Netherlands vs United States
Compare PPP-adjusted average wages, long-term wage trends and consumer price levels using consistent OECD data.
Wage data: 2025 · Price data: 2024
Comparison Overview
NetherlandsAverage wage (2025)
$80,136
- 1-year change
- +1.9%
- 5-year change
- −2.0%
Overall price level (2024)
78.4 (United States = 100)
United States's latest PPP-adjusted average wage is approximately 8.5% higher than Netherlands's.
United StatesAverage wage (2025)
$86,977
- 1-year change
- +1.7%
- 5-year change
- +2.1%
Overall price level (2024)
100 (United States = 100)
United States has the higher latest average wage of the two, by 8.5% on a PPP-adjusted basis. Over five years United States shows the stronger change (+2.1% against −2.0%). Overall consumer prices are higher in United States, at 100 against 78.4 on the United States = 100 scale — a gap of +21.6 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)
USD PPP, constant 2025 prices
Wage Key Facts
| Metric | Netherlands | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Latest wage | $80,136 | $86,977 |
| Latest year | 2025 | 2025 |
| 1-year change | +1.9% | +1.7% |
| 5-year change | −2.0% | +2.1% |
| 10-year change | −3.1% | +13.0% |
| Historical peak | $83,103 | $86,977 |
| Peak year | 2016 | 2025 |
| Change from peak | −3.6% | 0.0% |
How the Wage Trends Compare
Current Position
United States records the higher figure: $86,977 against $80,136, a gap of 8.5%. 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: +1.9% in Netherlands and +1.7% in United States.
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 United States: +2.1% against −2.0%.
This is where the two separate: Netherlands's latest year runs against its own five-year direction, while United States's does not. Short-term and medium-term signals agree for one and conflict for the other.
Long-Term Direction
The ten-year direction splits between them: −3.1% for Netherlands against +13.0% for United States. One long-term series is rising while the other is not, which is a more durable difference than any single year's movement.
United States is at its historical peak in the latest year, while Netherlands sits 3.6% from its high of 2016. One has recovered its previous ground and the other has not.
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 | Netherlands | United States | Difference (NLD − USA) | NLD vs U.S. | USA vs U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 78.4 | 100 | −21.6 | −21.6 | 0.0 |
| Food | 84.4 | 100 | −15.6 | −15.6 | 0.0 |
| Clothing | 82.7 | 100 | −17.3 | −17.3 | 0.0 |
| Housing | 73.1 | 100 | −26.9 | −26.9 | 0.0 |
| Health | 60.8 | 100 | −39.2 | −39.2 | 0.0 |
| Transport | 119 | 100 | +19.0 | +19.0 | 0.0 |
| Recreation | 90 | 100 | −10.0 | −10.0 | 0.0 |
| Restaurants & Accommodation | 99.2 | 100 | −0.8 | −0.8 | 0.0 |
Overall
Netherlands78.4United States100Difference−21.6NLD vs U.S.−21.6USA vs U.S.0.0Food
Netherlands84.4United States100Difference−15.6NLD vs U.S.−15.6USA vs U.S.0.0Clothing
Netherlands82.7United States100Difference−17.3NLD vs U.S.−17.3USA vs U.S.0.0Housing
Netherlands73.1United States100Difference−26.9NLD vs U.S.−26.9USA vs U.S.0.0Health
Netherlands60.8United States100Difference−39.2NLD vs U.S.−39.2USA vs U.S.0.0Transport
Netherlands119United States100Difference+19.0NLD vs U.S.+19.0USA vs U.S.0.0Recreation
Netherlands90United States100Difference−10.0NLD vs U.S.−10.0USA vs U.S.0.0Restaurants & Accommodation
Netherlands99.2United States100Difference−0.8NLD vs U.S.−0.8USA vs U.S.0.0
Netherlands and United States in Detail
Current Wage Position
Netherlands reports a PPP-adjusted average annual wage of $80,136 for 2025, and United States $86,977 for 2025. That puts United States ahead by 8.5%.
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 Netherlands changed by +1.9% and United States by +1.7%. 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, United States records the larger change at +2.1%, against −2.0% for Netherlands. 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 −3.1% for Netherlands and +13.0% for United States. This is the longest horizon the data covers, and it is the one least affected by any single year's movement.
Netherlands reached its highest recorded value of $83,103 in 2016, and the latest figure sits 3.6% from that high.
United States peaked at $86,977 in 2025, leaving its latest value 0.0% away from that point.
Over the long run the two point in opposite directions. That is the clearest structural difference between these series, and it matters more for reading them than any single year's change does.
Consumer Price Profile
Against the United States benchmark of 100, overall consumption sits at 78.4 in Netherlands and 100 in United States — −21.6 index points apart.
The categories that separate them most are Health (−39.2) and Housing (−26.9).
Restaurants & Accommodation is where they are nearest, at 99.2 and 100.
Across the categories with data, United States 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.
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Latest data check
May 15, 2025