Lesotho's primary income receipts (BoP, current US$) was US$686.31 million in 2025, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is up 58.85% from US$432.06 million in 2015 (4.74% a year on average, compounded).
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | US$686.31 million | 2025 |
| Five years earlier | US$513.21 million | 2020 |
| Ten years earlier | US$432.06 million | 2015 |
| Highest | US$1.16 billion | 1994 |
| Lowest | US$126.98 million | 1975 |
| Average since 2016 | US$588.55 million | 2016–2025 |
| First recorded | US$126.98 million |
What the numbers say
In 2025, Lesotho's primary income receipts (BoP, current US$) rose 11.6% on 2024 (from US$614.85 million to US$686.31 million).
Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was −1.2% and a typical year strayed about 14% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.9 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 169.1% in 1982 and the biggest yearly fall was 26.3% in 1998. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2016 to 2025 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 18% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
How it compares
In 2025, Lesotho had the 96th highest value of the 136 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Lesotho | US$686.31 million | 2025 |
| World | US$7.44 trillion | 2024 |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | US$34.85 billion | 2024 |
| Lower middle income | US$84.24 billion | 2024 |
Closest to Lesotho in the 2025 ranking
What this measures
Primary income receipts refer to employee compensation paid to resident workers working abroad and investment income (receipts on direct investment, portfolio investment, other investments, and receipts on reserve assets). This indicator is expressed in current prices, meaning no adjustment has been made to account for price changes over time. This indicator is expressed in United States dollars.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a sum.
All 51 values
| Year | Primary income receipts (BoP, current US$) |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 686,313,709 |
| 2024 | 614,845,830 |
| 2023 | 577,346,077 |
| 2022 | 597,805,945 |
| 2021 | 535,046,832 |
| 2020 | 513,206,242 |
| 2019 | 587,024,780 |
| 2018 | 632,365,990 |
| 2017 | 608,822,528 |
| 2016 | 532,730,079 |
| 2015 |
Primary income receipts (BoP, current US$) in nearby economies
- Angola — US$778.62 million (2025)
- Benin — US$344.02 million (2023)
- Botswana — US$166.83 million (2025)
- Burkina Faso — US$311.54 million (2024)
- Burundi — US$34.06 million (2025)
- Cabo Verde — US$61.42 million (2025)
- Cameroon — US$228.85 million (2024)
- Comoros — US$15.1 million (2023)
- Congo, Dem. Rep. — US$399.87 million (2025)
- Congo, Rep. — US$60.42 million (2021)
More economic policy & debt data for Lesotho
- General government final consumption expenditure (constant 2015 US$) — US$805.47 million (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (constant LCU) — 7.4 billion (2025)
- Households and NPISHs final consumption expenditure (constant 2015 US$) — US$1.99 billion (2025)
- Households and NPISHs final consumption expenditure (constant LCU) — 21.89 billion (2025)
- Households and NPISHs final consumption expenditure per capita (constant 2015 US$) — US$840.08 (2025)
- Final consumption expenditure (constant 2015 US$) — US$2.81 billion (2025)
- Final consumption expenditure (constant LCU) — 29.29 billion (2025)
- Gross national expenditure (constant 2015 US$)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Lesotho's primary income receipts (BoP, current US$)?
- US$686.31 million in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 1975?
- It is up 440.51% from US$126.98 million in 1975 (3.43% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was US$1.16 billion in 1994 and the lowest US$126.98 million in 1975.
- How does Lesotho rank?
- 96th highest of 136 economies with data for 2025.
- Is the latest change in primary income receipts (BoP, current US$) unusual for Lesotho?
- In 2025, Lesotho's primary income receipts (BoP, current US$) rose 11.6% on 2024 (from US$614.85 million to US$686.31 million). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was −1.2% and a typical year strayed about 14% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.9 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator BX.GSR.FCTY.CD, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.
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