The World Bank Group plays a crucial role in global development, and one of its key functions is classifying economies based on their income levels. This classification is updated annually and is a vital tool for understanding the global economic landscape. For the current 2025 fiscal year, these classifications are determined by the Gross National Income (GNI) per capita, calculated using the World Bank Atlas method.
This system categorizes economies into four income groups: low, lower-middle, upper-middle, and high. The thresholds are set to reflect the evolving global economy and provide a benchmark for development progress. Understanding these classifications is essential for governments, researchers, and organizations involved in international development and finance.
For the fiscal year 2025, the income thresholds are as follows:
- Low-income economies: GNI per capita of $1,145 or less in 2023
- Lower middle-income economies: GNI per capita between $1,146 and $4,515
- Upper middle-income economies: GNI per capita between $4,516 and $14,005
- High-income economies: GNI per capita of more than $14,005
These classifications are not merely statistical exercises. They influence the World Bank Group’s operational policies and lending terms. For instance, countries are also categorized by lending eligibility, such as IDA (International Development Association) for the poorest countries and IBRD (International Bank for Reconstruction and Development) for middle-income and creditworthy low-income countries. Blend countries are eligible for both IDA and IBRD financing.
It’s important to note that the term “country” or “economy,” as used by the World Bank Group, refers to any territory for which authorities report separate social or economic statistics. It does not necessarily imply political independence. Regions listed in the following tables include economies at all income levels.
For a deeper dive into the methodology and further resources, you can explore:
- World Bank Atlas Method
- How the World Bank Classifies Countries
- Current income classification in XLSX format
- Historical income classification in XLSX format
- World Development Indicators – The world by income and region – Interactive tables and maps to explore income and regional classifications.
Below are the lists of economies classified by region, income, and lending categories for the fiscal year 2025. Bold text indicates a change in classification from the previous year.
| BY REGION | BY INCOME | BY LENDING |
|---|---|---|
| East Asia and Pacific | Low-income economies | IDA |
| Europe and Central Asia | Lower-middle-income economies | Blend |
| Latin America & the Caribbean | Upper-middle-income economies | IBRD |
| Middle East and North Africa | High-income economies | |
| North America | ||
| South Asia | ||
| Sub-Saharan Africa |
EAST ASIA AND PACIFIC
[38]
| American Samoa | Korea, Rep. | Papua New Guinea |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | Lao PDR | Philippines |
| Brunei Darussalam | Macao SAR, China | Samoa |
| Cambodia | Malaysia | Singapore |
| China | Marshall Islands | Solomon Islands |
| Fiji | Micronesia, Fed. Sts. | Taiwan, China |
| French Polynesia | Mongolia | Thailand |
| Guam | Myanmar | Timor-Leste |
| Hong Kong SAR, China | Nauru | Tonga |
| Indonesia | New Caledonia | Tuvalu |
| Japan | New Zealand | Vanuatu |
| Kiribati | Northern Mariana Islands | Vietnam |
| Korea, Dem. People’s Rep. | Palau |
EUROPE AND CENTRAL ASIA
[58]
| Albania | Gibraltar | Norway |
|---|---|---|
| Andorra | Greece | Poland |
| Armenia | Greenland | Portugal |
| Austria | Hungary | Romania |
| Azerbaijan | Iceland | Russian Federation |
| Belarus | Ireland | San Marino |
| Belgium | Isle of Man | Serbia |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | Italy | Slovak Republic |
| Bulgaria | Kazakhstan | Slovenia |
| Channel Islands | Kosovo | Spain |
| Croatia | Kyrgyz Republic | Sweden |
| Cyprus | Latvia | Switzerland |
| Czechia | Liechtenstein | Tajikistan |
| Denmark | Lithuania | Türkiye |
| Estonia | Luxembourg | Turkmenistan |
| Faroe Islands | Moldova | Ukraine |
| Finland | Monaco | United Kingdom |
| France | Montenegro | Uzbekistan |
| Georgia | Netherlands | |
| Germany | North Macedonia |
LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN
[42]
| Antigua and Barbuda | Curacao | Paraguay |
|---|---|---|
| Argentina | Dominica | Peru |
| Aruba | Dominican Republic | Puerto Rico |
| Bahamas, The | Ecuador | Sint Maarten (Dutch part) |
| Barbados | El Salvador | St. Kitts and Nevis |
| Belize | Grenada | St. Lucia |
| Bolivia | Guatemala | St. Martin (French part) |
| Brazil | Guyana | St. Vincent and the Grenadines |
| British Virgin Islands | Haiti | Suriname |
| Cayman Islands | Honduras | Trinidad and Tobago |
| Chile | Jamaica | Turks and Caicos Islands |
| Colombia | Mexico | Uruguay |
| Costa Rica | Nicaragua | Venezuela, RB |
| Cuba | Panama | Virgin Islands (U.S.) |
MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA
[21]
| Algeria | Jordan | Qatar |
|---|---|---|
| Bahrain | Kuwait | Saudi Arabia |
| Djibouti | Lebanon | Syrian Arab Republic |
| Egypt, Arab Rep. | Libya | Tunisia |
| Iran, Islamic Rep. | Malta | United Arab Emirates |
| Iraq | Morocco | West Bank and Gaza |
| Israel | Oman | Yemen, Rep. |
NORTH AMERICA
[3]
| Bermuda | Canada | United States |
|---|
SOUTH ASIA
[8]
| Afghanistan | India | Pakistan |
|---|---|---|
| Bangladesh | Maldives | Sri Lanka |
| Bhutan | Nepal |
SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA
[48]
| Angola | Ethiopia | Niger |
|---|---|---|
| Benin | Gabon | Nigeria |
| Botswana | Gambia, The | Rwanda |
| Burkina Faso | Ghana | São Tomé and Principe |
| Burundi | Guinea | Senegal |
| Cabo Verde | Guinea-Bissau | Seychelles |
| Cameroon | Kenya | Sierra Leone |
| Central African Republic | Lesotho | Somalia |
| Chad | Liberia | South Africa |
| Comoros | Madagascar | South Sudan |
| Congo, Dem. Rep. | Malawi | Sudan |
| Congo, Rep | Mali | Tanzania |
| Côte d’Ivoire | Mauritania | Togo |
| Equatorial Guinea | Mauritius | Uganda |
| Eritrea | Mozambique | Zambia |
| Eswatini | Namibia | Zimbabwe |
LOW-INCOME ECONOMIES ($1,145 OR LESS)
[26]
| Afghanistan | Korea, Dem. People’s Rep | South Sudan |
|---|---|---|
| Burkina Faso | Liberia | Sudan |
| Burundi | Madagascar | Syrian Arab Republic |
| Central African Republic | Malawi | Togo |
| Chad | Mali | Uganda |
| Congo, Dem. Rep | Mozambique | Yemen, Rep. |
| Eritrea | Niger | |
| Ethiopia | Rwanda | |
| Gambia, The | Sierra Leone | |
| Guinea-Bissau | Somalia |
LOWER-MIDDLE INCOME ECONOMIES ($1,146 TO $4,515)
[51]
| Angola | Honduras | Papua New Guinea |
|---|---|---|
| Bangladesh | India | Philippines |
| Benin | Jordan | Samoa |
| Bhutan | Kenya | São Tomé and Principe |
| Bolivia | Kiribati | Senegal |
| Cabo Verde | Kyrgyz Republic | Solomon Islands |
| Cambodia | Lao PDR | Sri Lanka |
| Cameroon | Lebanon | Tajikistan |
| Comoros | Lesotho | Tanzania |
| Congo, Rep. | Mauritania | Timor-Leste |
| Côte d’Ivoire | Micronesia, Fed. Sts. | Tunisia |
| Djibouti | Morocco | Uzbekistan |
| Egypt, Arab Rep. | Myanmar | Vanuatu |
| Eswatini | Nepal | Vietnam |
| Ghana | Nicaragua | West Bank and Gaza |
| Guinea | Nigeria | Zambia |
| Haiti | Pakistan | Zimbabwe |
UPPER-MIDDLE-INCOME ECONOMIES ($4,516 TO $14,005)
[54]
| Albania | Equatorial Guinea | Moldova |
|---|---|---|
| Algeria | Fiji | Mongolia |
| Argentina | Gabon | Montenegro |
| Armenia | Georgia | Namibia |
| Azerbaijan | Grenada | North Macedonia |
| Belarus | Guatemala | Paraguay |
| Belize | Indonesia | Peru |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | Iran, Islamic Rep. | Serbia |
| Botswana | Iraq | South Africa |
| Brazil | Jamaica | St. Lucia |
| China | Kazakhstan | St. Vincent and the Grenadines |
| Colombia | Kosovo | Suriname |
| Costa Rica | Libya | Thailand |
| Cuba | Malaysia | Tonga |
| Dominica | Maldives | Türkiye |
| Dominican Republic | Marshall Islands | Turkmenistan |
| Ecuador | Mauritius | Tuvalu |
| El Salvador | Mexico | Ukraine |
HIGH-INCOME ECONOMIES ($14,006 OR MORE)
[86]
| American Samoa | Gibraltar | Palau |
|---|---|---|
| Andorra | Greece | Panama |
| Antigua and Barbuda | Greenland | Poland |
| Aruba | Guam | Portugal |
| Australia | Guyana | Puerto Rico |
| Austria | Hong Kong SAR, China | Qatar |
| Bahamas, The | Hungary | Romania |
| Bahrain | Iceland | Russian Federation |
| Barbados | Ireland | San Marino |
| Belgium | Isle of Man | Saudi Arabia |
| Bermuda | Israel | Seychelles |
| British Virgin Islands | Italy | Singapore |
| Brunei Darussalam | Japan | Sint Maarten (Dutch part) |
| Bulgaria | Korea, Rep. | Slovak Republic |
| Canada | Kuwait | Slovenia |
| Cayman Islands | Latvia | Spain |
| Channel Islands | Liechtenstein | St. Kitts and Nevis |
| Chile | Lithuania | St. Martin (French part) |
| Croatia | Luxembourg | Sweden |
| Curaçao | Macao SAR, China | Switzerland |
| Cyprus | Malta | Taiwan, China |
| Czechia | Monaco | Trinidad and Tobago |
| Denmark | Nauru | Turks and Caicos Islands |
| Estonia | Netherlands | United Arab Emirates |
| Faroe Islands | New Caledonia | United Kingdom |
| Finland | New Zealand | United States |
| France | Northern Mariana Islands | Uruguay |
| French Polynesia | Norway | Virgin Islands (U.S.) |
| Germany | Oman |
IDA
[60]| Afghanistan | Haiti | Rwanda |
|—|—|—|
| Bangladesh | Honduras | Samoa |
| Benin | Kiribati | São Tomé and Principe |
| Bhutan | Kosovo | Senegal |
| Burkina Faso | Kyrgyz Republic | Sierra Leone |
| Burundi | Lao PDR | Solomon Islands |
| Cambodia | Lesotho | Somalia |
| Central African Republic | Liberia | South Sudan |
| Chad | Madagascar | Sri Lanka |
| Comoros | Malawi | Sudan |
| Congo, Dem. Rep. | Maldives | Syrian Arab Republic |
| Côte d’Ivoire | Mali | Tajikistan |
| Djibouti | Marshall Islands | Tanzania |
| Eritrea | Mauritania | Togo |
| Ethiopia | Micronesia, Fed. Sts. | Tonga |
| Gambia, The | Mozambique | Tuvalu |
| Ghana | Myanmar | Uganda |
| Guinea | Nepal | Vanuatu |
| Guinea-Bissau | Nicaragua | Yemen, Rep. |
| Guyana | Niger | Zambia |
BLEND
[17] | Belize | Fiji | St. Lucia |
|—|—|—|
| Cabo Verde | Grenada | St. Vincent and the Grenadines |
| Cameroon | Kenya | Timor-Leste |
| Congo, Rep. | Nigeria | Uzbekistan |
| Dominica | Pakistan | Zimbabwe |
| Eswatini | Papua New Guinea |
IBRD
[68]
| Albania | Equatorial Guinea | Palau |
|---|---|---|
| Algeria | Gabon | Panama |
| Angola | Georgia | Paraguay |
| Antigua and Barbuda | Guatemala | Peru |
| Argentina | India | Philippines |
| Armenia | Indonesia | Poland |
| Azerbaijan | Iran, Islamic Rep. | Romania |
| Barbados | Iraq | Russian Federation |
| Belarus | Jamaica | Serbia |
| Bolivia | Jordan | Seychelles |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | Kazakhstan | South Africa |
| Botswana | Lebanon | St. Kitts and Nevis |
| Brazil | Libya | Suriname |
| Bulgaria | Malaysia | Thailand |
| Chile | Mauritius | Trinidad and Tobago |
| China | Mexico | Tunisia |
| Colombia | Moldova | Türkiye |
| Costa Rica | Mongolia | Turkmenistan |
| Croatia | Montenegro | Ukraine |
| Dominican Republic | Morocco | Uruguay |
| Ecuador | Namibia | Venezuela, RB |
| Egypt, Arab Rep. | Nauru | Vietnam |
| El Salvador | North Macedonia |
