United States vs Norway

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

United States

Average 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 18.4% higher than Norway's.

Norway

Average wage (2025)

$73,462

1-year change: +1.6%
5-year change: +6.0%

Overall price level (2024)

90 (United States = 100)

United States has the higher latest average wage of the two, by 18.4% on a PPP-adjusted basis. Over five years Norway shows the stronger change (+6.0% against +2.1%). Overall consumer prices are higher in United States, at 100 against 90 on the United States = 100 scale — a gap of +10.0 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)

United StatesNorway

USD PPP, constant 2025 prices

Wage Key Facts

Metric	United States	Norway
Latest wage	$86,977	$73,462
Latest year	2025	2025
1-year change	+1.7%	+1.6%
5-year change	+2.1%	+6.0%
10-year change	+13.0%	+9.4%
Historical peak	$86,977	$73,462
Peak year	2025	2025
Change from peak	0.0%	0.0%

How the Wage Trends Compare

Current Position

United States records the higher figure: $86,977 against $73,462, a gap of 18.4%. 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

The latest year moved both by a similar amount: +1.7% in United States and +1.6% in Norway.

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 Norway: +6.0% against +2.1%.

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 — +13.0% for United States and +9.4% for Norway. Over this horizon the two share a direction, and the difference between them is one of pace.

Both are at their historical peaks in the latest year, so neither series is currently below a previous high.

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	United States	Norway	Difference (USA − NOR)	NOR vs U.S.
Overall	100	90	+10.0	−10.0
Food	100	113	−13.0	+13.0
Clothing	100	105	−5.0	+5.0
Housing	100	60.4	+39.6	−39.6
Health	100	80.6	+19.4	−19.4
Transport	100	126	−26.0	+26.0
Recreation	100	119	−19.0	+19.0
Restaurants & Accommodation	100	114	−14.0	+14.0

Overall
United States100
Norway90
Difference+10.0
USA vs U.S.0.0
NOR vs U.S.−10.0
Food
United States100
Norway113
Difference−13.0
USA vs U.S.0.0
NOR vs U.S.+13.0
Clothing
United States100
Norway105
Difference−5.0
USA vs U.S.0.0
NOR vs U.S.+5.0
Housing
United States100
Norway60.4
Difference+39.6
USA vs U.S.0.0
NOR vs U.S.−39.6
Health
United States100
Norway80.6
Difference+19.4
USA vs U.S.0.0
NOR vs U.S.−19.4
Transport
United States100
Norway126
Difference−26.0
USA vs U.S.0.0
NOR vs U.S.+26.0
Recreation
United States100
Norway119
Difference−19.0
USA vs U.S.0.0
NOR vs U.S.+19.0
Restaurants & Accommodation
United States100
Norway114
Difference−14.0
USA vs U.S.0.0
NOR vs U.S.+14.0

United States and Norway in Detail

Current Wage Position

United States reports a PPP-adjusted average annual wage of $86,977 for 2025, and Norway $73,462 for 2025. That puts United States ahead by 18.4%.

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 United States changed by +1.7% and Norway by +1.6%. 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, Norway records the larger change at +6.0%, against +2.1% for United States. 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 +9.4% for Norway. 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.

Norway peaked at $73,462 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 100 in United States and 90 in Norway — +10.0 index points apart.

The categories that separate them most are Housing (+39.6) and Transport (−26.0).

Clothing is where they are nearest, at 100 and 105.

Across the categories with data, Norway 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.