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A high-income economy is defined by the
World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...
as a nation with a
gross national income The gross national income (GNI), previously known as gross national product (GNP), is the total domestic and foreign output claimed by residents of a country, consisting of gross domestic product (GDP), plus factor incomes earned by foreign ...
per capita of US$12,696 or more in 2020, calculated using the
Atlas method The Atlas method is a method used by the World Bank since 1993 to estimate the size of economies in terms of gross national income (GNI) in U.S. dollars. A country's GNI in local (national) currency is converted into U.S. dollars using the Atlas co ...
. While the term "high-income" is often used interchangeably with "
First World The concept of First World originated during the Cold War and comprised countries that were under the influence of the United States and the rest of NATO and opposed the Soviet Union and/or communism during the Cold War. Since the collapse of ...
" and "
developed country A developed country (or industrialized country, high-income country, more economically developed country (MEDC), advanced country) is a sovereign state that has a high quality of life, developed economy and advanced technological infrastruct ...
," the technical definitions of these terms differ. The term "first world" commonly refers to countries that aligned themselves with the U.S. and
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two N ...
during the
Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because t ...
. Several institutions, such as the
Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
(CIA) or
International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster glo ...
(IMF), take factors other than high
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...
into account when classifying countries as "developed" or "advanced economies." According to the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoni ...
, for example, some high-income countries may also be developing countries. The GCC countries, for example, are classified as developing high-income countries. Thus, a high-income country may be classified as either developed or developing. Although the
Vatican City Vatican City (), officially the Vatican City State ( it, Stato della Città del Vaticano; la, Status Civitatis Vaticanae),—' * german: Vatikanstadt, cf. '—' (in Austria: ') * pl, Miasto Watykańskie, cf. '—' * pt, Cidade do Vati ...
is a
sovereign state A sovereign state or sovereign country, is a political entity represented by one central government that has supreme legitimate authority over territory. International law defines sovereign states as having a permanent population, defined ter ...
, it is not classified by the World Bank under this definition.


List of high-income economies (as of 2023 fiscal year)

According to the World Bank the following 82 countries (including territories) are classified as "high-income economies."Country and Lending Groups.
World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...
. Accessed on July 1, 2022.
In brackets are the year(s) during which they held such classification; classifying began in 1987. As of the 2023 fiscal year, high-income economies are those that had a GNI per capita of $13,205 or more in 2021.Country and Lending Groups.
World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...
. Accessed on July 1, 2022.


High income UN members

* (1990–present) * (2002, 2005–08, 2012–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–89, 2001–present) * (1989, 2000, 2002, 2006–present) * (1987–present) * (1987, 1990–present) * (1987–present) * (2012–present) * (2008–2015, 2017–present) * (1988–present) * (2006–present) * (1987–present) * (2006–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–present) * (1996–present) * (2007–11, 2014–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–present) * (1993–97, 1999–present) * (1987–present) * (2009, 2012–present) * (1994–present) * (2012–present) * (1987–present) * (1989, 1998, 2000, 2002–present) * (1994–present) * (2015, 2019–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–present) * (2007–present) * (2017-2019, 2021) * (2009–present) * (1994–present) * (2019, 2021–present) * (1987–present) * (2012–present) * (1991–93, 2000–present) * (1987–89, 2003–present) * (2014–present) * (1987–present) * (2007–present) * (1997–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–present) * (2006–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–present) * (2012–present)


High income non-UN members

* (1987–present) * (1987–present) * (2015–present) * (1993–present) * /
Channel Islands The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
(1987–present) * (2016–present) * (1994–present)a * (1987–present) * (1990–present) * (2009–10, 2015–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–89, 1995–present) * (1987–present) * (1987–89, 2002–present) * (1994–present) * (1995–present) * (1995–2001, 2007–present) * (1989, 2002–present) * (2010–present) * (1994–present)a * (1988–present) * (2009–present) * (1987–present)


Former high-income economies

The year(s) during which they held such classification is/are shown in parenthesis. * (2013, 2015, 2017) * (1987–89) * (2007–14) * (2019) * (1994–2009)b * (2016–20) * (2012–14) * (2014) a Between 1994 and 2009, as a part of the . b Dissolved on 10 October 2010. Succeeded by
Curaçao Curaçao ( ; ; pap, Kòrsou, ), officially the Country of Curaçao ( nl, Land Curaçao; pap, Pais Kòrsou), is a Lesser Antilles island country in the southern Caribbean Sea and the Dutch Caribbean region, about north of the Venezuela coa ...
and
Sint Maarten Sint Maarten () is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Caribbean. With a population of 41,486 as of January 2019 on an area of , it encompasses the southern 44% of the divided island of Saint Martin, while the northe ...
.


Historical thresholds

The high-income threshold was originally set in 1989 at US$6,000 in 1987 prices. Thresholds for subsequent years were adjusted taking into account the average
inflation In economics, inflation is an increase in the general price level of goods and services in an economy. When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services; consequently, inflation corresponds to a reduct ...
in the G-5 countries (
the United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
,
the United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
,
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
,
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
, and
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
), and from 2001, that of
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
, the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
, the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
, and the
eurozone The euro area, commonly called eurozone (EZ), is a currency union of 19 member states of the European Union (EU) that have adopted the euro (€) as their primary currency and sole legal tender, and have thus fully implemented EMU pol ...
. Thus, the thresholds remain constant in real terms over time. To ensure no country falls right on the threshold, country data are rounded to the nearest 10 and income thresholds are rounded to the nearest 5. The following table shows the high-income threshold from 1987 onwards. Countries with a
GNI per capita This is a list of countries by gross national income per capita in 2020 at nominal values, according to the Atlas method, an indicator of income developed by the World Bank. Methodology The GNI per capita is the dollar value of a country's ...
(calculated using the Atlas method) above this threshold are classified by the World Bank as "high-income economies."


See also

* High-income OECD country *
Developed country A developed country (or industrialized country, high-income country, more economically developed country (MEDC), advanced country) is a sovereign state that has a high quality of life, developed economy and advanced technological infrastruct ...
*
Developing country A developing country is a sovereign state with a lesser developed industrial base and a lower Human Development Index (HDI) relative to other countries. However, this definition is not universally agreed upon. There is also no clear agreeme ...
* Least developed countries *
Global North and Global South The concept of Global North and Global South (or North–South divide in a global context) is used to describe a grouping of countries along socio-economic and political characteristics. The Global South is a term often used to identify region ...


References

{{Global economic classifications Economic country classifications Politics by region