Syria: cost of living

How many people in Syria do not have enough food?

40.8% of Syria's population was undernourished in 2024, according to World Bank data from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

Undernourishment is the FAO's estimate of the share of people whose usual food intake does not give them enough energy for an active and healthy life, based on national food supply and how it is distributed across households. It is a three-year average centred on the year shown. The World Food Programme reports on food security and food prices in Syria on its country page.

Official sources: World Bank: Prevalence of undernourishment, Syria · WFP: Syrian Arab Republic

What is the poverty rate in Syria?

18% of Syria's population lived below the World Bank's international extreme poverty line in 2022, according to World Bank data. The Gini index of income inequality was 26.4 in 2022, according to the Gini series.

The extreme poverty line is a fixed amount per person per day in purchasing power parity terms, used to compare countries; national poverty lines set higher thresholds. The latest national poverty rate in the World Bank database is for 2006. No current official poverty figures were found, because the Planning and Statistics Commission's site could not be reached on 15 October 2026.

Official sources: World Bank: Poverty headcount at international poverty line, Syria · World Bank: Gini index, Syria

How fast are prices rising in Syria?

The latest figure from the IMF, for 2019, is 13.4%. Its high point since 2005 was 2016, at 47.7%; its low point was 2018, at 0.9%. It is 2nd highest of 21 in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, where the median is 1.1%. World rank, highest first: 13th of 178.

What is household spending per person in Syria?

The latest figure from the World Bank, for 2022, is $242. The peak was $2,364 in 2011 and the low $234 in 2020. Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan median: $3,097; Syria is 18th highest of 18. Worldwide: 156th of 157.

What share of people in Syria live in extreme poverty?

The World Bank puts the share of people living on less than $3.00 a day in Syria at 18.0% in 2022. In 2009 the figure was 0.0%. It is 1st highest of 5 in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, where the median is 2.8%. Of 72 countries with 2022 data, 6th highest.

What is Syria's Gini coefficient?

26.4: that is the Gini index in Syria for 2022, according to the World Bank. In 2009 the figure was 40.4. It is 5th highest of 5 in Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, where the median is 34.8. Worldwide: 65th of 72.