United Kingdom
#5102.4 (+2.4%)
20102024
UK vs G7 Economy
How real UK wages have fared against the rest of the G7 since 2010. Seven small charts on a shared scale, rebased to 2010 = 100, so a straight horizontal line means purchasing power has stood still.
Headline
The UK ranks 5th of 7 G7 countries on real-wage growth since 2010, with real pay up 2.4% over 14 years.
Data: OECD Average Wages (constant prices, USD PPP), latest year 2024. Updated 2026-05-17.
Real wages since 2010 (2010 = 100)
Above 100 means purchasing power has grown; below 100 means it has shrunk.
United Kingdom G7 peers
Canada
#1109.6 (+9.6%)
20102024
France
#4104.6 (+4.6%)
20102024
Germany
#3109.3 (+9.3%)
20102024
Italy
#698.2 (-1.8%)
20102024
Japan
#797.5 (-2.5%)
20102024
United States
#2109.5 (+9.5%)
20102024
How this is calculated
Data comes from the OECD Average Wages dataset (constant 2023 prices, expressed in US dollars at purchasing power parity). Each country's series is rebased so that 2010 = 100, then displayed on a shared Y-axis. The constant-prices + PPP method is the standard way to compare real wages across countries; it strips out both each country's inflation and the level differences between currencies. OECD updates this dataset once a year, usually in Q2 or Q3. This page is refreshed manually when the new release lands.
Frequently asked questions
Why use real wages instead of GDP per capita?
GDP per capita captures all economic activity, including profits, rents, and government spending. Real wages capture what actually ends up in pay packets after inflation. For a personal-finance audience the wage figure is closer to "how is the average household doing", which is the question most readers actually want answered.
Why is the UK so far behind on this metric?
There is no single cause - the consensus list includes the 2008 financial crisis, Brexit-related uncertainty and slower productivity growth in the post-2010 period, energy-cost shocks from 2021-2023, and slower business investment than peers. The chart shows the symptom; the causes are an active debate among economists.
Aren't US wages flattered by very high earners?
OECD's "Average wages" series uses the mean wage, which is pulled up by the right tail. The US has more income inequality than the UK, so its mean overstates the typical worker's gain. Median real wages would tighten the gap somewhat, but the qualitative ranking still holds.
How often does this update?
OECD publishes the prior calendar year's figure once a year, typically in late spring or early summer. The page is refreshed manually when the new release lands.
Why constant 2023 USD PPP and not just real GBP for the UK?
To compare across countries we need to control for both each country's inflation and the differences in price levels between currencies (a Big Mac costs different amounts in London and Tokyo). The constant-prices + PPP method handles both. For the UK-only view of real wages there's our wage stagnation tracker, which uses native ONS data in £.