Malawi: GDP per capita (constant LCU)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2025, Malawi's GDP per capita (constant LCU) fell 2,519 on 2024 (from 366,802 to 364,283).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was +4,926 and a typical year strayed about 9,967 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.7 standard deviations below 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 37,013 in 1995 and the biggest yearly fall was 25,747 in 1981. 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 6% 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, Malawi had the 59th highest value of the 186 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.

Closest to Malawi in the 2025 ranking

• Denmark — 56th of 186: 443,793
• Angola — 57th of 186: 431,776
• Hong Kong SAR, China — 58th of 186: 422,236
• Niger — 60th of 186: 360,861
• North Macedonia — 61st of 186: 289,034
• Bhutan — 62nd of 186: 277,830

What this measures

Gross domestic product is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period. It can be measured in three different ways: using either the expenditure approach, the income approach, or the production approach. The core indicator has been divided by the general population to achieve a per capita estimate.This indicator is expressed in constant prices, meaning the series has been adjusted to account for price changes over time. The reference year for this adjustment varies by country. This series is expressed in local currency units.

All 66 values

GDP per capita (constant LCU) in nearby economies

• Angola — 431,776 (2025)
• Benin — 826,368 (2025)
• Botswana — 76,974 (2025)
• Burkina Faso — 465,264 (2025)
• Burundi — 173,562 (2025)
• Cabo Verde — 466,711 (2025)
• Cameroon — 886,421 (2025)
• Central African Republic — 151,419 (2025)
• Chad — 493,018 (2025)
• Comoros — 545,354 (2025)
• Congo, Dem. Rep. — 164,071 (2025)

More economic policy & debt data for Malawi

• Services, value added (constant 2015 US$) — US$6.68 billion (2025)
• Services, value added (constant LCU) — 4.34 trillion (2025)
• Gross Value Added (GVA) at basic prices (constant 2015 US$) — US$11.42 billion (2025)
• Gross Value Added (GVA) at basic prices (constant LCU) — 7.6 trillion (2025)
• GDP (constant 2015 US$) — US$12.18 billion (2025)
• GDP (constant LCU) — 8.09 trillion (2025)
• GDP per capita (constant 2015 US$) — US$548.16 (2025)
• Services, value added (annual % growth) — 2.15% (2025)
• GDP (annual % growth) — 1.89% (2025)
• GDP per capita (annual % growth) — -0.69% (2025)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Malawi's GDP per capita (constant LCU)?

364,283 in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1960?

It is up 110.53% from 173,032 in 1960 (1.15% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 378,776 in 2021 and the lowest 171,977 in 1963.

How does Malawi rank?

59th highest of 186 economies with data for 2025.

Is the latest change in GDP per capita (constant LCU) unusual for Malawi?

In 2025, Malawi's GDP per capita (constant LCU) fell 2,519 on 2024 (from 366,802 to 364,283). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was +4,926 and a typical year strayed about 9,967 from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.7 standard deviations below 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 NY.GDP.PCAP.KN, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Country official statistics, National Statistical Organizations and/or Central Banks; National Accounts data files, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD); Staff estimates, World Bank (WB) 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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