Canada
Latest Average Wage
−0.3% · 5 years
$67,901
Country Comparison
Canada vs Japan
Compare average wages, long-term wage changes and eight consumer price categories using OECD data.
At a Glance
Canada
vs
Japan
$67,9012025
Latest Average Wage
Canada +35.3%
(vs Japan)
$50,1832025
−0.3%2025
5-Year Wage Change
Canada +1.9 pts
(vs Japan)
−2.2%2025
+5.0%2025
10-Year Wage Change
Canada +6.7 pts
(vs Japan)
−1.6%2025
862024
Overall Price Level
Canada +26.8 index points
(vs Japan)
59.22024
Wages are PPP-adjusted average annual wages; price levels use the United States reference of 100. Years shown are each country's latest reported observation.
How Wages Have Changed
Follow PPP-adjusted average annual wages in constant prices across both economies.
USD PPP, constant prices · missing years shown as gaps, never interpolated
Japan
Latest Average Wage
−2.2% · 5 years
$50,183
Wage Milestones
Canada
10 Years Ago
$64,667 (2015)
Historical Peak
$68,434 (2021)
Latest Wage
$67,901 (2025)
Japan
10 Years Ago
$51,027 (2015)
Historical Peak
$52,662 (1997)
Latest Wage
$50,183 (2025)
Compare Everyday Price Levels
See how eight consumer price categories compare with the United States reference value of 100.
United States = 100 · Differences shown in index points
Canada (CAN)Japan (JPN)
Overall
+26.8 index points
100
86vs59.2
Food
−4.0 index points
100
108vs112
Clothing
+47.0 index points
100
118vs71
Housing
+34.6 index points
100
83.1vs48.5
Health
+28.3 index points
100
62.2vs33.9
Transport
+18.6 index points
100
103vs84.4
Recreation
+13.6 index points
100
92vs78.4
Restaurants & Accommodation
+25.0 index points
100
97.6vs72.6
What Stands Out
01
Latest Wage Gap
Canada's latest average wage is $67,901 for 2025, about 35.3% higher than Japan's $50,183 for 2025 — a relative difference calculated from the two reported values. That is roughly $17,718 a year on the same PPP basis.
02
Stronger Recent Trend
On the latest one-year change, Canada shows the stronger movement at +0.2%, against −0.5% for Japan. The five-year horizon keeps the same ordering: −0.3% against −2.2%. Both percentages are real, PPP-adjusted changes from the reported wage series.
03
Largest Price Gap
Clothing shows the widest price gap of the comparable categories in 2024: 118 for Canada against 71 for Japan. Measured on the US=100 scale, the two readings for this category are 47.0 index points apart, Canada above Japan. Index points are not percentages; the two scales answer different questions.
04
Closest Price Category
The closest category is Food: Canada reads 108 and Japan 112 for 2024, just 4.0 index points apart on the US=100 scale. The next closest is Recreation at 13.6 index points apart. A gap this small leaves the category effectively tied on the shared US=100 scale.
Understanding the Comparison
Wage Position
Few pairings separate this cleanly — Canada's latest average wage of $67,901 for 2025 stands well above Japan's $50,183 for 2025. The higher figure exceeds the lower one by 35.3% in relative terms — a percentage calculated from the two reported values — or roughly $17,718 a year. Both figures are expressed in USD PPP at constant 2025 prices, so they can be set side by side without any further conversion. For scale, neither series has moved by that much within any single reported year, so the gap is structural rather than the product of one unusual observation. Over ten years Canada recorded +5.0% against Japan's −1.6%, so the current levels were reached on visibly different long-term paths.
Wage Direction
No single shared direction describes this pairing; each side follows its own recent path. Canada stands just below its historical high of $68,434 in 2021, only 0.8% away, with a ten-year change of +5.0%. Japan continues to drift below its peak, with a one-year change of −0.5% and a five-year change of −2.2%. With the five-year changes at −0.3% for Canada and −2.2% for Japan, the horizons are clearer when read side by side rather than folded into one trend statement. All changes here are measured in real, PPP-adjusted terms, so they describe purchasing-power movement rather than nominal pay increases.
Price Profile
Canada's overall consumer price level for 2024 reads 86, and Japan's reads 59.2, each measured against the United States reference of 100. Canada reads higher in 7 of the 8 comparable categories, so the price profile leans consistently to one side. The widest separation is in Clothing: 118 for Canada against 71 for Japan, a gap of 47.0 index points. At the other end, Food brings the two closest — 108 versus 112, a gap of just 4.0 index points. Relative to the US benchmark, Canada reads above 100 in 3 of its 8 reported categories, and Japan in 1 of its 8.
Wage and price data should not be combined into a verdict on which country is better to live in.
