Sweden: Poverty headcount ratio at national poverty lines (% of population)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2022, Sweden's poverty headcount ratio at national poverty lines (% of population) rose 0.1 percentage points on 2021 (from 16% to 16.1%).

Across the 14 yearly changes before that (2008 to 2021), the average change was +0.18 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.59 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 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 0.9 percentage points in 2008 and the biggest yearly fall was 1 percentage points in 2019. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2013 to 2022 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains less than 1% 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 2022, Sweden had the 5th highest value of the 10 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 Sweden in the 2022 ranking

• Latvia — 2nd of 10: 22.5%
• Spain — 3rd of 10: 20.2%
• Albania — 4th of 10: 19.7%
• Slovenia — 6th of 10: 12.7%
• Finland — 7th of 10: 12.2%
• Chile — 8th of 10: 6.5%

What this measures

National poverty headcount ratio is the percentage of the population living below the national poverty line(s). National estimates are based on population-weighted subgroup estimates from household surveys. For economies for which the data are from EU-SILC, the reported year is the income reference year, which is the year before the survey year.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a population-weighted average.

All 16 values

Poverty headcount ratio at national poverty lines (% of population) in nearby economies

• Albania — 19.7% (2022)
• Armenia — 21.7% (2024)
• Austria — 14.8% (2021)
• Belarus — 3.5% (2024)
• Bulgaria — 21.2% (2024)
• Cyprus — 13.9% (2021)
• Czechia — 10.2% (2021)
• Estonia — 22.5% (2022)
• Finland

More poverty data for Sweden

• Income share held by second 20% — 13.8% (2023)
• Income share held by third 20% — 17.8% (2023)
• Income share held by fourth 20% — 23.3% (2023)
• Income share held by highest 20% — 37.2% (2023)
• Income share held by highest 10% — 22.3% (2023)
• Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income (%) — 11% (2023)
• Income share held by lowest 10% — 2.8% (2023)
• Income share held by lowest 20% — 7.9% (2023)
• Poverty headcount ratio at $3.00 a day (2021 PPP) (% of population) — 0.8% (2023)
• Poverty gap at $3.00 a day (2021 PPP) (%)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Sweden's poverty headcount ratio at national poverty lines (% of population)?

16.1% in 2022, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2007?

It is up 2.6 percentage points from 13.5% in 2007. The highest value was 17.1% in 2018 and the lowest 13.5% in 2007.

How does Sweden rank?

5th highest of 10 economies with data for 2022.

Is the latest change in poverty headcount ratio at national poverty lines (% of population) unusual for Sweden?

In 2022, Sweden's poverty headcount ratio at national poverty lines (% of population) rose 0.1 percentage points on 2021 (from 16% to 16.1%). Across the 14 yearly changes before that (2008 to 2021), the average change was +0.18 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.59 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 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 SI.POV.NAHC, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are compiled from official government sources or are computed by World Bank staff using national (i.e. 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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