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Average Annual Wages by Country, 1990 to 2025

Luxembourg's average annual wage was $98,530 in 2025, ahead of Switzerland ($92,285) and the US ($86,977), in inflation-adjusted PPP dollars.

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What the data shows

  • In 2025, Luxembourg ranks #1 with $98,530, ahead of Switzerland ($92,285) and United States ($86,977).
  • Back in 1990, Netherlands was #1 with $72,715.
  • The top spot changed hands 3 times: Luxembourg in 1998, Switzerland in 2001 and Luxembourg in 2004.
  • Biggest climber: United States, from #6 in 1990 to #3 in 2025.
  • Luxembourg grew 1.5× between 1990 and 2025.

About this chart

These are real average wages in US dollars adjusted for purchasing power (PPP) and expressed in 2025 prices, so they are not current-dollar salaries. Luxembourg is highest at $98,530 in 2025, followed by Switzerland ($92,285) and the United States ($86,977). The data covers OECD member and partner countries only, so it is not a global ranking, and 2025 values are preliminary OECD estimates.

The US average rose from $56,694 in 1990 to $86,977 in 2025, with a visible step from $80,318 in 2019 to $85,171 in 2020. Germany went from $56,518 to $76,285 over the same period. Others in 2025 include Australia ($72,018), Ireland ($70,113) and Canada ($67,901), against an OECD average of about $64,803. The figures are mean wages of full-time equivalent employees, not medians.

The data

Source: OECD, Average annual wages (DSD_EARNINGS@AV_AN_WAGE), mean wages of full-time equivalent employees, USD PPP, constant 2025 prices, via OECD SDMX API. Retrieved November 4, 2026. OECD member and partner countries only (not a global ranking); the 12 highest in 2025 are shown. Values are inflation-adjusted to 2025 prices and converted with purchasing-power parities, so they are not current-dollar salaries. 2025 values are preliminary OECD estimates. Average (mean) wage, not median.

Average Annual Wages by Country, Real, USD PPP at 2025 prices, 1990-2025, 1990–2025
Date🇱🇺 Luxembourg🇨🇭 Switzerland🇺🇸 United States🇳🇱 Netherlands🇧🇪 Belgium🇦🇹 Austria🇩🇰 Denmark🇩🇪 Germany🇳🇴 Norway🇦🇺 Australia🇮🇪 Ireland🇨🇦 Canada
1990$64,782$68,065$56,694$72,715$59,719$59,943$54,442$56,518$38,400$51,711$33,757$49,252
1991$66,613$69,329$57,079$73,285$62,342$61,817$54,734$56,518$38,820$51,489$35,152$49,438
1992$68,383$69,939$58,402$73,671$64,342$63,062$56,677$59,843$39,315$52,541$36,617$50,160
1993$69,708$70,435$58,073$74,912$65,694$63,576$57,308$60,277$39,688$53,031$38,429$50,051
1994$70,836$71,437$57,851$75,455$66,968$64,217$55,309$60,431$40,494$53,388$38,680$49,482
1995$70,788$72,225$58,179$73,989$66,741$64,734$56,493$61,682$40,875$53,191$39,367$49,372
1996$72,658$70,918$59,030$73,767$67,597$64,398$57,505$62,377$42,101$54,728$40,715$49,810
1997$73,551$72,251$60,504$74,074$68,434$63,850$58,427$62,135$43,033$56,437$43,611$51,335
1998$73,688$72,764$62,996$71,837$68,515$65,952$59,450$62,829$44,600$57,246$45,961$52,196
1999$75,540$73,566$64,656$73,244$72,302$67,510$60,138$63,666$46,051$58,544$46,983$52,621
2000$77,473$74,867$66,815$75,116$71,615$67,705$60,085$64,046$46,455$58,709$48,117$54,216
2001$78,039$78,870$67,328$76,236$71,873$67,477$60,460$64,480$47,724$59,285$50,087$53,993
2002$80,213$80,489$67,870$76,264$73,731$68,480$61,804$64,713$49,422$59,824$50,679$53,558
2003$79,400$80,198$68,600$76,759$74,153$68,666$63,316$64,930$50,018$60,673$52,437$53,574
2004$80,555$79,045$69,870$77,890$73,795$69,976$64,731$64,917$51,607$62,581$54,383$54,732
2005$80,785$80,328$69,935$77,999$73,042$70,331$65,741$64,992$53,044$63,308$56,623$56,313
2006$81,286$80,735$70,982$77,804$73,563$71,305$66,819$65,127$55,068$63,734$57,079$58,028
2007$83,687$81,533$72,326$78,846$73,437$71,624$67,596$64,872$57,447$65,498$58,706$59,577
2008$83,927$82,500$72,147$79,097$73,748$72,877$68,395$65,150$58,679$65,966$61,595$60,621
2009$86,084$84,009$72,870$81,826$74,647$74,089$69,530$65,320$59,491$65,331$67,629$61,019
2010$86,178$83,217$73,515$81,996$74,389$73,745$70,244$65,869$60,442$67,657$68,116$61,127
2011$86,650$84,073$73,617$81,266$75,347$72,948$69,952$67,017$62,649$69,898$70,482$61,947
2012$85,777$85,461$74,243$81,739$75,911$73,363$69,916$67,819$64,472$70,379$69,585$62,788
2013$86,827$86,764$73,913$82,108$76,728$73,431$70,416$68,440$65,910$70,148$67,836$63,428
2014$88,254$86,625$75,075$81,670$77,097$73,658$71,846$69,546$66,488$70,851$67,083$64,162
2015$88,737$87,262$76,999$82,711$76,731$74,198$73,026$71,244$67,127$70,450$67,039$64,667
2016$88,495$87,139$77,129$83,103$77,106$75,002$73,865$72,398$66,181$70,802$67,797$63,421
2017$89,590$86,652$77,971$81,828$76,482$74,839$74,360$73,177$66,343$70,597$68,703$64,443
2018$90,138$86,527$78,893$81,126$76,862$74,900$75,154$74,156$67,051$70,842$69,781$65,596
2019$90,216$88,211$80,318$80,831$77,530$75,547$75,610$75,376$68,746$71,532$71,228$65,970
2020$90,997$86,151$85,171$81,772$75,471$75,824$76,857$74,807$69,332$73,067$72,134$68,086
2021$95,323$89,575$86,696$80,401$78,226$77,270$77,359$74,657$71,701$73,870$72,356$68,434
2022$93,762$90,813$84,215$76,315$76,346$75,303$74,178$73,054$71,310$72,263$69,285$67,334
2023$96,365$90,810$83,866$76,028$77,456$74,673$75,175$72,953$71,376$71,459$68,814$67,036
2024$97,462$92,161$85,546$78,683$78,614$77,703$77,883$74,854$72,294$71,238$68,849$67,768
2025$98,530$92,285$86,977$80,136$80,009$78,301$78,090$76,285$73,462$72,018$70,113$67,901

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Frequently asked questions

Which country has the highest average salary?

Luxembourg, at $98,530 in 2025, measured in US dollars at purchasing power parity and 2025 prices. Switzerland was second at $92,285. The OECD data covers member and partner countries, not every country.

What is the average salary in the United States?

The average annual wage in the United States was $86,977 in 2025, in PPP dollars at 2025 prices, the third highest in the data. It is a mean wage for full-time equivalent employees, not a median.

Where does this data come from?

OECD, Average annual wages (DSD_EARNINGS@AV_AN_WAGE), mean wages of full-time equivalent employees, USD PPP, constant 2025 prices, via OECD SDMX API. Retrieved November 4, 2026. OECD member and partner countries only (not a global ranking); the 12 highest in 2025 are shown. Values are inflation-adjusted to 2025 prices and converted with purchasing-power parities, so they are not current-dollar salaries. 2025 values are preliminary OECD estimates. Average (mean) wage, not median. You can download the full table as a CSV from this page.

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