Luxembourg - the country with the highest GDP per capita in 2024

Despite the fact that countries such as the US, China, India or Germany often dominate the economic rankings, the United States is the only economy in the Top 10 in terms of GDP per capita, according to a visualcapitalist.com analysis based on data from the International Monetary Fund ( IMF).

The analysis compares the countries and territories with the highest GDP per capita in 2024 compared to 2014, with figures expressed in purchasing power parity (PPP)-adjusted dollars.

• GDP vs. GDP per capita

Gross Domestic Product (GDP) measures the total economic output of a country or region, while GDP per capita divides that output by the population, indicating the average economic output per person.

When the population factor is taken into account, lesser-known countries or territories with a smaller population but significant wealth appear in the first positions.

According to the cited source, in 2014, Luxembourg ranked third in the world in terms of GDP per capita, and now it ranks first, with $144,000 per person. Luxembourg has a population of 669,000. This small, landlocked Western European country is known for its strong financial sector, which accounts for 25% of its GDP, and is considered a top tax haven.

Macau ranks second in the 2024 ranking, with a GDP per capita of $134,000, and is also among the top tax havens in the world. Macau has a population of 704,000.

In this Top 10, Ireland follows, also with 134,000 dollars, but with a much larger population, of 5,200,000 inhabitants; Singapore ($134,000, population 5,900,000); Qatar ($112,000, population 2,700,000); United Arab Emirates ($97,000, population 9,500,000); Switzerland ($92,000, population 8,900,000); San Marino ($87,000, population 33,000); USA ($85,000, population 334,000,000); Norway ($83,000, population 5,500,000).

It should be noted that only two countries or territories among the top 14 in the 2024 list have populations exceeding 10 million people (USA and Taiwan). Taiwan ranks 14th, with a GDP/capita of $77,000 and a population of 23,900,000. Before it, in 13th place, we find Brunei, with 78,000 dollars/capita, with a population of 452,000 inhabitants; in 12th place - Denmark, with 78,000 dollars, for a population of 5,900,000; and in 11th place - Guyana, with 80,000 dollars, for a population of 813,000.

According to the cited source, Ireland, Guyana, Denmark and Taiwan have joined the list since 2014, while Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Andorra and Hong Kong have left the ranking.