What Are Deciles? Differences Between Deciles 1-10, How to Check, and Their Link to Subsidised Fuel

The term ‘decile’ has recently returned to public attention after the government discussed plans to restrict purchases of subsidised fuel, particularly Pertalite, based on household welfare levels.

Under the scheme being studied by the government, households in deciles 9 and 10 could potentially lose access to Pertalite subsidies. These groups would be directed to use non-subsidised fuels such as Pertamax.

This plan has brought the term decile, previously more commonly known in discussions of social assistance, back into the spotlight. So what exactly is a decile, what are the differences between deciles 1 and 10, and how can one check it?

A decile is a grouping of the population or families based on relative welfare levels. Society is divided into 10 groups, from decile 1 to decile 10.

The smaller the decile number, the lower the relative welfare position. Conversely, the higher the decile number, the higher the welfare position compared to other groups in the database.

A decile is not the name of a social assistance programme, nor is it a final decision that automatically determines whether someone is entitled to receive assistance.

Simply put, if there are 100 families ranked by welfare level from lowest to highest, approximately 10 families at the bottom would be in decile 1. The next 10 families would be in decile 2, and so on, until the 10 families at the top are in decile 10.

However, in practice, decile determination is carried out using socio-economic data and statistical methods. Therefore, two families in the same decile do not necessarily have truly identical living conditions.

This socio-economic data is also dynamic, so a family’s decile position can change after data updates are carried out.

The main difference between each decile lies in its relative welfare position. Decile 1 is at the bottom, while decile 10 is at the top.

A simple illustration is as follows:

• Decile 1: group with the lowest relative welfare level.

• Decile 2: group with low welfare level.

• Decile 3: vulnerable group.

• Decile 4: lower-middle vulnerable group.

• Decile 5: lower-middle group.

• Decile 6: middle group.

• Decile 7: upper-middle group.

• Decile 8: group with relatively high welfare level.

• Decile 9: group with relatively very high welfare level.

• Decile 10: group with the highest relative welfare level.