{"version":1,"asset_type":"statistical_series","data_type":"time_series","slug":"ie-average-salary","url":"https://apiardata.com/statistics/ie-average-salary","html_url":"https://apiardata.com/statistics/ie-average-salary/","title":"Average Annual Salary in Ireland (2025)","description":"Average annual wages in Ireland from 1990 to 2025, expressed in constant 2025 USD at purchasing power parity. At $70,113 in 2025, Ireland sits approximately 8.2% above the OECD average of $64,809, having recovered to within 3.1% of its 2021 peak of $72,356. Source: OECD Average Annual Wages dataset.","domain":"labor","category":"Labour & Employment","keywords":["Labour & Employment","Wages & Earnings","Ireland","Macroeconomics","Purchasing Power Parity"],"publisher":"OECD — Centre for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs","frequency":"Annual","geography":"Ireland","temporal_coverage":"1990/2025","unit":"Avg. Annual Wage (USD PPP)","last_updated":"2026-07-25","last_updated_text":"25 July 2026","data_as_of":"2025","variable_measured":"Mean gross annual wage of full-time full-year employees in Ireland","measurement_technique":"National accounts and labour force surveys, converted to constant 2025 USD at purchasing power parity","license":"https://apiardata.com/data-license","is_accessible_for_free":true,"sources":[{"name":"OECD Average Annual Wages — SDMX REST API endpoint","url":"https://sdmx.oecd.org/public/rest/data/OECD.ELS.SAE,DSD_EARNINGS@AV_AN_WAGE,1.0?format=csv"},{"name":"OECD — Average Wages indicator page","url":"https://www.oecd.org/en/data/indicators/average-wages.html"}],"meta":[{"label":"Frequency","value":"Annual"},{"label":"Coverage","value":"1990–2025"},{"label":"Observations","value":"36"},{"label":"Geography","value":"Ireland"},{"label":"Base period","value":"Constant 2025 USD at PPP"},{"label":"Last updated","value":"25 July 2026"}],"kpis":[{"label":"Ireland Avg. Wage (2025)","value":"$70,113","unit":"Constant 2025 USD, PPP","trend":{"direction":"up","value":"+1.8% vs. 2024"}},{"label":"vs. OECD Average","value":"+8.2%","unit":"Above OECD avg. of $64,809","trend":{"direction":"up","value":"Ireland above OECD average"}},{"label":"10-Year Real Growth","value":"+4.6%","unit":"2015 to 2025","trend":{"direction":"up","value":"From $67,039 in 2015"}},{"label":"Post-Peak Gap","value":"-3.1%","unit":"From 2021 peak of $72,356","trend":{"direction":"down","value":"Peaked in 2021, partially recovered by 2025"}}],"series":[{"key":"value","label":"Ireland Average Annual Wage (USD PPP, constant 2025)"}],"observation_count":36,"observations":[{"period":"1990","value":33757},{"period":"1991","value":35152},{"period":"1992","value":36617},{"period":"1993","value":38429},{"period":"1994","value":38680},{"period":"1995","value":39367},{"period":"1996","value":40715},{"period":"1997","value":43611},{"period":"1998","value":45961},{"period":"1999","value":46983},{"period":"2000","value":48117},{"period":"2001","value":50087},{"period":"2002","value":50679},{"period":"2003","value":52437},{"period":"2004","value":54383},{"period":"2005","value":56623},{"period":"2006","value":57079},{"period":"2007","value":58706},{"period":"2008","value":61595},{"period":"2009","value":67629},{"period":"2010","value":68116},{"period":"2011","value":70482},{"period":"2012","value":69585},{"period":"2013","value":67836},{"period":"2014","value":67083},{"period":"2015","value":67039},{"period":"2016","value":67797},{"period":"2017","value":68703},{"period":"2018","value":69781},{"period":"2019","value":71228},{"period":"2020","value":72134},{"period":"2021","value":72356},{"period":"2022","value":69285},{"period":"2023","value":68814},{"period":"2024","value":68849},{"period":"2025","value":70113}],"table":{"columns":[{"key":"year","label":"Year"},{"key":"value","label":"Avg. Annual Wage (USD PPP)"},{"key":"yoyChange","label":"YoY Change"}],"rows":[{"year":"1990","value":"33757","yoyChange":"n/a"},{"year":"1991","value":"35152","yoyChange":"+4.1%"},{"year":"1992","value":"36617","yoyChange":"+4.2%"},{"year":"1993","value":"38429","yoyChange":"+4.9%"},{"year":"1994","value":"38680","yoyChange":"+0.7%"},{"year":"1995","value":"39367","yoyChange":"+1.8%"},{"year":"1996","value":"40715","yoyChange":"+3.4%"},{"year":"1997","value":"43611","yoyChange":"+7.1%"},{"year":"1998","value":"45961","yoyChange":"+5.4%"},{"year":"1999","value":"46983","yoyChange":"+2.2%"},{"year":"2000","value":"48117","yoyChange":"+2.4%"},{"year":"2001","value":"50087","yoyChange":"+4.1%"},{"year":"2002","value":"50679","yoyChange":"+1.2%"},{"year":"2003","value":"52437","yoyChange":"+3.5%"},{"year":"2004","value":"54383","yoyChange":"+3.7%"},{"year":"2005","value":"56623","yoyChange":"+4.1%"},{"year":"2006","value":"57079","yoyChange":"+0.8%"},{"year":"2007","value":"58706","yoyChange":"+2.9%"},{"year":"2008","value":"61595","yoyChange":"+4.9%"},{"year":"2009","value":"67629","yoyChange":"+9.8%"},{"year":"2010","value":"68116","yoyChange":"+0.7%"},{"year":"2011","value":"70482","yoyChange":"+3.5%"},{"year":"2012","value":"69585","yoyChange":"-1.3%"},{"year":"2013","value":"67836","yoyChange":"-2.5%"},{"year":"2014","value":"67083","yoyChange":"-1.1%"},{"year":"2015","value":"67039","yoyChange":"-0.1%"},{"year":"2016","value":"67797","yoyChange":"+1.1%"},{"year":"2017","value":"68703","yoyChange":"+1.3%"},{"year":"2018","value":"69781","yoyChange":"+1.6%"},{"year":"2019","value":"71228","yoyChange":"+2.1%"},{"year":"2020","value":"72134","yoyChange":"+1.3%"},{"year":"2021","value":"72356","yoyChange":"+0.3%"},{"year":"2022","value":"69285","yoyChange":"-4.2%"},{"year":"2023","value":"68814","yoyChange":"-0.7%"},{"year":"2024","value":"68849","yoyChange":"+0.1%"},{"year":"2025","value":"70113","yoyChange":"+1.8%"}]},"qa":[{"question":"What is the average annual salary in Ireland?","answer":"In 2025, the average annual salary in Ireland was $70,113 in constant 2025 USD, adjusted for purchasing power parity. The figure covers mean gross wages for a full-time, full-year equivalent employee across the total economy, compiled by the OECD from national accounts and labour force surveys (series AV_AN_WAGE, measure WG, unit USD_PPP). The 2025 reading is up 1.8% from $68,849 in 2024, and sits 3.1% below the 2021 peak of $72,356. Note that PPP conversion for Ireland is sensitive to the GDP distortions caused by multinational profit-shifting; GNI-based measures typically give a lower but more representative picture of domestic living standards."},{"question":"How does Ireland's average wage compare to the OECD average?","answer":"Ireland's 2025 average of $70,113 is approximately 8.2% above the OECD-wide average of $64,809 — a gap of $5,304. Irish wages have sat above the OECD average for most of the past 15 years, a premium that has widened further as Ireland's FDI-heavy economy (pharmaceuticals, technology, financial services) has continued attracting high-wage multinational employment. Ireland now sits below the Netherlands ($80,136), Belgium ($80,009), and Germany ($76,285), but above the United Kingdom ($66,299) and most of the rest of the OECD."},{"question":"Why did Irish wages appear to spike during the 2009 financial crisis?","answer":"Ireland's average annual wage in constant 2025 USD PPP terms jumped from $61,595 in 2008 to $67,629 in 2009 — a 9.8% rise in the middle of a severe financial crisis. Two mechanisms explain most of this: a composition effect, as construction and retail workers, who were typically lower-paid, lost jobs at a far higher rate than professional and public sector workers, pushing the remaining workforce average upward; and a fall in Irish consumer prices in 2009 as the property bubble deflated, which improved the PPP conversion ratio for a wage figure that was closer to flat in nominal terms. Unlike a purely transient statistical artefact, however, the elevated level persisted and even grew further in 2010–2011, suggesting continued high-wage multinational hiring was also a genuine structural factor behind the shift, not just a temporary composition effect."},{"question":"How have Irish wages trended over the past decade?","answer":"In constant 2025 PPP USD terms, Ireland's average wage has grown modestly over the past decade: from $67,039 in 2015 to $70,113 in 2025, a real gain of 4.6%. Within that decade, wages rose steadily from 2016 through a 2021 peak of $72,356, before the 2022–2023 inflation shock pulled the level down to $68,814 by 2023. Wages have since stabilised and begun recovering, reaching $68,849 in 2024 and $70,113 in 2025, though the series remains 3.1% below its 2021 high."},{"question":"What drove Ireland's dramatic wage growth during the Celtic Tiger era?","answer":"Between 1990 and 2008, Ireland's average wage in constant 2025 PPP terms grew from $33,757 to $61,595 — an 82.5% real gain over 18 years. The primary drivers were a wave of US multinational investment in pharmaceuticals, financial services, and information technology, drawn by Ireland's 12.5% corporate tax rate and access to EU markets. Employment grew rapidly in high-skilled, high-wage sectors. Wage growth was also supported by social partnership agreements (Programme for Competitiveness and Work, Sustaining Progress) that coordinated pay increases across sectors from 1987 through 2008. The fastest growth years in the dataset are 1997 (+7.1%) and 1993 (+4.9%), corresponding to the acceleration of the FDI-driven boom and the early Celtic Tiger phase respectively."}]}