Purchasing Power
GDP per capita at purchasing-power parity, six major economies, 2000 to today
- Unit
- Thousand international $
- Frequency
- Annual
- Coverage
- 2000–2025
- Evidence Quality
- High
GDP per capita at PPP — the income gap far narrower than in market dollars, with China about a third of the US level.
World Bank WDI · GDP per capita, PPP (current international $) · NY.GDP.PCAP.PP.CD
Line chart, 2000 to 2025. GDP per capita, PPP (thousand international $). 6 series: United States, China, India, Germany, Japan and Brazil. China is highlighted; its latest reading is 29.3 in 2025.
Values in thousands of international $ (PPP-adjusted).
Question
Once you adjust for what money actually buys, how wide is the income gap?
Evidence
Purchasing-power parity restates incomes at a common price level, so a dollar in Delhi and a dollar in New York buy the same basket. Seen this way, the gap between rich and emerging economies is real but far narrower than nominal dollars suggest: China's PPP income has climbed roughly nine-fold to about a third of the US level — against barely a seventh in market dollars. The US still leads near $86k, but convergence is unmistakable once prices are equalized.
Observation
Read level, slope and timing together.
PPP flatters emerging economies relative to nominal dollars because their local prices are lower — the same output buys more, so the gap shrinks.
Assessment
- China is the mover: a near nine-fold PPP rise to roughly a third of the US level, far closer than nominal dollars imply.
- The advanced tier (US, Germany, Japan) still leads, but the emerging climb is steeper.
- India remains lowest yet has multiplied its PPP income several times over since 2000.
Advantage
- And in market dollars?The Income Gap
- How much does each worker produce?Output per Worker
- How big is the economy overall?The World's Economic Center of Gravity