The Purple Pound
An estimated 1.3 billion people—or 16% of the global population (roughly 1 in 6)—experience a significant disability.
This represents a multi-trillion-dollar market (often referred to as the Purple Pound)—a large, often untapped ecosystem of purchasing power.
Age
Approximately 2 in 5 people aged over 65 have a significant disability.
- Some economies have an ageing population, such as North America, Western Europe and Japan
- This means that accessible products are even more important if you want to reach this huge portion of the population.
Gender
Globally and nationally, women consistently report a higher prevalence of disability than men.
Factors contributing to this include higher overall life expectancy (women live longer, entering the advanced age brackets where disability rates peak) and higher rates of chronic musculoskeletal or autoimmune conditions.
Developing vs Developed Countries
Approximately 80% of the 1.3 billion people with significant disabilities live in low- and middle-income (developing) countries.
While the vast absolute volume is in developing regions, formal reporting and diagnosis rates fluctuate based on infrastructure. For instance, WHO data notes that higher-income countries often report higher formal statistical prevalence (around 21.2%) due to better diagnostic tracking of neurological and musculoskeletal conditions, whereas lower-income regions face severe gaps in data collection, social protection, and accessible infrastructure.
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