Ireland vs New Zealand

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

Ireland

Average wage (2025)

$70,113

1-year change: +1.8%
5-year change: −2.8%

Overall price level (2024)

92.2 (United States = 100)

Ireland's latest PPP-adjusted average wage is approximately 15.1% higher than New Zealand's.

New Zealand

Average wage (2025)

$60,896

1-year change: +0.7%
5-year change: +2.6%

Overall price level (2024)

81.6 (United States = 100)

Ireland has the higher latest average wage of the two, by 15.1% on a PPP-adjusted basis. Over five years New Zealand shows the stronger change (+2.6% against −2.8%). Overall consumer prices are higher in Ireland, at 92.2 against 81.6 on the United States = 100 scale — a gap of +10.6 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)

IrelandNew Zealand

USD PPP, constant 2025 prices

Wage Key Facts

Metric	Ireland	New Zealand
Latest wage	$70,113	$60,896
Latest year	2025	2025
1-year change	+1.8%	+0.7%
5-year change	−2.8%	+2.6%
10-year change	+4.6%	+15.5%
Historical peak	$72,356	$62,034
Peak year	2021	2021
Change from peak	−3.1%	−1.8%

How the Wage Trends Compare

Current Position

Ireland records the higher figure: $70,113 against $60,896, a gap of 15.1%. 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

Ireland had the stronger latest year (+1.8% against +0.7%).

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 New Zealand: +2.6% against −2.8%.

This is where the two separate: Ireland's latest year runs against its own five-year direction, while New Zealand's does not. Short-term and medium-term signals agree for one and conflict for the other.

Long-Term Direction

Across ten years both series are up — +4.6% for Ireland and +15.5% for New Zealand. Over this horizon the two share a direction, and the difference between them is one of pace.

Neither is at its peak: Ireland is 3.1% from its 2021 high and New Zealand 1.8% from its 2021 high. Both series have retreated from an earlier maximum.

The long view and the recent one point differently here — the lower-paid of the two has been closing ground over the five-year window, so the current gap understates how the two have been moving relative to each other.

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	Ireland	New Zealand	Difference (IRL − NZL)	IRL vs U.S.	NZL vs U.S.
Overall	92.2	81.6	+10.6	−7.8	−18.4
Food	98.1	102	−3.9	−1.9	+2.0
Clothing	88.7	76.2	+12.5	−11.3	−23.8
Housing	104	105	−1.0	+4.0	+5.0
Health	84.4	45.6	+38.8	−15.6	−54.4
Transport	114	92	+22.0	+14.0	−8.0
Recreation	92	91.6	+0.4	−8.0	−8.4
Restaurants & Accommodation	105	103	+2.0	+5.0	+3.0

Overall
Ireland92.2
New Zealand81.6
Difference+10.6
IRL vs U.S.−7.8
NZL vs U.S.−18.4
Food
Ireland98.1
New Zealand102
Difference−3.9
IRL vs U.S.−1.9
NZL vs U.S.+2.0
Clothing
Ireland88.7
New Zealand76.2
Difference+12.5
IRL vs U.S.−11.3
NZL vs U.S.−23.8
Housing
Ireland104
New Zealand105
Difference−1.0
IRL vs U.S.+4.0
NZL vs U.S.+5.0
Health
Ireland84.4
New Zealand45.6
Difference+38.8
IRL vs U.S.−15.6
NZL vs U.S.−54.4
Transport
Ireland114
New Zealand92
Difference+22.0
IRL vs U.S.+14.0
NZL vs U.S.−8.0
Recreation
Ireland92
New Zealand91.6
Difference+0.4
IRL vs U.S.−8.0
NZL vs U.S.−8.4
Restaurants & Accommodation
Ireland105
New Zealand103
Difference+2.0
IRL vs U.S.+5.0
NZL vs U.S.+3.0

Ireland and New Zealand in Detail

Current Wage Position

Ireland reports a PPP-adjusted average annual wage of $70,113 for 2025, and New Zealand $60,896 for 2025. That puts Ireland ahead by 15.1%.

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 Ireland changed by +1.8% and New Zealand 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, New Zealand records the larger change at +2.6%, against −2.8% for Ireland. 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 +4.6% for Ireland and +15.5% for New Zealand. This is the longest horizon the data covers, and it is the one least affected by any single year's movement.

Ireland reached its highest recorded value of $72,356 in 2021, and the latest figure sits 3.1% from that high.

New Zealand peaked at $62,034 in 2021, leaving its latest value 1.8% 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 92.2 in Ireland and 81.6 in New Zealand — +10.6 index points apart.

The categories that separate them most are Health (+38.8) and Transport (+22.0).

Recreation is where they are nearest, at 92 and 91.6.

Across the categories with data, Ireland 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.