Objective The objective of this study was to estimate the population distribution of 10-year cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk among Bangladeshi adults aged 40 years and above, using the 2019 WHO CVD risk prediction charts. Additionally, we compared the cost of CVD pharmacological treatment based on the total CVD risk (thresholds ≥30%/≥20%) and the single risk factor (hypertension) cut-off levels in the Bangladeshi context.Study design Cross-sectional, population-based study.Setting and participants From 2013 to 2014, we collected data from a nationally representative cross-sectional survey of adults aged ≥40 years from urban and rural areas of Bangladesh (n=6189). We estimated CVD risk using the 2019 WHO CVD risk prediction charts and categorised as very low (