This is what the one per cent looks like around the world, in one handy chart

How much money do you need to earn to be in the top one per cent of salary earners around the world?

The Australian dollar is seen, Thursday, April 23, 2015. (AAP Image/Dave Hunt) NO ARCHIVING.

Source: AAP

How rich is rich?

Optimists might say it depends on your hard work and dedication. Pessimists might say it depends on your parents.

But the answer boils down to where you were born, as much as it does on what you earn - or are fortunate enough to inherit.

Economist Branko Milanovic, a professor at the City University of New York, has calculated the annual salary you'll need to take home in order to be considered a part of the one per cent, depending on taxes and the relative cost of living.

In Australia, that figure is approximately $204,000 per annum.
Professor Milanovic's findings are part of the Luxembourg Income Study, which examined income data from 48 countries, including Australia, between 1980 and 2013. 

The figures represent an individual's after-tax salary income, not combined household income, and take into account purchasing power parity - that is, the fact that local goods and services attract different prices in different countries and locations.

In short, the actual overall personal income figure for each country might be much higher: one notable caveat to the data is that it excludes capital gains, and disregards selling shares, bonds or real estate or any other source of income the wealthiest individuals may have access to.


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