without its unknown risks.
This graphic shows global inflation forecasts, based on data from the April 2024 IMF World Economic Outlook.
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The IMF’s Inflation Outlook
Below, we show the IMF’s latest projections for global inflation rates through to 2026:
Year | Global Inflation Rate (%) | Advanced Economies Inflation Rate (%) | Emerging Market and Developing Economies Inflation Rate (%) |
---|---|---|---|
2019 | 3.5 | 1.4 | 5.1 |
2020 | 3.2 | 0.7 | 5.2 |
2021 | 4.7 | 3.1 | 5.9 |
2022 | 8.7 | 7.3 | 9.8 |
2023 | 6.8 | 4.6 | 8.3 |
2024 | 5.9 | 2.6 | 8.3 |
2025 | 4.5 | 2.0 | 6.2 |
2026 | 3.7 | 2.0 | 4.9 |
After hitting a peak of 8.7% in 2022, global inflation is projected to fall to 5.9% in 2024, reflecting promising inflation trends amid resilient global growth.
While inflation has largely declined due to falling energy and goods prices, persistently high services inflation poses challenges to mitigating price pressures. In addition, the IMF highlights the potential risk of an escalating conflict in the Middle East, which could lead to energy price shocks and higher shipping costs.
These developments could negatively affect inflation scenarios and prompt central banks to adopt tighter monetary policies. Overall, by 2026, global inflation is anticipated to decline to 3.7%—still notably above the 2% target set by several major economies.
Adding to this, we can see divergences in the path of inflation between advanced and emerging economies. While affluent nations are forecast to see inflation edge closer to the 2% target by 2026, emerging economies are projected to have inflation rates reach 4.9%—falling closer to their pre-pandemic averages.
Get the Full Analysis of the IMF’s Outlook on VC+
This visual is part of an exclusive special dispatch for VC+ members which breaks down the key takeaways from the IMF’s 2024 World Economic Outlook.
For the full set of charts and analysis, sign up for VC+.
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