Iceland
Latest Average Wage
+21.6% · 5 years
$100,605
Country Comparison
Iceland vs Japan
Compare average wages, long-term wage changes and eight consumer price categories using OECD data.
At a Glance
Iceland
vs
Japan
$100,6052025
Latest Average Wage
Iceland +100.5%
(vs Japan)
$50,1832025
+21.6%2025
5-Year Wage Change
Iceland +23.8 pts
(vs Japan)
−2.2%2025
+34.6%2025
10-Year Wage Change
Iceland +36.3 pts
(vs Japan)
−1.6%2025
1122024
Overall Price Level
Iceland +52.8 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
Iceland
10 Years Ago
$74,730 (2015)
Historical Peak
$100,605 (2025)
Latest Wage
$100,605 (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
Iceland (ISL)Japan (JPN)
Overall
+52.8 index points
100
112vs59.2
Food
+15.0 index points
100
127vs112
Clothing
+58.0 index points
100
129vs71
Housing
+42.5 index points
100
91vs48.5
Health
+66.0 index points
100
99.9vs33.9
Transport
+59.6 index points
100
144vs84.4
Recreation
+49.6 index points
100
128vs78.4
Restaurants & Accommodation
+61.4 index points
100
134vs72.6
What Stands Out
01
Latest Wage Gap
Iceland's latest average wage is $100,605 for 2025, about 100.5% higher than Japan's $50,183 for 2025 — a percentage worked out directly from the two reported figures. That is roughly $50,423 a year on the same PPP basis.
02
Stronger Recent Trend
On the latest one-year change, Iceland shows the stronger movement at +1.8%, against −0.5% for Japan. The five-year horizon keeps the same ordering: +21.6% against −2.2%. 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: 99.9 for Iceland against 33.9 for Japan. That is a separation of 66.0 index points on the US=100 scale, with Iceland on the higher side and Japan on the lower one. Index points are not percentages; the two scales answer different questions.
04
Closest Price Category
The closest category is Food: Iceland reads 127 and Japan 112 for 2024, just 15.0 index points apart on the US=100 scale. The next closest is Housing at 42.5 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 Japan's $50,183 for 2025. The higher figure exceeds the lower one by 100.5% in relative terms — a percentage calculated from the two reported values — or roughly $50,423 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 Iceland recorded +34.6% against Japan's −1.6%, so the current levels were reached on visibly different long-term paths.
Wage Direction
This pairing shows two wage paths pulling apart rather than tracking each other. 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%. Japan continues to drift below its peak, with a one-year change of −0.5% and a five-year change of −2.2%. With Iceland gaining in real terms at +21.6% over five years and Japan at −2.2%, the five-year measures move away from each other rather than closing in. 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 Japan's reads 59.2, 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 Health: 99.9 for Iceland against 33.9 for Japan, a gap of 66.0 index points. At the other end, Food brings the two closest — 127 versus 112, a gap of just 15.0 index points. Relative to the US benchmark, Iceland reads above 100 in 6 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.
