TOP 10 Countries by Income Share of the Top 1% (Latest Data)
Countries with the Highest Top 1% Pre-Tax Income Share
This 2026 snapshot ranks countries by the latest available 2024 WID/OWID values for the share of national pre-tax income received by adults in the richest 1%. A higher value means that a larger part of national income is concentrated at the top of the distribution before the main redistributive effect of income taxes and most government benefits.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!In the verified 2024 WID/OWID table used here, Iraq ranks first at 44.6%, Peru ranks second at 35.8%, and Colombia ranks third at 27.0%. The ranking measures pre-tax income concentration, not wealth, poverty, post-tax inequality or living standards.
The numerical values come from one source: World Inequality Database (WID.world) 2026, with major processing by Our World in Data. The OWID grapher page, OWID WID inequality explorer and WID methodology materials are used as methodology and context references only; they are not separate numerical sources and no values are averaged across sources.
The Top 20 was selected from the 2024 WID/OWID table for the “Income share of the richest 1% (before tax)” indicator. The dataset was filtered to country entities only, aggregate regions were excluded, rows without a 2024 value were not filled with older observations, and the remaining values were sorted from highest to lowest. Region labels in this page are editorial groupings added for scanning, not source-provided classifications.
Iraq ranks first among the verified 2024 country rows used for this snapshot.
Peru is the only other country in this Top 20 above 30%.
Top 20 country entities with a 2024 value after excluding aggregates and missing rows.
Percent of national pre-tax income received by the richest 1% of adults.
Rows are WID/OWID harmonized estimates, not direct official national releases.
How to Read the Top 1% Income Share Ranking
What the metric captures
The indicator shows the share of national income received by adults in the top 1% before personal income taxes and most government benefits. Under the WID/OWID definition, pensions and other social insurance are treated differently: contributions are deducted, while corresponding benefits are added back and counted as income.
What the metric excludes
It does not measure wealth, poverty, median income, household disposable income, public services, or the final inequality level after taxes, cash transfers and public benefits.
The upper end of the 2024 table is uneven. Iraq stands apart at 44.6%, Peru follows at 35.8%, and the next group starts lower, with Colombia at 27.0%. Colombia, Chile, Brazil and Mexico form a compact upper cluster between 25.6% and 27.0%.
This is a ranking of pre-tax income concentration, not a complete ranking of living standards. A country can have a high richest 1% income share while differing sharply in wages, poverty, tax collection, public-service coverage, wealth ownership and median household income.
Highest Top 1% Income Shares
The first ten entries show where the richest 1% receives the largest share of national pre-tax income in the verified 2024 WID/OWID table. The ranking focuses on the very top of the income distribution rather than the full spread of incomes across the population.
| Rank | Country | Value | Source / Method Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iraq | 44.6% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; MENA. |
| 2 | Peru | 35.8% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Americas. |
| 3 | Colombia | 27.0% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Americas. |
| 4 | Chile | 26.7% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Americas. |
| 5 | Brazil | 25.8% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Americas. |
| 6 | Mexico | 25.6% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Americas. |
| 7 | India | 23.1% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Asia. |
| 8 | Mozambique | 22.7% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Africa. |
| 9 | Tunisia | 22.4% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; MENA. |
| 10 | Turkey | 21.7% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; MENA / Eurasia. |
Region labels are editorial groupings for this article. Values are rounded to one decimal place.
Top 20 Distribution Chart
The bars compare all 20 confirmed entries. Iraq is scaled to the full bar width because it has the largest value in the table. Peru is also clearly separated from the remaining countries, while most entries from rank 3 to rank 20 occupy a narrower band.
Methodology
The metric is the share of national pre-tax income received by adults in the richest 1%. WID/OWID defines this income before income taxes and most government benefits, with an important exception: pensions and other social insurance are treated through deducted contributions and added benefits. Higher values indicate greater concentration of pre-tax national income at the top.
The source series is “Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) – WID.” This page uses a 2026 snapshot based on the latest available 2024 values from WID.world 2026, processed by Our World in Data. The row set was checked against the 2024 OWID table for the indicator.
Metric
Richest 1% income share = income received by adults in the top 1% / total national pre-tax income × 100.
Numerical source
World Inequality Database (WID.world) 2026, with major processing by Our World in Data.
Entity filter
Country entities only. Aggregate regions and rows marked as no data for 2024 are excluded.
Selection rule
2024 numeric rows only; no older-year fill-ins; values sorted descending; first 20 confirmed countries retained.
Value status
Rows are WID/OWID harmonized estimates, not direct official national statistical releases.
Rounding and ties
Values are rounded to one decimal place. Ranks follow the verified 2024 table order and displayed values.
Regional labels
Regions are editorial groupings added for readability; they are not an original OWID classification field.
Limit
The metric does not measure wealth, poverty, median income, disposable income after redistribution or inequality across the whole distribution.
WID estimates combine household surveys, tax records and national accounts. That matters for a richest 1% income share ranking because household surveys alone often under-capture the top of the income distribution. Tax records can improve top-income coverage where available, while national accounts help anchor total income.
Cross-country comparison still requires caution. Some country-year values are affected by limited survey coverage, missing tax data, informal income, capital-income reporting and model-based estimation. For statistical outliers such as Iraq and Peru, the table identifies high pre-tax income concentration but does not prove a single cause. Resource rents, concentrated business ownership, capital income, fiscal-data coverage and survey capture can all influence top-share estimates.
Ranking Table
Use the fields below to search countries, filter by editorial region and compare the verified Top 10 with the full set of 20 confirmed entries. The rank is based on the 2024 WID/OWID value for the richest 1% pre-tax income share.
Source note: World Inequality Database (WID.world) 2026, with major processing by Our World in Data. Indicator: “Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) – WID.” Last updated: February 10, 2026. Date range in source: 1820–2024. Unit: %. Values below use 2024 country rows and are rounded to one decimal place.
| Rank | Country | Value | Source / Method Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iraq MENA | 44.6% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; MENA. |
| 2 | Peru Americas | 35.8% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Americas. |
| 3 | Colombia Americas | 27.0% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Americas. |
| 4 | Chile Americas | 26.7% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Americas. |
| 5 | Brazil Americas | 25.8% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Americas. |
| 6 | Mexico Americas | 25.6% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Americas. |
| 7 | India Asia | 23.1% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Asia. |
| 8 | Mozambique Africa | 22.7% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Africa. |
| 9 | Tunisia MENA | 22.4% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; MENA. |
| 10 | Turkey MENA | 21.7% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; MENA / Eurasia. |
| 11 | Uganda Africa | 21.4% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Africa. |
| 12 | Georgia Europe & Caucasus | 21.1% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Europe & Caucasus. |
| 13 | Zimbabwe Africa | 21.1% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Africa. |
| 14 | United States Americas | 20.7% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Americas. |
| 15 | Costa Rica Americas | 20.3% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Americas. |
| 16 | Lebanon MENA | 19.9% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; MENA. |
| 17 | Thailand Asia | 19.8% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Asia. |
| 18 | Democratic Republic of Congo Africa | 19.4% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Africa. |
| 19 | Egypt MENA | 19.1% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; MENA. |
| 20 | Rwanda Africa | 18.9% | WID/OWID harmonized estimate; 2024; Africa. |
Table note: all values are WID/OWID harmonized estimates for 2024. Region labels are editorial groupings and should not be read as source-provided regional classifications.
Insights
Iraq and Peru are statistical outliers
Iraq at 44.6% and Peru at 35.8% are far above the rest of the Top 20. The gap from Peru to Colombia is 8.8 percentage points, so the ranking has a clear two-country top tier rather than a gradual slope.
The middle of the Top 20 is compressed
From Brazil at 25.8% to Rwanda at 18.9%, most countries sit inside a 6.9-point range. That compression matters because small source revisions could move several middle-ranked countries without changing the main pattern at the top.
The Americas are prominent in the table
Seven of the twenty entries are in the Americas: Peru, Colombia, Chile, Brazil, Mexico, the United States and Costa Rica. The table therefore points to a visible regional concentration among the highest listed pre-tax top-income shares.
The ranking is not a welfare ranking
The same top-income share can have different social meaning depending on taxes, transfers, public services, poverty, median wages and wealth ownership. The table identifies top-income concentration before redistribution, not the full distribution of living standards.
What It Means
For readers
A high richest 1% income share means that a small group receives a large share of national income before the main tax-and-benefit system changes disposable income. It does not automatically show whether middle-income or low-income households are gaining or losing income.
For policy analysis
The indicator helps identify countries where tax design, capital-income reporting, business ownership, resource rents, executive pay and high-end self-employment income may deserve closer examination.
For comparison
The ranking should be read alongside poverty, median income, GDP per capita, wealth concentration and post-tax inequality. Those indicators answer different questions and can change the interpretation of the same pre-tax top-share value.
Top-income concentration can reflect several mechanisms at once: concentrated asset ownership, high capital income, natural-resource rents, financial-sector income, unequal wage structures, informal income and differences in how well surveys or tax records capture top earners.
This is why the metric is most useful as a diagnostic signal. It identifies where the top of the income distribution is especially large before redistribution, but it does not replace a broader analysis of income, wealth, public services and household costs.
FAQ
Which country has the highest top 1% income share in this ranking?
Iraq ranks first in the verified 2024 WID/OWID country rows used for this 2026 snapshot, with the richest 1% receiving 44.6% of national pre-tax income.
Why is this a 2026 snapshot if the values are from 2024?
The source is WID.world 2026, processed by Our World in Data, and the latest year available for the listed country rows is 2024. The page therefore uses 2024 values as the latest available data snapshot for 2026 publication.
What does top 1% pre-tax income share mean?
It is the share of national pre-tax income received by adults in the richest 1% of the income distribution. If the value is 25%, the richest 1% receive about one quarter of national pre-tax income.
Is pre-tax income the same as income before all transfers?
No. WID/OWID income is measured before taxes and most government benefits, but pensions and other social insurance are treated differently: contributions are deducted and the corresponding benefits are counted as income.
Are these official government statistics?
No. The values are WID/OWID harmonized estimates. WID combines household surveys, tax records and national accounts to estimate how national income is distributed across the population.
Why are countries without 2024 values missing?
Countries without a numeric 2024 value are not filled with older observations. This keeps the ranking year consistent and avoids mixing current and older country-year rows.
Is this the same as wealth inequality?
No. Income is money or value received over a period, while wealth is a stock of assets minus liabilities. A country can rank differently on income concentration and wealth concentration.
Why are regions shown if OWID does not provide them in the table?
The regions are editorial labels added to make the ranking easier to scan. They are not part of the original OWID indicator and should not be used as a formal regional classification.
Does this ranking show post-tax inequality?
No. The ranking uses pre-tax income. Disposable-income inequality can be lower after taxes, transfers and public benefits, depending on each country’s fiscal and social-policy system.
Sources
Numerical source: World Inequality Database 2026, processed by Our World in Data
Numerical source for the indicator “Income share of the richest 1% (before tax) – WID.” OWID lists the source as WID.world 2026 with major processing by Our World in Data, last updated February 10, 2026, date range 1820–2024, unit %.
ourworldindata.org/grapher/income-share-top-1-before-tax-wid
Methodology/context reference: OWID WID inequality explorer
Context reference for WID-based inequality indicators and comparative charting. Used to check the meaning of the income-share indicator and related inequality series, not to add separate numerical values.
Methodology/context reference: World Inequality Database
Primary database behind the income concentration series. WID provides harmonized inequality data across countries and over time.
Methodology/context reference: WID methodology
Methodological reference for WID variables, Distributional National Accounts guidance and the construction of income and wealth inequality series.
Last content update: June 16, 2026. Table values are rounded to one decimal place.
