New Zealand vs Spain

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)

New Zealand's latest PPP-adjusted average wage is approximately 5.4% higher than Spain's.

Spain

Average wage (2025)

$57,779

1-year change: +1.2%
5-year change: +4.3%

Overall price level (2024)

59.4 (United States = 100)

New Zealand has the higher latest average wage of the two, by 5.4% on a PPP-adjusted basis. Over five years Spain shows the stronger change (+4.3% against +2.6%). Overall consumer prices are higher in New Zealand, at 81.6 against 59.4 on the United States = 100 scale — a gap of +22.2 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)

New ZealandSpain

USD PPP, constant 2025 prices

Wage Key Facts

Metric	New Zealand	Spain
Latest wage	$60,896	$57,779
Latest year	2025	2025
1-year change	+0.7%	+1.2%
5-year change	+2.6%	+4.3%
10-year change	+15.5%	+2.6%
Historical peak	$62,034	$58,456
Peak year	2021	2009
Change from peak	−1.8%	−1.2%

How the Wage Trends Compare

Current Position

New Zealand records the higher figure: $60,896 against $57,779, a gap of 5.4%. 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

Spain had the stronger latest year (+1.2% 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 Spain: +4.3% 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 +2.6% for Spain. Over this horizon the two share a direction, and the difference between them is one of pace.

Neither is at its peak: New Zealand is 1.8% from its 2021 high and Spain 1.2% from its 2009 high. Both series have retreated from an earlier maximum.

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	Spain	Difference (NZL − ESP)	NZL vs U.S.	ESP vs U.S.
Overall	81.6	59.4	+22.2	−18.4	−40.6
Food	102	82	+20.0	+2.0	−18.0
Clothing	76.2	80.6	−4.4	−23.8	−19.4
Housing	105	54.5	+50.5	+5.0	−45.5
Health	45.6	42.7	+2.9	−54.4	−57.3
Transport	92	92.1	−0.1	−8.0	−7.9
Recreation	91.6	73.6	+18.0	−8.4	−26.4
Restaurants & Accommodation	103	69.2	+33.8	+3.0	−30.8

Overall
New Zealand81.6
Spain59.4
Difference+22.2
NZL vs U.S.−18.4
ESP vs U.S.−40.6
Food
New Zealand102
Spain82
Difference+20.0
NZL vs U.S.+2.0
ESP vs U.S.−18.0
Clothing
New Zealand76.2
Spain80.6
Difference−4.4
NZL vs U.S.−23.8
ESP vs U.S.−19.4
Housing
New Zealand105
Spain54.5
Difference+50.5
NZL vs U.S.+5.0
ESP vs U.S.−45.5
Health
New Zealand45.6
Spain42.7
Difference+2.9
NZL vs U.S.−54.4
ESP vs U.S.−57.3
Transport
New Zealand92
Spain92.1
Difference−0.1
NZL vs U.S.−8.0
ESP vs U.S.−7.9
Recreation
New Zealand91.6
Spain73.6
Difference+18.0
NZL vs U.S.−8.4
ESP vs U.S.−26.4
Restaurants & Accommodation
New Zealand103
Spain69.2
Difference+33.8
NZL vs U.S.+3.0
ESP vs U.S.−30.8

New Zealand and Spain in Detail

Current Wage Position

New Zealand reports a PPP-adjusted average annual wage of $60,896 for 2025, and Spain $57,779 for 2025. That puts New Zealand ahead by 5.4%.

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 Spain by +1.2%. 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, Spain records the larger change at +4.3%, 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 +2.6% for Spain. 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.

Spain peaked at $58,456 in 2009, leaving its latest value 1.2% 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 59.4 in Spain — +22.2 index points apart.

The categories that separate them most are Housing (+50.5) and Restaurants & Accommodation (+33.8).

Transport is where they are nearest, at 92 and 92.1.

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.