Mexico
Latest Average Wage
+8.9% · 5 years
$24,463
Country Comparison
Mexico vs Colombia
Compare average wages, long-term wage changes and eight consumer price categories using OECD data.
At a Glance
Mexico
vs
Colombia
$24,4632025
Latest Average Wage
Colombia +23.2%
(vs Mexico)
$30,1332024
+8.9%2025
5-Year Wage Change
Mexico +12.7 pts
(vs Colombia)
−3.9%2024
+9.7%2025
10-Year Wage Change
Mexico +7.3 pts
(vs Colombia)
+2.4%2024
50.92024
Overall Price Level
Mexico +18.3 index points
(vs Colombia)
32.62024
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
Colombia
Latest Average Wage
−3.9% · 5 years
$30,133
Wage Milestones
Mexico
10 Years Ago
$22,304 (2015)
Historical Peak
$27,014 (1994)
Latest Wage
$24,463 (2025)
Colombia
10 Years Ago
$29,443 (2014)
Historical Peak
$35,659 (2020)
Latest Wage
$30,133 (2024)
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
Mexico (MEX)Colombia (COL)
Overall
+18.3 index points
100
50.9vs32.6
Food
+22.9 index points
100
88.3vs65.4
Clothing
+11.6 index points
100
72vs60.4
Housing
+16.1 index points
100
42.7vs26.6
Health
+27.4 index points
100
46vs18.6
Transport
+30.8 index points
100
80.6vs49.8
Recreation
+15.5 index points
100
63.3vs47.8
Restaurants & Accommodation
+24.6 index points
100
65.1vs40.5
What Stands Out
01
Latest Wage Gap
Colombia's latest average wage is $30,133 for 2024, about 23.2% higher than Mexico's $24,463 for 2025 — a relative difference calculated from the two reported values. Per year, that works out to roughly $5,670 on the shared purchasing-power basis. The two figures come from different reference years.
02
Stronger Recent Trend
On the latest one-year change, Colombia shows the stronger movement at +1.9%, against +1.3% for Mexico. The five-year horizon reverses the ordering — Mexico at +8.9% and Colombia at −3.9% — 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
Transport shows the widest price gap of the comparable categories in 2024: 80.6 for Mexico against 49.8 for Colombia. Measured on the US=100 scale, the two readings for this category are 30.8 index points apart, Mexico above Colombia. Index points are not percentages; the two scales answer different questions.
04
Closest Price Category
The closest category is Clothing: Mexico reads 72 and Colombia 60.4 for 2024, just 11.6 index points apart on the US=100 scale. The next closest is Recreation at 15.5 index points apart. A gap this small leaves the category effectively tied on the shared US=100 scale.
Understanding the Comparison
Wage Position
A clear separation shows in the latest wage figures — Colombia at $30,133 for 2024, and Mexico at $24,463 for 2025. The higher figure exceeds the lower one by 23.2% in relative terms — a percentage calculated from the two reported values — or roughly $5,670 a year. No extra conversion is needed here: each figure is already a purchasing-power-adjusted annual amount in constant prices. 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 Mexico recorded +9.7% and Colombia +2.4%, so the two series have been moving in the same long-term direction.
Wage Direction
The two wage series are moving in opposite directions — and the gap between them is narrowing as a result. Mexico is partway through a recovery: the latest year added +1.3%, though the level remains 9.4% below its peak. Colombia is partway through a recovery: the latest year added +1.9%, though the level remains 15.5% below its peak. Because Mexico — the lower of the two latest wage levels — is the side currently gaining in real terms (+8.9% over five years against −3.9%), the distance between the two is shrinking on these measures rather than growing. All changes here are measured in real, PPP-adjusted terms, so they describe purchasing-power movement rather than nominal pay increases.
Price Profile
Mexico's overall consumer price level for 2024 reads 50.9, and Colombia's reads 32.6, each measured against the United States reference of 100. Mexico reads higher in 8 of the 8 comparable categories, so the price profile leans consistently to one side. The widest separation is in Transport: 80.6 for Mexico against 49.8 for Colombia, a gap of 30.8 index points. At the other end, Clothing brings the two closest — 72 versus 60.4, a gap of just 11.6 index points. Relative to the US benchmark, Mexico reads above 100 in 0 of its 8 reported categories, and Colombia in 0 of its 8.
Wage and price data should not be combined into a verdict on which country is better to live in.
