Average salaries in Germany rose by 4,1 percent in 2023, according to new figures from the Bundesagentur für Arbeit (BA).

What is the median salary in Germany?

The median net salary for someone working full-time hours in Germany rose by a significant 4,1 percent (or 150 euros) to 3.796 euros per month in 2023, the BA has reported. “Median” means that half of all employees earn a salary below this, while half of all employees earn more than this. 

The BA writes that the significant increase can be explained in part by wage increases secured by collective bargaining agreements in Germany. However, Zeit notes that, despite being significant, the increase is still not enough to keep pace with inflation, which in 2023 averaged at 5,9 percent, according to Destatis. 

Men still earn more than women, and wages are highest in Hamburg

Digging down into the data, BA reported that a wage gap of around 367 euros still persists between men and women working full-time; indeed, it has increased by 2 euros compared to 2022. As of 2023, men earn a median salary of 3.930 euros per month, compared to 3.563 euros for women. 

Comparing salaries by federal state, the data shows that the highest wages are earned by full-time employees in Hamburg, where the median monthly salary is 4.304 euros, Baden-Württemberg (4.134 euros) and Hesse (4.087 euros). Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (3.098 euros), Thuringia (3.109 euros) and Saxony-Anhalt (3.152 euros) were at the bottom of the list.

The data shows that academic qualifications continue to be a strong predictor of high wages: workers who graduated from academic higher education earned a median salary of 5.688 euros, compared to the 3.658 euros earned by workers with a professional (vocational) qualification, and the 2.831 euros earned by those with no professional qualifications. 

The new data has been put into the BA’s salary atlas, where users can compare the average salaries in different occupations across different parts of Germany. 

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