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Global Pay Divide: The World’s Highest and Lowest Minimum Wages in 2025

Founder News Team 0
CEOWORLD magazine


The Global Divide in Minimum Wages: In 2025, the gulf between the world’s highest and lowest minimum wages is staggering. A full-time worker in Luxembourg earns an annual minimum wage of €32,445 (INTL$37,198), while workers in The Gambia scrape by on the equivalent of just INTL$778. The contrast underscores not only income inequality but also differences in purchasing power, labor protections, and economic development.

CEOWORLD magazine analyzed the statutory minimum wages of over 100 countries, converting them into both local currency equivalents and international dollars (INTL$) to provide a consistent purchasing power comparison.

Why International Dollars Matter for CEOs and Policybuildrs

Nominal wages alone do not inform the whole story. A salary of $5,000 may stretch further in Nairobi than in New York. To address this, CEOWORLD adjusted wages utilizing the World Bank’s Purchasing Power Parity (PPP).

This measure answers a vital question: “What is the true purchaseing power of wages in each counattempt?” For global CEOs, investors, and wealth managers, PPP-adjusted salaries reveal the real cost of labor and consumer purchasing capacity across markets.

Countries with the Highest and Lowest Minimum Wages in 2025

Rank Counattempt Continent Annual Salary at Minimum Wage (Local Currency) Annual Salary at Minimum Wage (International Dollars) Annual Salary at Minimum Wage (GBP)
1 Luxembourg Europe 32,445 EUR $37,198 £27,619
2 Iceland Europe 4,416,000 ISK $29,697 £26,177
3 Netherlands Europe 29,952 EUR $38,810 £25,497
4 United Kingdom Europe 25,397 GBP $36,589 £25,397
5 Australia Rest of Asia and Oceania 51,896 AUD $37,895 £24,000
6 Ireland Europe 28,080 EUR $36,055 £23,903
7 Denmark Europe 204,000 DKK $31,855 £23,279
8 Germany Europe 26,666 EUR $36,369 £22,699
9 New Zealand Rest of Asia and Oceania 48,880 NZD $32,845 £21,709
10 Belgium Europe 25,343 EUR $34,397 £21,573
11 France Europe 24,710 EUR $34,481 £21,035
12 Austria Europe 23,796 EUR $31,530 £20,256
13 Canada North America 36,920 CAD $32,322 £19,951
14 San Marino Europe 20,741 EUR $30,566 £17,655
15 Israel Middle East & Central Asia 74,972 ILS $20,376 £15,556
16 Andorra Europe 17,368 EUR $28,776 £14,785
17 Spain Europe 16,576 EUR $28,087 £14,110
18 Antigua and Barbuda North America 18,720 ECD $10,231 £13,826
19 Slovenia Europe 15,333 EUR $26,711 £13,052
20 South Korea Rest of Asia and Oceania 20,862,400 KRW $24,788 £11,335
21 Japan Rest of Asia and Oceania 2,192,320 JPY $22,910 £11,251
22 Poland Europe 55,992 PLN $27,508 £11,178
23 United States of America North America 15,080 USD $15,080 £11,138
24 Lithuania Europe 12,456 EUR $24,234 £10,603
25 Cyprus Europe 12,000 EUR $20,310 £10,215
26 Bahamas North America 13,520 BSD $13,838 £10,026
27 Croatia Europe 11,640 EUR $26,250 £9,909
28 Malta Europe 11,533 EUR $19,577 £9,819
29 Saudi Arabia Middle East & Central Asia 48,000 SAR $24,370 £9,447
30 Estonia Europe 10,632 EUR $17,659 £9,050
31 Greece Europe 10,560 EUR $19,794 £8,989
32 Portugal Europe 10,440 EUR $19,262 £8,887
33 Czech Republic Europe 249,600 CZK $18,661 £8,572
34 Slovakia Europe 9,792 EUR $18,561 £8,335
35 Romania Europe 48,600 RON $26,427 £8,226
36 Bosnia and Herzegovina Europe 18,744 BAM $26,923 £8,129
37 Latvia Europe 8,880 EUR $17,575 £7,559
38 Oman Middle East & Central Asia 3,900 OMR $20,013 £7,492
39 Hungary Europe 3,489,600 HUF $18,991 £7,413
40 Bahrain Middle East & Central Asia 3,600 BHD $20,807 £7,046
41 Palau Rest of Asia and Oceania 8,840 USD $9,748 £6,529
42 Barbados North America 17,680 BBD $7,924 £6,496
43 Marshall Islands Rest of Asia and Oceania 8,320 USD $9,384 £6,145
44 Montenegro Europe 7,200 EUR $19,729 £6,129
45 Saint Kitts and Nevis North America 22,360 XCD $12,382 £6,110
46 Georgia Europe 22,296 GEL $25,679 £6,003
47 Bulgaria Europe 12,924 BGN $16,871 £5,605
48 Uruguay South America 283,248 UYU $11,018 £5,070
49 Chile South America 6,348,000 CLP $13,809 £5,016
50 Turkey Middle East & Central Asia 265,248 TRY $23,320 £4,988
51 Panama North America 6,406 USD $13,646 £4,750
52 Trinidad and Tobago North America 42,640 TTD $11,105 £4,660
53 Costa Rica North America 3,181,607 CRC $9,921 £4,656
54 Serbia Europe 640,640 RSD $13,834 £4,651
55 Seychelles Africa 85,176 SCR $11,115 £4,365
56 Dominica North America 15,600 DOP $11,360 £4,263
57 Guatemala North America 43,123 GTQ $13,137 £4,174
58 Ecuador South America 5,640 USD $13,705 £4,166
59 Albania Europe 480,000 ALL $11,826 £4,151
60 North Macedonia Europe 292,548 MKD $14,529 £4,048
61 Guyana South America 1,137,180 GYD $14,376 £4,026
62 Jamaica North America 832,000 JMD $9,013 £3,858
63 Vanuatu Rest of Asia and Oceania 624,000 VUV $5,158 £3,847
64 Belize North America 10,400 BZD $9,636 £3,839
65 Saint Lucia North America 13,562 XCD $9,625 £3,706
66 El Salvador North America 4,906 SVC $11,517 £3,623
67 Jordan Middle East & Central Asia 3,480 JOD $11,431 £3,614
68 Kosovo Europe 4,200 EUR $11,538 £3,575
69 Kuwait Middle East & Central Asia 4,200 KWD $20,901 £3,575
70 Turkmenistan Middle East & Central Asia 16,920 TMT $11,644 £3,568
71 Malaysia Rest of Asia and Oceania 20,400 MYR $14,315 £3,563
72 Bolivia South America 33,000 BOB $14,154 £3,543
73 Brunei Rest of Asia and Oceania 6,000 BND $11,556 £3,460
74 Fiji Rest of Asia and Oceania 10,400 FJD $11,893 £3,417
75 Maldives Middle East & Central Asia 69,992 MVR $8,979 £3,350
76 Mauritius Africa 205,320 MUR $11,526 £3,335
77 China Rest of Asia and Oceania 32,280 CNY $8,875 £3,314
78 Dominican Republic North America 252,000 DOP $10,729 £3,176
79 Paraguay South America 33,579,708 PYG $12,858 £3,120
80 Morocco Africa 38,302 MAD $9,865 £3,106
81 Colombia South America 17,082,000 COP $11,438 £3,010
82 Moldova Europe 66,000 MDL $9,502 £2,839
83 Mexico North America 72,488 MXN $7,162 £2,821
84 Peru South America 13,560 PEN $7,776 £2,755
85 Micronesia Rest of Asia and Oceania 3,640 USD $3,845 £2,688
86 Russia Europe 269,280 RUB $10,097 £2,485
87 South Africa Africa 59,883 ZAR $8,188 £2,476
88 Qatar Middle East & Central Asia 12,000 QAR $5,300 £2,431
89 Brazil South America 18,216 BRL $7,478 £2,430
90 Iraq Middle East & Central Asia 4,200,000 IQD $8,092 £2,378
91 Gabon Africa 1,800,000 CFA $7,894 £2,327
92 Senegal Africa 1,800,000 XOF $8,332 £2,327
93 Samoa Rest of Asia and Oceania 8,320 WST $4,924 £2,236
94 Philippines Rest of Asia and Oceania 167,700 PHP $8,706 £2,221
95 Suriname South America 109,138 SRD $11,416 £2,163
96 Azerbaijan Middle East & Central Asia 4,800 AZN $9,350 £2,084
97 Argentina South America 3,813,600 ARS $9,078 £2,082
98 Equatorial Guinea Africa 1,548,420 XAF $6,656 £2,002
99 Belarus Europe 8,712 BYN $11,383 £1,974
100 Mongolia Rest of Asia and Oceania 9,504,000 MNT $8,456 £1,963
101 Armenia Europe 900,000 AMD $6,077 £1,751
102 Djibouti Africa 420,000 DJF $4,723 £1,750
103 Ukraine Europe 96,000 UAH $9,128 £1,715
104 Libya Africa 12,000 LYD $5,594 £1,628
105 Cape Verde Africa 204,000 CVE $4,258 £1,569
106 Namibia Africa 37,440 NAD $5,461 £1,561
107 Kazakhstan Middle East & Central Asia 1,020,000 KZT $6,666 £1,485
108 Solomon Islands Rest of Asia and Oceania 16,640 SBD $2,737 £1,472
109 Algeria Africa 240,000 DZD $5,541 £1,354
110 Tunisia Africa 5,366 TND $6,050 £1,337
111 Papua New Guinea Rest of Asia and Oceania 7,280 PGK $3,168 £1,313
112 Kiribati Rest of Asia and Oceania 2,704 AUD $3,024 £1,295
113 Tanzania Africa 4,440,000 TZS $6,117 £1,264
114 Egypt Africa 84,000 EGP $17,546 £1,247
115 Ivory Coast Africa 900,000 XOF $4,220 £1,164
116 Pakistan Rest of Asia and Oceania 444,000 PKR $7,902 £1,159
117 Comoros Africa 660,000 KMF $3,542 £1,137
118 Nepal Rest of Asia and Oceania 207,600 NPR $6,217 £1,125
119 Congo (Republic of the) Africa 844,800 CDF $3,850 £1,092
120 Kenya Africa 182,420 KES $4,214 £1,047
121 Liberia Africa 1,414 LRD $3,288 £1,045
122 Botswana Africa 18,845 BZD $3,707 £1,044
123 Sao Tome and Principe Africa 30,000 STN $2,748 £1,032
124 Laos Rest of Asia and Oceania 30,000,000 LAK $7,624 £1,031
125 Timor Leste Rest of Asia and Oceania 1,380 USD $4,412 £1,019
126 Mauritania Africa 54,000 MRU $4,847 £1,015
127 Congo (Democratic Republic of the) Africa 3,770,000 XAF $3,972 £962
128 Guinea-Bissau Africa 708,000 XOF $3,512 £915
129 Bangladesh Rest of Asia and Oceania 150,000 BDT $5,239 £910
130 Tajikistan Middle East & Central Asia 12,000 TJS $4,732 £892
131 Zambia Africa 27,757 ZMW $4,207 £831
132 Togo Africa 630,000 XOF $3,236 £815
133 Uzbekistan Middle East & Central Asia 13,860,000 UZS $4,604 £813
134 Benin Africa 624,000 XOF $3,047 £807
135 Sri Lanka Rest of Asia and Oceania 324,000 LKR $3,737 £804
136 Afghanistan Middle East & Central Asia 72,000 AFN $4,863 £765
137 Burkina Faso Africa 540,000 XOF $2,778 £698
138 Cameroon Africa 527,628 XAF $2,707 £682
139 Angola Africa 840,000 AOA $4,004 £677
140 Bhutan Rest of Asia and Oceania 77,400 BTN $3,997 £671
141 Myanmar Rest of Asia and Oceania 1,768,000 MMK $4,064 £661
142 Niger Africa 504,000 XOF $2,443 £652
143 Malawi Africa 1,512,002 MWK $3,955 £647
144 Mali Africa 480,000 XOF $2,419 £621
145 Guinea Africa 6,600,000 XAF $2,206 £565
146 India Rest of Asia and Oceania 64,080 INR $3,172 £553
147 Central African Republic Africa 420,000 XAF $1,759 £543
148 Nigeria Africa 840,000 NGN $5,069 £404
149 Ghana Africa 5,192 GHS $1,572 £374
150 Uganda Africa 1,560,000 UGX $1,285 £323
151 Sierra Leone Africa 9,600 SLE $2,002 £308
152 Syria Middle East & Central Asia 3,346,920 SYP $4,050 £190
153 The Gambia Africa 13,000 GMD $778 £135

Top 10 Countries With the Highest Minimum Wages (2025)

Eight of the top ten are in Europe, reflecting strong labor laws, high costs of living, and robust social safety nets.

  1. Netherlands – INTL$38,810
  2. Luxembourg – INTL$37,198
  3. Australia – INTL$37,895
  4. United Kingdom – INTL$36,589
  5. Germany – INTL$36,369
  6. Ireland – INTL$36,055
  7. France – INTL$34,481
  8. Belgium – INTL$34,397
  9. Canada – INTL$32,322
  10. New Zealand – INTL$32,845

For multinational corporations, these figures underscore where labor costs are highest and where wage floors may pressure margins.

Bottom 10 Countries With the Lowest Minimum Wages (2025)

The bottom tier is dominated by Sub-Saharan Africa and fragile economies, where statutory wages often fail to provide subsistence.

  1. The Gambia – INTL$778
  2. Syria – INTL$4,050 (but just £190 equivalent due to hyperinflation)
  3. Sierra Leone – INTL$2,002
  4. Uganda – INTL$1,285
  5. Ghana – INTL$1,572
  6. Nigeria – INTL$5,069 (nominal, but weakened by currency devaluation)
  7. Malawi – INTL$3,955
  8. Mali – INTL$2,419
  9. Central African Republic – INTL$1,759
  10. Guinea – INTL$2,206

The disparities here highlight both developmental challenges and the limitations of global wage comparisons without considering local inflation and informal economies.

Regional Insights: Where CEOs Should Pay Attention

  • Europe: Dominates the top rankings, but high wages also correlate with high costs of living and taxes.
  • North America: The U.S. minimum wage ($15,080) lags behind Canada and most of Western Europe, creating it less competitive globally.
  • Asia-Pacific: Australia and New Zealand remain high-wage leaders; Japan and South Korea lag slightly lower in PPP terms.
  • Middle East: Variability is wide — Kuwait ($20,901 INTL$) ranks high, while Syria and Afghanistan remain near the bottom.
  • Africa: Wage floors are generally low, but labor-intensive industries may find cost arbitrage opportunities — albeit with geopolitical risks.

Implications for Investors, Multinationals, and Policybuildrs

  • Talent Strategy: High wage floors in Europe may deter low-cost outsourcing but ensure strong consumer markets.
  • Emerging Market Arbitrage: Africa and South Asia remain attractive for labor arbitrage, though infrastructure and stability risks loom large.
  • Inflation & Currency Risk: Nigeria and Argentina highlight how devaluations erode real wage comparisons despite nominal gains.
  • Policy Tensions: Governments balancing labor rights with competitiveness face mounting pressure to raise statutory wages in line with inflation.

The Investor’s Perspective: Beyond Wages

For private equity investors and wealth managers, minimum wage data is more than a labor cost metric — it signals broader macroeconomic trfinishs. High wages often reflect stable institutions, mature economies, and strong demand. Low wages can suggest untapped labor pools, but also fragile policy environments.

Executives considering cross-border M&A, outsourcing, or regional expansions must account for these wage structures in their due diligence.

Reading the Global Wage Map in 2025

The gap between Luxembourg’s INTL$37,198 minimum wage and The Gambia’s INTL$778 is not just statistical trivia — it is a lens into global inequality, investment opportunities, and policy dilemmas.

For CEOs, CFOs, and wealth managers, understanding these dynamics is critical. Labor markets are not isolated; they shape consumer demand, inflationary pressures, and geopolitical risks.

As global capital hunts for yield, wage structures will continue to guide both investment strategy and policy debates.

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