Thx @wid.world's team and fellows!

Over the past 25 years, 200+ researchers worldwide have contributed to the World Inequality Database. While these data remain imperfect and provisional, the global picture of long-term changes in income and wealth distributions is now well established.
(9/9)

(8/9)
Our interpretation of these long-run findings is that the rise of inclusive, social-democratic institutions has been central to achieving both greater equality and higher prosperity.

More findings coming in the #GlobalJusticeProject, June 2026.
inequalitylab.world/en/global-ju...

7/9
If we look at wealth inequality, we see that it has always been extremely high, with the bottom 50% holding only a tiny share of total wealth. Despite this, there has been a significant long-run movement toward greater wealth equality in rich countries, particularly in Western and Nordic Europe.

(6/9)
Our study compares Europe and the United States and challenges the widespread belief that rising inequality in the US since the 1980s has fueled innovation and productivity, especially in high-tech sectors. In fact, we find the opposite.

(5/9)
If we take Nordic Europe (1990)as a benchmark for equality, and aim even higher, we can envision a world where the gap between top and bottom incomes falls to 3–5× by 2100, versus 50-160 today.

(4/9)
Other inequality indicators tell the same story.

A century ago, the richest 0.1% earned 150–250× more than low-income earners in Europe. Today, that gap is down to 8–15× in Sweden, Denmark, Norway & the Netherlands — and 15–20× in Germany, France & Britain.

A striking drop in inequality.

3/9 All rich countries—especially in Western and Nordic Europe—have undergone an enormous compression of income scales during the 20th century, while becoming significantly more productive.In Nordic Europe, the bottom posttax 50% share rose from little more than 15% in 1910 to almost 40% in 1980-90.

(2/9)
Our new study uses wid.world data (1800–2025)and new global series on productivity and human capital to revisit how the relationship between equality and development has evolved across time and space – a central question for economists, policymakers, and citizens alike.

This study has many other findings but also limitations and we welcome constructive comments to continue building the #GlobalJustice Project inequalitylab.world/en/global-ju...

3️⃣ Over the long run, public-private splits varied widely. 19th-century Britain had huge negative public wealth (250–300% of GDP). The US also showed negative wealth in the late 20th/early 21st century, mostly foreign. By contrast, China today has substantial positive public wealth.

2️⃣ Private wealth is at record highs in all advanced regions.
Public wealth, by contrast, has declined to turn negative in North America, fall near zero in Europe, while East Asia has stabilized with 25-30% of national wealth in public hands.

1️⃣ Wealth has risen much faster than income since 1980.

Global wealth-income ratios have risen dramatically from about 390% of world net domestic product in 1980 to over 625% in 2025. This surge reflects both higher savings and strong capital gains, especially in housing and equity markets.

Our new study shows that the Kaldor’s stability claim does not hold at the global level.

Large historical and regional variations exist, that are shaped less by technology or pure economics than by institutions, ideology, and power relations.

Below are 3 key findings from the study👇