In Mexico, the richest families live on 14 times more income than the poorest: INEGI

MEXICO CITY (apro).- The National Survey of Household Income and Expenditure (ENIGH 2024) by the National Institute of Geography and Statistics (INEGI) revealed that the richest households in Mexico have an average income of 78,698.3 pesos per month, while the poorest families receive, on average, 5,598.3 pesos per month.

This means that higher-income families live with 14 times more resources than the least fortunate. Although the gap is very large, these data represent a reduction in inequality compared to previous records.

In 2016, the average income of households in the 10th decile, the richest, was 20 times higher than that of households in the 1st decile, the poorest. The 10th decile represents the 10% of the population with the highest income, and the 1st decile represents the 10% with the lowest income.

In 2024, ENIGH estimated a total of 38,830,230 households in Mexico, representing a 3.4% increase compared to the 2022 edition. The average number of members per household was 3.4 people.

Figures show that the gap between the richest and the poorest has narrowed over the last decade due to an improvement in the income of the poorest families. The exception was 2020, when the pandemic caused a widespread decline in average household income.

According to the 2024 ENIGH (National Institute of Statistics and Geography), in urban areas, the average daily income per household earner in the first decile was 105 pesos, and in the tenth, 1,276 pesos. In comparison, the 2022 ENIGH (National Institute of Statistics and Geography) reported 90 and 1,177 pesos, respectively.

In rural areas, the average daily income per household earner was 55 pesos in the first decile and 714 pesos in the tenth. In 2022, it was 50 and 727 pesos, respectively.

Although the income gap between the richest and poorest families has narrowed, significant differences in income composition remain between deciles.

By 2024, it was observed that while the wealthiest families' income comes from work for 63% of their families, this figure only represents 44% of the total for the poorest.

Direct transfers (which include pensions, scholarships, government support, and remittances) represent only 16 percent of the average income of the richest families, while for the poorest, this figure rises to 36 percent.

Furthermore, households in the 10th decile spend 11% of their total income on asset rentals or investments. For households in the 1st decile, this amount represents just under 1% of their income.

Despite the persistence of inequality in Mexico, the general trend shows an improvement in wealth distribution and an increase in the average income of Mexicans.