Income share of the richest 1% vs. GDP per capita in Bulgaria
Bulgaria: Income share of the richest 1% vs. GDP per capita was 18.3% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Income share of the richest 1% vs. GDP per capita in Bulgaria, 1924–2023
Source: World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for income share of the richest 1% vs. gdp per capita in Bulgaria is 18.3%, measured in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.3% on the previous year and up 45.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, income share of the richest 1% vs. gdp per capita in Bulgaria peaked at 19.6% in 2017 and was at its lowest, 2.0%, in 1988.
That places Bulgaria 28th out of 113 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 58 years of available data.
Income share of the richest 1% vs. GDP per capita in Bulgaria, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1924 | 11.7% | — |
| 1925 | 11.3% | -2.8% |
| 1926 | 10.7% | -5.7% |
| 1927 | 10.6% | -1.2% |
| 1928 | 10.5% | -0.6% |
| 1929 | 10.1% | -3.4% |
| 1930 | 10.2% | +0.7% |
| 1931 | 10.4% | +1.6% |
| 1932 | 10.1% | -2.7% |
| 1933 | 10.5% | +4.5% |
| 1934 | 10.3% | -2.1% |
| 1935 | 10.0% | -3.4% |
| 1936 | 9.6% | -3.4% |
| 1937 | 9.8% | +2.3% |
| 1938 | 9.6% | -2.7% |
| 1939 | 9.1% | -5.1% |
| 1940 | 9.5% | +4.4% |
| 1941 | 9.2% | -2.7% |
| 1942 | 9.2% | +0.2% |
| 1943 | 8.6% | -7.5% |
| 1944 | 8.6% | +0.8% |
| 1945 | 8.8% | +2.1% |
| 1980 | 3.3% | -62.7% |
| 1981 | 3.5% | +7.0% |
| 1982 | 5.5% | +54.8% |
| 1983 | 5.4% | -0.6% |
| 1984 | 5.1% | -5.4% |
| 1987 | 2.2% | -57.5% |
| 1988 | 2.0% | -6.0% |
| 1989 | 4.5% | +119.5% |
| 1990 | 5.7% | +26.2% |
| 1993 | 10.5% | +84.3% |
| 1994 | 12.7% | +21.5% |
| 1995 | 13.8% | +8.6% |
| 1996 | 12.8% | -7.1% |
| 1997 | 12.2% | -5.1% |
| 1998 | 11.2% | -8.3% |
| 1999 | 10.9% | -2.5% |
| 2000 | 10.2% | -6.0% |
| 2001 | 11.2% | +9.4% |
| 2002 | 12.2% | +8.9% |
| 2003 | 11.0% | -10.1% |
| 2006 | 11.5% | +4.9% |
| 2009 | 11.9% | +3.1% |
| 2010 | 11.9% | +0.1% |
| 2011 | 12.5% | +5.6% |
| 2012 | 14.0% | +11.3% |
| 2013 | 12.6% | -9.7% |
| 2014 | 13.9% | +10.1% |
| 2015 | 14.3% | +2.7% |
| 2016 | 16.9% | +18.4% |
| 2017 | 19.6% | +16.4% |
| 2018 | 19.1% | -3.0% |
| 2019 | 16.5% | -13.4% |
| 2020 | 16.5% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 17.6% | +6.6% |
| 2022 | 18.6% | +5.5% |
| 2023 | 18.3% | -1.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920s | 10.8% | 10.1% | 11.7% | 6 |
| 1930s | 10.0% | 9.1% | 10.5% | 10 |
| 1940s | 9.0% | 8.6% | 9.5% | 6 |
| 1980s | 3.9% | 2.0% | 5.5% | 8 |
| 1990s | 11.2% | 5.7% | 13.8% | 8 |
| 2000s | 11.3% | 10.2% | 12.2% | 6 |
| 2010s | 15.1% | 11.9% | 19.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 17.7% | 16.5% | 18.6% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Bulgaria
More economy & growth data for Bulgaria
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 3.48 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 2.58 Percent per annum (2029)
- Gross value added at basic prices (GVA) (current LCU), annual growth 10.43 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross value added at basic prices (GVA) (current LCU), per unit of GDP 0.7718 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Gross value added at basic prices (GVA) (current LCU), per capita 15,689 current LCU per person (2025)
- Gross value added at basic prices (GVA) (constant 2015 US$), annual 2.56 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross value added at basic prices (GVA) (constant 2015 US$), per unit 0.4465 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Gross value added at basic prices (GVA) (constant 2015 US$), per 9,076 constant 2015 US$ per person (2025)
- Gross value added at basic prices (GVA) (constant LCU), annual growth 2.56 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross value added at basic prices (GVA) (constant LCU), per unit of 0.4991 constant LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is income share of the richest 1% vs. gdp per capita in Bulgaria?
- Income share of the richest 1% vs. gdp per capita in Bulgaria was 18.3% in 2023, according to World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest income share of the richest 1% vs. gdp per capita recorded in Bulgaria?
- The highest recorded value was 19.6% in 2017.
- What is the lowest income share of the richest 1% vs. gdp per capita recorded in Bulgaria?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.0% in 1988.
- How does Bulgaria rank for income share of the richest 1% vs. gdp per capita?
- Bulgaria ranks 28th out of 113 countries with data for 2023.
- Is income share of the richest 1% vs. gdp per capita rising or falling in Bulgaria?
- Over the last ten years it is up 45.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Bulgaria data come from?
- The figures come from World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Income share of the richest 1% vs. GDP per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Share of income received by the richest 1% of the population. Income here is measured before taxes and benefits.