Poverty and living standards in Atacama, Chile: official figures
5.7% of occupied homes in Atacama were overcrowded in the 2024 census (5,717 homes), and 0.5% critically so (Chile: 5.7% and 0.6%); 5th highest of Chile's 16 regions.
Do homes in Atacama have running water?
87.1% of homes in Atacama got their water from the public network in 2024 (Chile: 92.3%), 5th lowest of Chile's 16 regions; 4,742 homes (4.8%) had no water distribution system at all.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadisticas (INE) · saved copyDo homes in Atacama have sanitation and electricity?
95.6% of homes in Atacama were connected to a sewer or septic tank in 2024 (Chile: 97.0%), and 807 homes (0.8%) had no electricity.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadisticas (INE) · saved copyHow many homes in Atacama have no internet?
6.7% of households in Atacama had no internet access in the 2024 census (Chile: 6.8%); 7th lowest of Chile's 16 regions.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadisticas (INE) · saved copyHow many households in Atacama cook with firewood?
0.7% of households in Atacama cooked with firewood in 2024 (Chile: 5.1%), 5th lowest of Chile's 16 regions.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadisticas (INE) · saved copyHow many people rent their home in Atacama?
64.9% of occupied homes in Atacama were owned (paid off or being paid for) and 19.4% were rented in 2024 (Chile: 61.1% and 26.2%); the rented share is 4th lowest of Chile's 16 regions.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadisticas (INE) · saved copyHow many homes are there in Atacama?
The census counted 139,427 private dwellings in Atacama in 2024, up 15.6% on the 120,645 of 2017, while the population grew 5.1%.
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadisticas (INE) · saved copyWhat is the poverty rate in Atacama?
18.6% of people in Atacama lived in income poverty in 2024, according to the CASEN 2024 household survey (Chile: 17.3%). That is 8th lowest of 16 regions.
Source: Ministerio de Desarrollo Social y Familia (Observatorio Social) · saved copyIs poverty in Atacama going down?
The income poverty rate in Atacama was 21.2% in 2022 and 22.2% in 2017, so the 2024 figure is down 2.6 percentage points on 2022 and down 3.6 percentage points on 2017 (Chile: 22.5% in 2017, 20.5% in 2022), using the 2024 poverty methodology for every year.
Source: Ministerio de Desarrollo Social y Familia (Observatorio Social) · saved copyHow many people in Atacama live in extreme poverty?
7.4% of residents of Atacama were in extreme poverty in 2024, 8th highest of 16 regions (Chile: 6.9%); the rate was 9.9% in 2022.
Source: Ministerio de Desarrollo Social y Familia (Observatorio Social) · saved copyHow many people are poor in Atacama?
CASEN 2024 estimates that 59,494 people in Atacama lived below the income poverty line, out of 320,250 people in private households; that is 1.7% of the 3,478,364 people in poverty nationwide.
Source: Ministerio de Desarrollo Social y Familia (Observatorio Social) · saved copyWhat is the multidimensional poverty rate in Atacama?
20.2% of people in Atacama were in multidimensional poverty in 2024 (deprived in education, health, work and social security, housing or social networks), down 2.3 percentage points from 22.5% in 2022. Nationally the rate was 17.7%; Atacama is 2nd highest of 16 regions.
Source: Ministerio de Desarrollo Social y Familia (Observatorio Social) · saved copyWhat are the main causes of poverty in Atacama?
The most common deprivations among households in Atacama in 2024 were informal work (28.0% of households; Chile: 28.8%), insecurity in the area where they live (25.0%) and poor-quality housing (23.9%), out of the 20 indicators in the multidimensional poverty measure.
Source: Ministerio de Desarrollo Social y Familia (Observatorio Social) · saved copyHow many people in Atacama have low incomes?
22.4% of people in Atacama lived in households whose monetary income per person was below half the median in 2024 (Chile: 20.8%), 8th lowest of 16 regions; the share was 23.5% in 2022.
Source: Ministerio de Desarrollo Social y Familia (Observatorio Social) · saved copyHow many households in Atacama are affected by insecurity?
25.0% of households in Atacama were deprived on the security indicator of the multidimensional poverty measure in 2024, 7th highest of 16 regions (Chile: 28.2%).
Source: Ministerio de Desarrollo Social y Familia (Observatorio Social) · saved copyHow Atacama compares with other regions
Overcrowded homes (Census 2024) (2024)
Atacama ranks 5 of 15, highest first. All 16 regions; Nuble has no page on this site.
| Rank | Region | Overcrowded homes (Census 2024) |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | Arica y Parinacota | 8.0% |
| 3 | Antofagasta | 7.6% |
| 4 | Santiago Metropolitan Region | 6.5% |
| 5 | Atacama | 5.7% |
| 6 | Maule | 5.4% |
| 7 | Araucania | 5.4% |
| 8 | Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins | 5.1% |
Households without internet (Census 2024) (2024)
Atacama ranks 9 of 15, highest first. All 16 regions; Nuble has no page on this site.
| Rank | Region | Households without internet (Census 2024) |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins | 8.8% |
| 7 | Biobio | 8.1% |
| 8 | Coquimbo | 7.9% |
| 9 | Atacama | 6.7% |
| 10 | Valparaiso | 6.0% |
| 11 | Arica y Parinacota | 5.6% |
| 12 | Tarapaca | 4.7% |
Homes on the public water network (Census 2024) (2024)
Atacama ranks 12 of 15, highest first. All 16 regions; Nuble has no page on this site.
| Rank | Region | Homes on the public water network (Census 2024) |
|---|---|---|
| 9 | Biobio | 89.9% |
| 10 | Tarapaca | 88.4% |
| 11 | Aysen | 87.4% |
| 12 | Atacama | 87.1% |
| 13 | Los Lagos | 81.1% |
| 14 | Araucania | 80.3% |
| 15 | Los Rios | 80.1% |
Income poverty rate (CASEN 2024) (2024)
Atacama ranks 8 of 15, highest first. All 16 regions; Nuble has no page on this site.
| Rank | Region | Income poverty rate (CASEN 2024) |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | Tarapaca | 20.8% |
| 6 | Coquimbo | 20.7% |
| 7 | Biobio | 19.3% |
| 8 | Atacama | 18.6% |
| 9 | Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins | 17.9% |
| 10 | Valparaiso | 17.8% |
| 11 | Los Lagos | 16.5% |
Extreme poverty rate (CASEN 2024) (2024)
Atacama ranks 7 of 15, highest first. All 16 regions; Nuble has no page on this site.
| Rank | Region | Extreme poverty rate (CASEN 2024) |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | Coquimbo | 9.1% |
| 5 | Tarapaca | 9.0% |
| 6 | Los Rios | 8.5% |
| 7 | Atacama | 7.4% |
| 8 | Biobio | 7.2% |
| 9 | Antofagasta | 7.1% |
| 10 | Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins | 7.0% |
Multidimensional poverty rate, population (CASEN 2024) (2024)
Atacama ranks 2 of 15, highest first. All 16 regions; Nuble has no page on this site.
| Rank | Region | Multidimensional poverty rate, population (CASEN 2024) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tarapaca | 22.2% |
| 2 | Atacama | 20.2% |
| 3 | Santiago Metropolitan Region | 19.7% |
| 4 | Arica y Parinacota | 18.7% |
| 5 | Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins | 17.9% |
| 6 | Antofagasta | 17.3% |
| 7 | Coquimbo | 17.0% |
People below half the median monetary income per person (CASEN 2024) (2024)
Atacama ranks 8 of 15, highest first. All 16 regions; Nuble has no page on this site.
| Rank | Region | People below half the median monetary income per person (CASEN 2024) |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | Arica y Parinacota | 25.6% |
| 6 | Biobio | 23.7% |
| 7 | Tarapaca | 22.7% |
| 8 | Atacama | 22.4% |
| 9 | Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins | 21.2% |
| 10 | Valparaiso | 20.8% |
| 11 | Los Lagos | 20.7% |
More on Atacama: overview · economy and jobs · health · education and schools · government budget · Chile
Sources
- Instituto Nacional de Estadisticas (INE): Censo de Poblacion y Vivienda 2024: Sintesis de resultados (Tables 1-4, 8, 13, 18, 21, 24-28, 30-31, 33-37 and 39 by region), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 fdf5a5b0acc0…)
- Ministerio de Desarrollo Social y Familia (Observatorio Social): Encuesta Casen 2024: tablas de resultados, situacion de ingresos de los hogares, tables 3 (average household income by type and region, 2006-2024), 9 (composition of monetary income by region) and 21 (people below 50% of the median per-person income by region), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 7e90810f6eb9…)
- Ministerio de Desarrollo Social y Familia (Observatorio Social): Encuesta Casen 2024: tablas de resultados, pobreza multidimensional (metodologia 2024), tables 25 (households deprived in each indicator by region) and 33 (incidence in the population by region, 2022 and 2024), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 fdb44781fc4e…)
- Ministerio de Desarrollo Social y Familia (Observatorio Social): Encuesta Casen 2024: tablas de resultados, pobreza por ingresos (metodologia 2024), tables 4 (national) and 6 (poverty and extreme poverty by region, 2009-2024), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 12202786414f…)
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