Skip to content
Nations Inquiry — home

Dataset · World Bank Group

Palma Ratio

22 editions, 2002–2023 · 60 countries · 2 measures

The Palma ratio divides the share of income held by a country’s richest 10% by the share held by its poorest 40%. A ratio of 1 means the top tenth hold as much as the bottom four-tenths put together; the most unequal countries run past 7. It is an inequality measure built on the observation that the middle half of most countries holds a fairly steady share, so the fight is at the ends.

This site holds every edition from 2002 to 2023, read from World Bank Group’s own data and stored exactly as published.

Open Palma Ratio, 2023 compilationDownload all 22 · CSVSee it charted by country →
Share

Share this page

Palma Ratio · the file

Newest
Palma Ratio, 2023 compilation
Held
22 editions · 1,737 rows
Licence
CC BY 4.0

0122 editions

Every edition

Newest first. Each opens the full table for that edition, and each downloads as a CSV.

2002bar height: countries covered, up to 942023
Every edition of Palma Ratio held on this site, newest first, with its download files.
EditionCountriesChangeReadDownload
Palma Ratio, 2023 compilationNewest60+9 −22September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2022 compilation73+17 −26September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2021 compilation82+23 −12September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2020 compilation71+9 −17September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2019 compilation79+12 −27September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2018 compilation94+27 −12September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2017 compilation79+11 −16September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2016 compilation84+19 −22September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2015 compilation87+22 −19September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2014 compilation84+19 −13September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2013 compilation78+12 −21September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2012 compilation87+22 −17September 26, 2026CSV
Show all 22 editions
EditionCountriesChangeReadDownload
Palma Ratio, 2011 compilation82+18 −23September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2010 compilation87+25 −21September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2009 compilation83+21 −17September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2008 compilation79+21 −15September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2007 compilation73+14 −23September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2006 compilation82+23 −22September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2005 compilation81+22 −16September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2004 compilation75+22 −16September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2003 compilation69+26 −25September 26, 2026CSV
Palma Ratio, 2002 compilation68—September 26, 2026CSV

Every edition in one file, one row per country per edition: palma-ratio-all-editions-nations-inquiry.csv

026 columns

What’s in the file

Every column, what it holds, how it is stored and what its values look like — what a reader needs before opening the file.

Every column in the newest file of Palma Ratio: what it holds, how it is stored, and its range.
ColumnWhat it holdsStored asRange, 2023DistinctEmptySpread
CountrycountryNameThe country’s name, as this file spells it.Text—600
ISO Codecountry_codeIdentifierThe ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code, added by this site. Every table here joins on it.Text · 3 letters—600
Palma ratio (richest 10% share ÷ poorest 40% share)palma_ratioHeadlineThe headline figure: Palma ratio (income share of the richest 10% ÷ share of the poorest 40%).Number · up to 4 decimals0.772Slovakia4.193Colombiamiddle 1.332600
90/10 ratio (90th ÷ 10th percentile of income or consumption)p90p10_ratioMeasureIncome or consumption at the 90th percentile divided by that at the 10th: how far the top pulls away from the bottom.Number · up to 4 decimals2.811India15.567Hondurasmiddle 5.486600
Survey measureswelfare_typeGroupingWorld Bank Group’s own grouping of the country.Text—20
Survey yearsurvey_yearReading yearThe year this country’s reading describes. Readings from different years sit side by side.Year—60

Profiled from the newest file. Range: the lowest and highest value, with the country holding it when only one does. Spread: countries in ten equal steps from lowest to highest. A higher value is the worse result.

03169 countries across every edition

Who is covered

How many countries each edition holds, continent by continent, who joined and who left, and which places this site covers that the dataset never has.

All regions
Countries in each edition of Palma Ratio, by continent.
201220132014201520162017201820192020202120222023
Africa959137715651572
Americas171618161716191514151615
Asia201617172017211615172014
Europe393839403939383836343028
Oceania231110141101
All877884878479947971827360

The newest 12 of 22 editions.

Who joined and who left

  • 2023 compilation
    + Guatemala+ Honduras+ Iraq+ Kiribati+ Panama+ Philippines+ Palestine+ Rwanda+ Uganda− Bangladesh− Bhutan− Canada− Chile− China− Germany− Equatorial Guinea− Israel− Kenya− Lebanon− Mexico− Mongolia− Mozambique− Nigeria− Nepal− Suriname− Syria− Chad− Vietnam− Kosovo− South Africa− Zambia
  • 2022 compilation
    + Bangladesh+ Bhutan+ Chile+ Equatorial Guinea+ India+ Lebanon+ Mexico+ Mongolia+ Mozambique+ Nigeria+ Nepal+ Suriname+ Syria+ Chad+ Vietnam+ South Africa+ Zambia− Benin− Burkina Faso− Bosnia and Herzegovina− Central African Republic− Côte d’Ivoire− Cameroon− Egypt− Ethiopia− United Kingdom− Guinea-Bissau− Jamaica− Kazakhstan− South Korea− Madagascar− Mali− Montenegro− Malaysia− Niger− Netherlands− Panama− Philippines− Senegal− Togo− Tonga− Tunisia− Taiwan
  • 2021 compilation
    + Benin+ Burkina Faso+ Bosnia and Herzegovina+ Central African Republic+ Côte d’Ivoire+ Cameroon+ Egypt+ Ethiopia+ Guinea-Bissau+ Jamaica+ Madagascar+ Mali+ Malaysia+ Niger+ Panama+ Philippines+ Senegal+ El Salvador+ Togo+ Tajikistan+ Tonga+ Tunisia+ Uzbekistan− Albania− Australia− Burundi− Belarus− Chile− DR Congo− Comoros− Gambia− Japan− Mexico− Ukraine− Vietnam
  • 2020 compilation
    + Australia+ Burundi+ Chile+ DR Congo+ Comoros+ Gambia+ Kenya+ Mexico+ Vietnam− Egypt− Fiji− Honduras− Iceland− Kiribati− Sri Lanka− Maldives− Marshall Islands− North Macedonia− Mozambique− Mauritania− Malawi− Panama− El Salvador− Uganda− Vanuatu− Zimbabwe
  • 2019 compilation
    + Egypt+ Fiji+ Kiribati+ Sri Lanka+ Maldives+ Marshall Islands+ Mozambique+ Mauritania+ Malawi+ Uganda+ Vanuatu+ Zimbabwe− Angola− United Arab Emirates− Australia− Benin− Burkina Faso− Belize− Côte d’Ivoire− Guinea− Guinea-Bissau− Grenada− Jamaica− Laos− Mexico− Mali− Mongolia− Malaysia− Niger− Nigeria− Pakistan− Philippines− Senegal− Sierra Leone− Seychelles− Chad− Togo− Tanzania− Vietnam
  • 2018 compilation
    + Angola+ United Arab Emirates+ Australia+ Benin+ Burkina Faso+ Belize+ Côte d’Ivoire+ Guinea+ Guinea-Bissau+ Grenada+ Jamaica+ Laos+ Mexico+ Mali+ Mongolia+ Malaysia+ Niger+ Nigeria+ Pakistan+ Philippines+ Senegal+ Sierra Leone+ Seychelles+ Chad+ Togo+ Tanzania+ Vietnam− Bhutan− Chile− Djibouti− Egypt− Gabon− Hungary− Lesotho− Myanmar− Mauritius− Qatar− São Tomé and Príncipe− Zimbabwe
  • 2017 compilation
    + Bhutan+ Chile+ Djibouti+ Egypt+ Gabon+ Lesotho+ Myanmar+ Mauritius+ Qatar+ São Tomé and Príncipe+ Zimbabwe− Australia− Bangladesh− Barbados− Ghana− Liberia− Sri Lanka− Maldives− Mexico− Mongolia− Malawi− Palestine− Rwanda− South Sudan− Eswatini− Uganda− Vietnam
  • 2016 compilation
    + Argentina+ Australia+ Bangladesh+ Barbados+ Ghana+ South Korea+ Liberia+ Sri Lanka+ Maldives+ Mexico+ Mongolia+ Malawi+ Palestine+ Rwanda+ South Sudan+ Eswatini+ Taiwan+ Uganda+ Vietnam− Benin− Bosnia and Herzegovina− Botswana− Chile− Côte d’Ivoire− Cabo Verde− Egypt− Ethiopia− Gambia− Kenya− Saint Lucia− Myanmar− Malaysia− Namibia− Nigeria− Pakistan− Philippines− Togo− Tajikistan− Tonga− Tunisia− Zambia

Not in this dataset · 56 places this site covers

World Bank Group gives no figure for these in any edition held here. It is the publisher’s choice of scope, and each place’s profile shows what is measured.

AfghanistanAmerican SamoaAndorraAnguillaAntigua and BarbudaArubaBahamasBahrainBermudaBritish Virgin IslandsBruneiCambodiaCayman IslandsChannel IslandsCook IslandsCubaCuraçaoDominicaEritreaFaroe IslandsFrench PolynesiaGibraltarGreenlandGuamGuyanaHong KongIsle of ManKuwaitLibyaLiechtensteinMacauMonacoMontserratNew CaledoniaNew ZealandNiueNorth KoreaNorthern CyprusNorthern Mariana IslandsOmanPalauPuerto RicoSaint Kitts and NevisSaint MartinSaint Vincent and the GrenadinesSan MarinoSaudi ArabiaSingaporeSint MaartenSomaliaSomalilandTrinidad and TobagoTurkmenistanTurks and Caicos IslandsUnited States Virgin IslandsVatican City

04Provenance

Where it comes from

The path from the publisher to this page, and what was checked and changed on the way.

The site’s method

  1. 1 · Publisher

    World Bank Group

    pip.worldbank.org

  2. 2 · Their file

    Palma Ratio 2023

    pip

  3. 3 · Read by this site

    September 26, 2026

    Imported by a script that parses each figure and writes it down unrounded.

  4. 4 · Stored as

    22 files, one per edition

    Each downloads as a CSV, or every edition together as palma-ratio-all-editions-nations-inquiry.csv

  5. 5 · Used on

    Its statistic page, and every profile it measures

    /statistics/palma-ratio

Precision

The headline is stored to 4 decimals, as published.

Rounded by this site

Never. Tables on screen may show fewer decimals; the files never do.

Changed by this site

Reshaped into one row per country: regional and income-group totals are left out, only the columns listed are kept, each row gets its ISO 3166 code, and some country names are brought to one spelling. No value is recalculated, rescaled or rounded.

PIP’s own published ratio, read one year at a time from the World Bank’s Poverty and Inequality Platform, which serves it only on request as an additional indicator. PIP’s 90/10 ratio is stored beside it. Years outside 2002–2023 fall below 60 countries and are not imported.

05Reuse

Licence and credit

What the publisher’s licence lets you do, what it asks of you, and a credit line and citation ready to copy.

Every publisher’s terms

Licence · checked September 26, 2026

CC BY 4.0

  • Share and redistribute it
  • Adapt it and build on it
  • Use it commercially
  • Credit the publisher
  • Say what you changed

Share, adapt and use commercially. Credit the publisher and say if you changed anything.

A credit line

Source: World Bank Group, Palma Ratio, via Nations Inquiry.

Cite this dataset

World Bank Group. Palma Ratio, 2002–2023 [data set]. As held by Nations Inquiry, https://nationsinquiry.com/datasets/palma-ratio

The publisher’s own citation: World Bank. Poverty and Inequality Platform. Washington, DC: World Bank Group.

Plain-language summary, not legal advice. The licence text is what binds.

06Questions

Palma Ratio: questions and answers

What is the Palma Ratio?

The Palma ratio divides the share of income held by a country’s richest 10% by the share held by its poorest 40%. A ratio of 1 means the top tenth hold as much as the bottom four-tenths put together; the most unequal countries run past 7. It is an inequality measure built on the observation that the middle half of most countries holds a fairly steady share, so the fight is at the ends.

Which editions of the Palma Ratio can I download?

All 22, from 2002 to 2023, each as a CSV file, or every edition together in one CSV.

Does World Bank Group rank countries on it?

No. World Bank Group publishes values only. The positions shown on this site are derived by ordering the published values, and are labelled as ours.

Can I use it commercially?

Yes, under CC BY 4.0, with credit to World Bank Group. The licence text is linked on this page.

Feedback

Feedback

How are we doing?

Two answers are required — a rating and your email. The rest is up to you.