Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in Bulgaria
Bulgaria: Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income was 14.6% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in Bulgaria, 1989–2023
Source: United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database.
Analysis
Bulgaria recorded 14.6% for proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in 2023.
The figure is up 9.8% on the previous year and down 8.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in Bulgaria peaked at 16.3% in 2015 and was at its lowest, 3.4%, in 1997.
Bulgaria ranks 36th of 130 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in Bulgaria, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | 4.8% | — |
| 1992 | 10.3% | +114.6% |
| 1994 | 5.6% | -45.6% |
| 1995 | 9.7% | +73.2% |
| 1997 | 3.4% | -64.9% |
| 2001 | 13.6% | +300.0% |
| 2003 | 8.5% | -37.5% |
| 2006 | 15.8% | +85.9% |
| 2007 | 13.2% | -16.5% |
| 2008 | 12.6% | -4.5% |
| 2009 | 13.9% | +10.3% |
| 2010 | 15.1% | +8.6% |
| 2011 | 14.1% | -6.6% |
| 2012 | 14.9% | +5.7% |
| 2013 | 16.0% | +7.4% |
| 2014 | 14.9% | -6.9% |
| 2015 | 16.3% | +9.4% |
| 2016 | 15.7% | -3.7% |
| 2017 | 15.3% | -2.5% |
| 2018 | 14.1% | -7.8% |
| 2019 | 15.1% | +7.1% |
| 2020 | 13.0% | -13.9% |
| 2021 | 13.5% | +3.8% |
| 2022 | 13.3% | -1.5% |
| 2023 | 14.6% | +9.8% |
Bulgaria compared with similar countries
- Bulgaria's 14.6% is above the median for high income countries, which is 11.7%, 1.2× the median. (41 countries reporting)
- Bulgaria's 14.6% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 11.0%, 1.3× the median. (46 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in Bulgaria changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | +300.0% | 3.4% | 13.6% |
| 1992 | +114.6% | 4.8% | 10.3% |
| 2006 | +85.9% | 8.5% | 15.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 4.8% | 4.8% | 4.8% | 1 |
| 1990s | 7.2% | 3.4% | 10.3% | 4 |
| 2000s | 12.9% | 8.5% | 15.8% | 6 |
| 2010s | 15.2% | 14.1% | 16.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 13.6% | 13.0% | 14.6% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Bulgaria
More infrastructure data for Bulgaria
- Mobile cellular subscriptions 7.98 million (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions 118.07 per 100 people (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions 551,943 (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions 8.17 per 100 people (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, per capita 0.0857 units per person (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, annual growth rate -10.89 % change on previous year (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, gaps filled 551,943 (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions, per capita 1.24 units per person (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in Bulgaria?
- Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in Bulgaria was 14.6% in 2023, according to United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database.
- What is the highest proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income recorded in Bulgaria?
- The highest recorded value was 16.3% in 2015.
- What is the lowest proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income recorded in Bulgaria?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.4% in 1997.
- How does Bulgaria rank for proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income?
- Bulgaria ranks 36th out of 130 countries with data for 2023.
- Is proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income rising or falling in Bulgaria?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Bulgaria data come from?
- The figures come from United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database, published as part of Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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