Wealth Inequality

Wealth Inequality

Wealth inequality has far-reaching consequences for individuals and society as a whole — on economic growth, the functioning of democracy, social mobility, and even on social cohesion. Varying definitions and data sources make its measurement more complex, and even controversial, compared to income inequality. Explore cross-national time series data on wealth inequality from various sources, comparing estimates and methodological differences.

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Net wealth distribution

Explore distributional net-wealth estimates across countries, sources, indicators, and portions of the wealth distribution.

Country View

Visualize the evolution of wealth inequality for a given country according to various estimates and via multiple inequality indicators.

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How to use the tool?

Visualize the evolution of wealth inequality for a given country according to various estimates and via multiple inequality indicators (e.g., distributional shares, Gini coefficients, or average wealth above a percentile).

Select a country to display particular data sources that utilize the inequality indicator, section of the wealth distribution, and units of analysis of your choice.

Country Comparison

Compare the evolution of wealth inequality across countries according to various estimates and via multiple inequality indicators.

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How to use the tool?

Compare the evolution of wealth inequality across countries according to various estimates and via multiple inequality indicators (e.g., distributional shares, Gini coefficients, or average wealth above a percentile).

Select one or more countries to display particular data sources that utilize the inequality indicator, section of the wealth distribution, and units of analysis of your choice.

Asset ownership rates

Asset ownership rates offer an indirect, aggregate proxy for studying wealth-holding patterns, especially in developing countries where distributional net-wealth data are scarce.

Country View

Inspect aggregate asset ownership rates for a selected country as an indirect view of wealth-holding patterns where distributional net-wealth data are limited.

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How to use the tool?

Visualize asset ownership rates by asset class for a selected country. These aggregate rates do not replace distributional net-wealth measures, but they provide a rough proxy for asset-holding patterns where distributional estimates are unavailable or limited.

Select a country and asset category to explore available sources and compare ownership patterns over time.

Country Comparison

Compare aggregate asset ownership rates across countries to study broad wealth-holding patterns when comparable net-wealth distributions are unavailable.

Open in new tab
How to use the tool?

Compare asset ownership rates by asset class across countries. These aggregate measures offer a rough proxy for wealth-holding patterns in contexts that lack comparable distributional net-wealth data.

Select countries and asset categories to compare available sources and ownership patterns over time.

Data Sources Library: Wealth Inequality

A full list of sources for this database is available in the Wealth Inequality section of the Data Sources Library.

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