Chile
Latest Average Wage
+6.1% · 5 years
$40,626
Country Comparison
Chile vs United States
Compare average wages, long-term wage changes and eight consumer price categories using OECD data.
At a Glance
Chile
vs
United States
$40,6262023
Latest Average Wage
United States +114.1%
(vs Chile)
$86,9772025
+6.1%2023
5-Year Wage Change
Chile +4.0 pts
(vs United States)
+2.1%2025
−6.1%2023
10-Year Wage Change
United States +19.1 pts
(vs Chile)
+13.0%2025
42.92024
Overall Price Level
United States +57.1 index points
(vs Chile)
1002024
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
United States
Latest Average Wage
+2.1% · 5 years
$86,977
Wage Milestones
Chile
10 Years Ago
$43,267 (2013)
Historical Peak
$45,670 (2016)
Latest Wage
$40,626 (2023)
United States
10 Years Ago
$76,999 (2015)
Historical Peak
$86,977 (2025)
Latest Wage
$86,977 (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
Chile (CHL)United States (USA)
Overall
−57.1 index points
100
42.9vs100
Food
−15.2 index points
100
84.8vs100
Clothing
−22.5 index points
100
77.5vs100
Housing
−70.4 index points
100
29.6vs100
Health
−74.2 index points
100
25.8vs100
Transport
−33.2 index points
100
66.8vs100
Recreation
−39.3 index points
100
60.7vs100
Restaurants & Accommodation
−38.9 index points
100
61.1vs100
What Stands Out
01
Latest Wage Gap
United States' latest average wage is $86,977 for 2025, about 114.1% higher than Chile's $40,626 for 2023 — a relative difference calculated from the two reported values. In annual terms the gap comes to about $46,351 on the same PPP basis. The two figures come from different reference years.
02
Stronger Recent Trend
On the latest one-year change, United States shows the stronger movement at +1.7%, against +1.3% for Chile. The five-year horizon reverses the ordering — Chile at +6.1% and United States at +2.1% — so the latest year is not the whole story. Both percentages are real, PPP-adjusted changes from the reported wage series.
03
Largest Price Gap
Health shows the widest price gap of the comparable categories in 2024: 25.8 for Chile against 100 for United States. Measured on the US=100 scale, the two readings for this category are 74.2 index points apart, United States above Chile. Index points are not percentages; the two scales answer different questions.
04
Closest Price Category
The closest category is Food: Chile reads 84.8 and United States 100 for 2024, just 15.2 index points apart on the US=100 scale. The next closest is Clothing at 22.5 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 — United States' latest average wage of $86,977 for 2025 stands well above Chile's $40,626 for 2023. The higher figure exceeds the lower one by 114.1% in relative terms — a percentage calculated from the two reported values — or roughly $46,351 a year. Because both values already sit on the same USD PPP, constant-2025-price footing, the comparison adjusts for price-level differences between the two economies. 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 Chile recorded −6.1% against United States' +13.0%, so the current levels were reached on visibly different long-term paths.
Wage Direction
The five-year direction is shared here: both series rise, with different momentum on each side. Chile is partway through a recovery: the latest year added +1.3%, though the level remains 11.1% below its peak. United States sits at the highest point of its series — $86,977 in 2025 is also the historical peak, with a ten-year change of +13.0%. The shared direction still leaves room for different speeds: +6.1% for Chile against +2.1% for United States, so the distance between the two levels keeps shifting. All changes here are measured in real, PPP-adjusted terms, so they describe purchasing-power movement rather than nominal pay increases.
Price Profile
Chile's overall consumer price level for 2024 reads 42.9, and United States' reads 100, each measured against the United States reference of 100. United States reads higher in 8 of the 8 comparable categories, so the price profile leans consistently to one side. The widest separation is in Health: 25.8 for Chile against 100 for United States, a gap of 74.2 index points. At the other end, Food brings the two closest — 84.8 versus 100, a gap of just 15.2 index points. Relative to the US benchmark, Chile reads above 100 in 0 of its 8 reported categories, and United States in 0 of its 8.
Wage and price data should not be combined into a verdict on which country is better to live in.
