Share of the World's Countries by Income (1987-2024)

What We’re Showing

This area chart tracks how the share of the world’s countries in each of the World Bank’s four income groups—high, upper-middle, lower-middle, and low—has shifted from 1987 to 2024.

The figures come from the World Bank’s annual Gross National Income (GNI) per capita classifications, updated on July 1. 

Key Takeaways

• The number of low-income countries has almost halved, with their share dropping from 30% in 1987 (49 countries) to 12% in 2024 (25 countries).  
• The proportion of economies above the World Bank’s 2024 high-income threshold of $13,936 GNI per capita climbed from roughly one-quarter to 40% of all countries.  
• Middle-income is now the plurality. Upper-middle (25%) and lower-middle (23%) income groups together account for almost half of the world’s countries, underscoring a broad shift out of extreme poverty but not yet into the richest tier.