Iceland
Latest Average Wage
+21.6% · 5 years
$100,605
Country Comparison
Iceland vs Canada
Compare average wages, long-term wage changes and eight consumer price categories using OECD data.
At a Glance
Iceland
vs
Canada
$100,6052025
Latest Average Wage
Iceland +48.2%
(vs Canada)
$67,9012025
+21.6%2025
5-Year Wage Change
Iceland +21.8 pts
(vs Canada)
−0.3%2025
+34.6%2025
10-Year Wage Change
Iceland +29.6 pts
(vs Canada)
+5.0%2025
1122024
Overall Price Level
Iceland +26.0 index points
(vs Canada)
862024
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
Canada
Latest Average Wage
−0.3% · 5 years
$67,901
Wage Milestones
Iceland
10 Years Ago
$74,730 (2015)
Historical Peak
$100,605 (2025)
Latest Wage
$100,605 (2025)
Canada
10 Years Ago
$64,667 (2015)
Historical Peak
$68,434 (2021)
Latest Wage
$67,901 (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
Iceland (ISL)Canada (CAN)
Overall
+26.0 index points
100
112vs86
Food
+19.0 index points
100
127vs108
Clothing
+11.0 index points
100
129vs118
Housing
+7.9 index points
100
91vs83.1
Health
+37.7 index points
100
99.9vs62.2
Transport
+41.0 index points
100
144vs103
Recreation
+36.0 index points
100
128vs92
Restaurants & Accommodation
+36.4 index points
100
134vs97.6
What Stands Out
01
Latest Wage Gap
Iceland's latest average wage is $100,605 for 2025, about 48.2% higher than Canada's $67,901 for 2025 — a percentage worked out directly from the two reported figures. In annual terms the gap comes to about $32,705 on the same PPP basis.
02
Stronger Recent Trend
On the latest one-year change, Iceland shows the stronger movement at +1.8%, against +0.2% for Canada. The five-year horizon keeps the same ordering: +21.6% against −0.3%. Both percentages are real, PPP-adjusted changes from the reported wage series.
03
Largest Price Gap
Transport shows the widest price gap of the comparable categories in 2024: 144 for Iceland against 103 for Canada. That is a separation of 41.0 index points on the US=100 scale, with Iceland on the higher side and Canada on the lower one. Index points are not percentages; the two scales answer different questions.
04
Closest Price Category
The closest category is Housing: Iceland reads 91 and Canada 83.1 for 2024, just 7.9 index points apart on the US=100 scale. The next closest is Clothing at 11.0 index points apart. Two readings this close mean the category sits at nearly the same point of the US=100 scale for both.
Understanding the Comparison
Wage Position
Few pairings separate this cleanly — Iceland's latest average wage of $100,605 for 2025 stands well above Canada's $67,901 for 2025. The higher figure exceeds the lower one by 48.2% in relative terms — a percentage calculated from the two reported values — or roughly $32,705 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 Iceland recorded +34.6% and Canada +5.0%, so the two series have been moving in the same long-term direction.
Wage Direction
No single shared direction describes this pairing; each side follows its own recent path. Iceland sits at the highest point of its series — $100,605 in 2025 is also the historical peak, with a ten-year change of +34.6%. Canada stands just below its historical high of $68,434 in 2021, only 0.8% away, with a ten-year change of +5.0%. With the five-year changes at +21.6% for Iceland and −0.3% for Canada, 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
Iceland's overall consumer price level for 2024 reads 112, and Canada's reads 86, each measured against the United States reference of 100. Iceland reads higher in 8 of the 8 comparable categories, so the price profile leans consistently to one side. The widest separation is in Transport: 144 for Iceland against 103 for Canada, a gap of 41.0 index points. At the other end, Housing brings the two closest — 91 versus 83.1, a gap of just 7.9 index points. Relative to the US benchmark, Iceland reads above 100 in 6 of its 8 reported categories, and Canada in 3 of its 8.
Wage and price data should not be combined into a verdict on which country is better to live in.
