United States vs Canada
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
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's latest PPP-adjusted average wage is approximately 28.1% higher than Canada's.
CanadaAverage wage (2025)
$67,901
- 1-year change
- +0.2%
- 5-year change
- −0.3%
Overall price level (2024)
86 (United States = 100)
United States has the higher latest average wage of the two, by 28.1% on a PPP-adjusted basis. Over five years United States shows the stronger change (+2.1% against −0.3%). Overall consumer prices are higher in United States, at 100 against 86 on the United States = 100 scale — a gap of +14.0 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 | United States | Canada |
|---|---|---|
| Latest wage | $86,977 | $67,901 |
| Latest year | 2025 | 2025 |
| 1-year change | +1.7% | +0.2% |
| 5-year change | +2.1% | −0.3% |
| 10-year change | +13.0% | +5.0% |
| Historical peak | $86,977 | $68,434 |
| Peak year | 2025 | 2021 |
| Change from peak | 0.0% | −0.8% |
How the Wage Trends Compare
Current Position
United States records the higher figure: $86,977 against $67,901, a gap of 28.1%. A difference of that size is one of the wider ones in this dataset, and it holds after the PPP adjustment has already removed price level differences between the two.
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
United States had the stronger latest year (+1.7% against +0.2%).
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 −0.3%.
This is where the two separate: Canada'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
Across ten years both series are up — +13.0% for United States and +5.0% for Canada. Over this horizon the two share a direction, and the difference between them is one of pace.
United States is at its historical peak in the latest year, while Canada sits 0.8% from its high of 2021. 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 | United States | Canada | Difference (USA − CAN) | USA vs U.S. | CAN vs U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 100 | 86 | +14.0 | 0.0 | −14.0 |
| Food | 100 | 108 | −8.0 | 0.0 | +8.0 |
| Clothing | 100 | 118 | −18.0 | 0.0 | +18.0 |
| Housing | 100 | 83.1 | +16.9 | 0.0 | −16.9 |
| Health | 100 | 62.2 | +37.8 | 0.0 | −37.8 |
| Transport | 100 | 103 | −3.0 | 0.0 | +3.0 |
| Recreation | 100 | 92 | +8.0 | 0.0 | −8.0 |
| Restaurants & Accommodation | 100 | 97.6 | +2.4 | 0.0 | −2.4 |
Overall
United States100Canada86Difference+14.0USA vs U.S.0.0CAN vs U.S.−14.0Food
United States100Canada108Difference−8.0USA vs U.S.0.0CAN vs U.S.+8.0Clothing
United States100Canada118Difference−18.0USA vs U.S.0.0CAN vs U.S.+18.0Housing
United States100Canada83.1Difference+16.9USA vs U.S.0.0CAN vs U.S.−16.9Health
United States100Canada62.2Difference+37.8USA vs U.S.0.0CAN vs U.S.−37.8Transport
United States100Canada103Difference−3.0USA vs U.S.0.0CAN vs U.S.+3.0Recreation
United States100Canada92Difference+8.0USA vs U.S.0.0CAN vs U.S.−8.0Restaurants & Accommodation
United States100Canada97.6Difference+2.4USA vs U.S.0.0CAN vs U.S.−2.4
United States and Canada in Detail
Current Wage Position
United States reports a PPP-adjusted average annual wage of $86,977 for 2025, and Canada $67,901 for 2025. That puts United States ahead by 28.1%.
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 United States changed by +1.7% and Canada by +0.2%. 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, United States records the larger change at +2.1%, against −0.3% for Canada. 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 +13.0% for United States and +5.0% for Canada. This is the longest horizon the data covers, and it is the one least affected by any single year's movement.
United States reached its highest recorded value of $86,977 in 2025, and the latest figure sits 0.0% from that high.
Canada peaked at $68,434 in 2021, leaving its latest value 0.8% 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 100 in United States and 86 in Canada — +14.0 index points apart.
The categories that separate them most are Health (+37.8) and Clothing (−18.0).
Restaurants & Accommodation is where they are nearest, at 100 and 97.6.
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