Austria vs United Kingdom

Compare PPP-adjusted average wages, long-term wage trends and consumer price levels using consistent OECD data.

Country A

Country B

Wage data: 2025 · Price data: 2024

Comparison Overview

Austria

Average wage (2025)

$78,301

1-year change: +0.8%
5-year change: +3.3%

Overall price level (2024)

77.1 (United States = 100)

Austria's latest PPP-adjusted average wage is approximately 18.1% higher than United Kingdom's.

United Kingdom

Average wage (2025)

$66,299

1-year change: +0.7%
5-year change: +1.2%

Overall price level (2024)

84.3 (United States = 100)

Austria has the higher latest average wage of the two, by 18.1% on a PPP-adjusted basis. Over five years Austria shows the stronger change (+3.3% against +1.2%). Overall consumer prices are higher in United Kingdom, at 84.3 against 77.1 on the United States = 100 scale — a gap of +7.2 index points. Both wage figures are for 2025 and the price levels for 2024, so the two economies are read at the same point in each series.

Wage History

See how PPP-adjusted average annual wages have changed in both economies.

PPP-adjusted annual wage (USD)

AustriaUnited Kingdom

USD PPP, constant 2025 prices

Wage Key Facts

Metric	Austria	United Kingdom
Latest wage	$78,301	$66,299
Latest year	2025	2025
1-year change	+0.8%	+0.7%
5-year change	+3.3%	+1.2%
10-year change	+5.5%	+3.3%
Historical peak	$78,301	$66,480
Peak year	2025	2019
Change from peak	0.0%	−0.3%

How the Wage Trends Compare

Current Position

Austria records the higher figure: $78,301 against $66,299, a gap of 18.1%. The gap is clear enough to rank the two, though it says nothing about how the figure is distributed within either economy.

Both figures are for 2025, so this is a like-for-like comparison of the same year rather than of two different latest points.

Both use the same basis: PPP-adjusted US dollars at constant prices. That conversion strips out the price level differences between the two economies, which is what makes the two figures comparable at all — neither is a local-currency salary, and neither is what an employer in that country would write on a contract.

Recent Momentum

The latest year moved both by a similar amount: +0.8% in Austria and +0.7% in United Kingdom.

Both moved up in the latest year, which leaves the ordering between them unchanged.

Widening the window to five years, the stronger of the two is Austria: +3.3% against +1.2%.

For both economies the latest year points the same way as the five-year change, so the recent movement reads as continuation rather than a turn.

Long-Term Direction

Across ten years both series are up — +5.5% for Austria and +3.3% for United Kingdom. Over this horizon the two share a direction, and the difference between them is one of pace.

Austria is at its historical peak in the latest year, while United Kingdom sits 0.3% from its high of 2019. One has recovered its previous ground and the other has not.

The gap has been widening rather than closing over the five-year window: the economy that already reported the higher wage is also the one growing faster.

Consumer Price Level Comparison

Compare eight consumer price categories with the United States benchmark of 100.

United States = 100
Missing values are shown as -

All differences are shown in index points. United States = 100.

Category	Austria	United Kingdom	Difference (AUT − GBR)	AUT vs U.S.	GBR vs U.S.
Overall	77.1	84.3	−7.2	−22.9	−15.7
Food	93.8	85.1	+8.7	−6.2	−14.9
Clothing	95.2	78.9	+16.3	−4.8	−21.1
Housing	62.3	95.4	−33.1	−37.7	−4.6
Health	62.7	72.1	−9.4	−37.3	−27.9
Transport	115	111	+4.0	+15.0	+11.0
Recreation	95.8	90.2	+5.6	−4.2	−9.8
Restaurants & Accommodation	90.2	87.2	+3.0	−9.8	−12.8

Overall
Austria77.1
United Kingdom84.3
Difference−7.2
AUT vs U.S.−22.9
GBR vs U.S.−15.7
Food
Austria93.8
United Kingdom85.1
Difference+8.7
AUT vs U.S.−6.2
GBR vs U.S.−14.9
Clothing
Austria95.2
United Kingdom78.9
Difference+16.3
AUT vs U.S.−4.8
GBR vs U.S.−21.1
Housing
Austria62.3
United Kingdom95.4
Difference−33.1
AUT vs U.S.−37.7
GBR vs U.S.−4.6
Health
Austria62.7
United Kingdom72.1
Difference−9.4
AUT vs U.S.−37.3
GBR vs U.S.−27.9
Transport
Austria115
United Kingdom111
Difference+4.0
AUT vs U.S.+15.0
GBR vs U.S.+11.0
Recreation
Austria95.8
United Kingdom90.2
Difference+5.6
AUT vs U.S.−4.2
GBR vs U.S.−9.8
Restaurants & Accommodation
Austria90.2
United Kingdom87.2
Difference+3.0
AUT vs U.S.−9.8
GBR vs U.S.−12.8

Austria and United Kingdom in Detail

Current Wage Position

Austria reports a PPP-adjusted average annual wage of $78,301 for 2025, and United Kingdom $66,299 for 2025. That puts Austria ahead by 18.1%.

Both figures are PPP-adjusted: converted using purchasing power parities rather than market exchange rates, and expressed in constant prices so different years stay comparable.

This matters for reading the gap. A market-rate conversion would move with currency markets and would not reflect what the money buys in each economy. These figures are built to compare purchasing power, not to tell you what a currency transfer would be worth.

Recent Wage Momentum

In the latest reported year Austria changed by +0.8% and United Kingdom by +0.7%. A single year is a narrow window, so it is worth reading alongside the five-year figure rather than on its own.

Over five years, Austria records the larger change at +3.3%, against +1.2% for United Kingdom. That is the difference in how far each series has travelled over the medium term, in real PPP-adjusted terms.

Short-term and five-year movement point the same way for both economies, so neither is currently being pulled against its own medium-term direction.

Long-Term Wage Direction

Across ten years the changes are +5.5% for Austria and +3.3% for United Kingdom. This is the longest horizon the data covers, and it is the one least affected by any single year's movement.

Austria reached its highest recorded value of $78,301 in 2025, and the latest figure sits 0.0% from that high.

United Kingdom peaked at $66,480 in 2019, leaving its latest value 0.3% away from that point.

Both long-term series move the same way, so the difference between these two economies is one of degree over ten years rather than of direction.

Consumer Price Profile

Against the United States benchmark of 100, overall consumption sits at 77.1 in Austria and 84.3 in United Kingdom — −7.2 index points apart.

The categories that separate them most are Housing (−33.1) and Clothing (+16.3).

Restaurants & Accommodation is where they are nearest, at 90.2 and 87.2.

Across the categories with data, Austria is the more expensive of the two more often than not.

How to Interpret the Comparison

These are average wages, not median wages, and not take-home pay. An average is pulled by the whole distribution, so it does not describe a typical individual, occupation, city or employer in either economy.

The wage figures are already PPP-adjusted and in constant prices. They are not local-currency salaries and not amounts convertible at a market exchange rate.

The price levels are relative indices against United States = 100. They describe how price levels compare, not what a household actually spends.

Wages and price levels should not be combined into a verdict on which country is better. This page is for understanding how the two wage trends and price structures differ — nothing further follows from it.