New Zealand vs South Korea

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

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)

South Korea's latest PPP-adjusted average wage is approximately 0.6% higher than New Zealand's.

South Korea

Average wage (2025)

$61,259

1-year change: +0.6%
5-year change: +3.1%

Overall price level (2024)

60.1 (United States = 100)

South Korea has the higher latest average wage of the two, by 0.6% on a PPP-adjusted basis. Over five years South Korea shows the stronger change (+3.1% against +2.6%). Overall consumer prices are higher in New Zealand, at 81.6 against 60.1 on the United States = 100 scale — a gap of +21.5 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)

New ZealandSouth Korea

USD PPP, constant 2025 prices

Wage Key Facts

Metric	New Zealand	South Korea
Latest wage	$60,896	$61,259
Latest year	2025	2025
1-year change	+0.7%	+0.6%
5-year change	+2.6%	+3.1%
10-year change	+15.5%	+18.3%
Historical peak	$62,034	$61,259
Peak year	2021	2025
Change from peak	−1.8%	0.0%

How the Wage Trends Compare

Current Position

New Zealand and South Korea sit close together. New Zealand reports $60,896 for 2025 and South Korea $61,259 for 2025 — a difference of 0.6%, small enough that the two read as comparable rather than ranked.

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: +0.7% in New Zealand and +0.6% in South Korea.

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 South Korea: +3.1% against +2.6%.

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 — +15.5% for New Zealand and +18.3% for South Korea. Over this horizon the two share a direction, and the difference between them is one of pace.

South Korea is at its historical peak in the latest year, while New Zealand sits 1.8% from its high of 2021. 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	New Zealand	South Korea	Difference (NZL − KOR)	NZL vs U.S.	KOR vs U.S.
Overall	81.6	60.1	+21.5	−18.4	−39.9
Food	102	136	−34.0	+2.0	+36.0
Clothing	76.2	103	−26.8	−23.8	+3.0
Housing	105	38	+67.0	+5.0	−62.0
Health	45.6	37	+8.6	−54.4	−63.0
Transport	92	73.8	+18.2	−8.0	−26.2
Recreation	91.6	71.6	+20.0	−8.4	−28.4
Restaurants & Accommodation	103	82.4	+20.6	+3.0	−17.6

Overall
New Zealand81.6
South Korea60.1
Difference+21.5
NZL vs U.S.−18.4
KOR vs U.S.−39.9
Food
New Zealand102
South Korea136
Difference−34.0
NZL vs U.S.+2.0
KOR vs U.S.+36.0
Clothing
New Zealand76.2
South Korea103
Difference−26.8
NZL vs U.S.−23.8
KOR vs U.S.+3.0
Housing
New Zealand105
South Korea38
Difference+67.0
NZL vs U.S.+5.0
KOR vs U.S.−62.0
Health
New Zealand45.6
South Korea37
Difference+8.6
NZL vs U.S.−54.4
KOR vs U.S.−63.0
Transport
New Zealand92
South Korea73.8
Difference+18.2
NZL vs U.S.−8.0
KOR vs U.S.−26.2
Recreation
New Zealand91.6
South Korea71.6
Difference+20.0
NZL vs U.S.−8.4
KOR vs U.S.−28.4
Restaurants & Accommodation
New Zealand103
South Korea82.4
Difference+20.6
NZL vs U.S.+3.0
KOR vs U.S.−17.6

New Zealand and South Korea in Detail

Current Wage Position

New Zealand reports a PPP-adjusted average annual wage of $60,896 for 2025, and South Korea $61,259 for 2025. That puts South Korea ahead by 0.6%.

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 New Zealand changed by +0.7% and South Korea by +0.6%. 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, South Korea records the larger change at +3.1%, against +2.6% for New Zealand. 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 +15.5% for New Zealand and +18.3% for South Korea. This is the longest horizon the data covers, and it is the one least affected by any single year's movement.

New Zealand reached its highest recorded value of $62,034 in 2021, and the latest figure sits 1.8% from that high.

South Korea peaked at $61,259 in 2025, leaving its latest value 0.0% 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 81.6 in New Zealand and 60.1 in South Korea — +21.5 index points apart.

The categories that separate them most are Housing (+67.0) and Food (−34.0).

Health is where they are nearest, at 45.6 and 37.

Across the categories with data, New Zealand 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.