Hence, plutocracy is a form of oligarchy, but plutocracy distinguishes the particular ruling minority by their great income or wealth. On the other hand, an oligarchy form of government cannot be equated to a dictatorship form of government. The main difference between oligarchy and plutocracy is that oligarchy is the rule by a privileged minority whereas plutocracy is the rule by a wealthy minority. Autocracy can at times be equated to the military dictatorship form of government. It is interesting to note that the leader in the autocratic form of government has all the power including legislative and executive power. Sometimes the word ‘autocracy’ refers to the meaning of ‘one who rules by himself’. On the other hand, the word ‘autocracy’ is derived from the Greek word ‘auto’ meaning ‘self’. When the power rests in the hands of a small elite group of people or influential economic entities then it is called by the name of corporate oligarchy. This is because of the fact that the oligarchy power of government rests in the hands of only a few people as apposed to autocracy where the power rests in the hands of a single person. Since it is a government of a few, the deciding factor here is what constitutes this few. The word ‘oligarchy’ is derived from the Greek word ‘oligos’ meaning ‘a few’. On the contrary, an oligarchy has a much wider scope. Aristocracy Autocracy (Dictatorship) Band Society Oligarchy Ethnocracy Geniocracy Gerontocracy Kritarchy Netocracy Oligarchy (Standard) Plutocracy. The exact status of the group that controls the government marks the whole difference between oligarchy and plutocracy.

It is interesting to note that the people who have the power to control are normally distinguished by wealth, military positions, family ties or corporate positions. editing to change 'oligarchy' to 'plutocracy.' 'The main difference between Oligarchy and Plutocracy is that the Oligarchy is a power structure and Plutocracy is a society or system ruled and dominated by the small minority of the top wealthiest citizens. On the other hand, oligarchy is a form of government in which the power rests with a small group of people. The government definitely has a say in all the business arrangements. As a matter of fact, in autocracy, economy is either a command or traditional system. The economy in the case of autocracy differs from that of oligarchy. Answer (1 of 8): You have quite a few answers here but after reading them over I found none of them completely satisfying so here’s mine: Fascism is a militant nationalist movement that secures power through demagoguery(not corporatism). It is akin to the dictatorship form of government. Oligarchs can simply be a privileged group. City-states from Ancient Greece were oligarchies. The autocracy form of government is characterized by the presence of a single leader who rules the people. Oligarchy is a form of government where power rests with a small elite segment of society distinguished by royalty, wealth, family, military influence or occult spiritual hegemony.

Autocracy and Oligarchy are two forms of government that show difference between them when it comes to the methods of rule and characteristics.

Oligarchy vs. plutocracy