42 Percent of Well-Off Russians Live in Moscow, a City with Less than Ten Percent of that Country’s Populaiton, ‘To Be Precise’ Says

Paul Goble

            Staunton, Feb. 19 – Forty-two percent of Russians earning at least 276,000 rubles (3,000 US dollars) a month, the amount statisticians say forms the top one percent of earners in their country, live in Moscow, even though the city forms only about nine percent of the total Russian population, the To Be Precise portal says.

            At the same time, the investigative outlet continues, half of all the residents of the Russian Federation currently earn 45,000 rubles (600 US dollars) a month, a fifth of what those in the highest one percent who are concentrated in the Russian capital (tochno.st/materials/42-naibolee-obespecennyx-rossiian-moskvici).

            Moscow had always had more wealthy people than other regions, but over the last decade, its position first fell after the imposition of sanctions, declines in the price of oil and the devaluation of the ruble, but by 2024, the city had recovered its position – and for the first time, its share of Russia’s wealthiest exceeded the level that they had formed in 2013.

            However, To Be Precise says, if one considers the geographic distribution of Russians in the top ten percent of incomes, those making more than 119,000 rubles (1500 US dollars) a month, Moscow’s share of that group is only 23 percent, an indication that Russians in this category are more widely distributed.