In its September update of global poverty data, the World Bank estimated that around 824 million people, 10.1% of the world’s population, were living in extreme poverty in 2024, that is, on less than $3 a day.
The figure represents a downward revision of 0.3 percentage points compared with the March estimate, equivalent to around 22.5 million fewer people. The correction stems mainly from a lower rate in South Asia, after a new survey replaced an earlier extrapolation.
Projections suggest the global rate will keep falling, to 9.8% in 2026. In most regions of the world, extreme poverty is already below 5%.
The World Bank stresses, however, that progress is uneven: Sub-Saharan Africa and the region combining the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan remain far from eradicating extreme poverty.
