Wealth and income percentiles in Kenya
How much net worth or income does it take to be in the top 10% or top 1% in Kenya? Model estimates for 31.1 million adults aged 20+, reference level 2025.
Net worth thresholds in Kenya
Net worth is private assets (property, deposits, securities, business ownership) minus debt, per adult. Thresholds show the minimum net worth needed to belong to each group.
| Group of adults | Threshold, USD |
|---|---|
| Median (top 50%) | USD 3,980 |
| Top 10% | USD 24,400 |
| Top 5% | USD 40,000 |
| Top 1% | USD 104,000 |
| Top 0.1% | USD 406,000 |
| Average (mean) | USD 11,300 |
Income thresholds in Kenya
Income is a harmonized pre-tax economic income per adult used for cross-country comparison. It is broader than wages and includes capital income, pensions and some imputed components.
| Group of adults | Threshold, USD |
|---|---|
| Median (top 50%) | USD 2,040 |
| Top 10% | USD 7,350 |
| Top 5% | USD 12,900 |
| Top 1% | USD 31,300 |
| Top 0.1% | USD 78,600 |
| Average (mean) | USD 3,780 |
Kenya in a global context
Kenya has 0.56% of the world’s adults. About 0.62% of them are in the world’s top 10% by net worth and 0.02% are in the global top 1%. By income, the shares are 0.51% and 0.01%.
The median adult in Kenya is in the global top 67.7% by net worth and the global top 65.8% by income. Kenya is home to about 0.01% of the world’s top 1% by net worth.
Data quality and sources
The curves for Kenya are built from the World Inequality Database’s 127-percentile estimates (2026 update), which combine tax records, surveys and national accounts; where a country has few direct sources, WID fills gaps from similar countries. The score shows how much direct national data stands behind the estimates, from 1 (strong direct national sources) to 5 (mainly imputed). The notes describe the national sources we have reviewed.
| Measure | Score | National data reviewed |
|---|---|---|
| Net worth | 5 | No national net-worth distribution is available; WID’s wealth estimates for this country are largely imputed. |
| Income | 5 | No comparable national income distribution is available; WID’s estimates for this country rely partly on imputation from similar countries. |
- World Inequality Lab TN 2026/04: Global Inequality Update
- World Inequality Report 2026: Country Sheets
- World Inequality Lab TN 2026/04: Global Inequality Update
- World Inequality Report 2026: Country Sheets
Amounts are converted at fixed exchange rates of 2026-10-09; they do not adjust for purchasing power. Thresholds in the extreme top are modelled and uncertain.
Frequently asked questions
How much net worth do you need to be in the top 1% in Kenya?
About USD 104,000 in net worth (assets minus debt) per adult, according to the WealthPercentile model for 2025. The top 10% starts at about USD 24,400.
What is the median income in Kenya?
The median adult in Kenya has a broad pre-tax economic income of about USD 2,040 a year. This measure is broader than wages: it includes capital income and some imputed components, so it is higher than a typical payslip.
How many adults in Kenya are in the global top 1%?
About 0.02% of adults in Kenya are in the world’s top 1% by net worth, and 0.01% by income.
How reliable are these numbers?
They are model estimates. The data-quality score for Kenya is 5/5 for net worth and 5/5 for income, where 1 means strong direct source coverage and 5 means mainly modelled.