Incidence of low and high pay — High pay Incidence in Germany

Germany: Incidence of low and high pay — High pay Incidence was 17.67 Percentage of full-time employment in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
17.67 Percentage of full-time employment
Change on year
down 51.8%
World rank
25th
of 32 countries
All-time high
36.69 Percentage of full-time employment
in 2023
All-time low
15.54 Percentage of full-time employment
in 1994
Years of data
33
1992–2024

Incidence of low and high pay — High pay Incidence in Germany, 1992–2024

0102030401992200820241992: 16.8 Percentage of full-time employment1993: 17.2 Percentage of full-time employment1994: 15.5 Percentage of full-time employment1995: 16.7 Percentage of full-time employment1996: 16.6 Percentage of full-time employment1997: 15.8 Percentage of full-time employment1998: 17 Percentage of full-time employment1999: 17.3 Percentage of full-time employment2000: 16.1 Percentage of full-time employment2001: 15.9 Percentage of full-time employment2002: 16 Percentage of full-time employment2003: 15.9 Percentage of full-time employment2004: 17 Percentage of full-time employment2005: 16.3 Percentage of full-time employment2006: 18 Percentage of full-time employment2007: 16.6 Percentage of full-time employment2008: 17.2 Percentage of full-time employment2009: 16.9 Percentage of full-time employment2010: 17.2 Percentage of full-time employment2011: 18.8 Percentage of full-time employment2012: 18.4 Percentage of full-time employment2013: 18.9 Percentage of full-time employment2014: 18.7 Percentage of full-time employment2015: 20.1 Percentage of full-time employment2016: 18.3 Percentage of full-time employment2017: 19.2 Percentage of full-time employment2018: 19 Percentage of full-time employment2019: 17.8 Percentage of full-time employment2020: 18 Percentage of full-time employment2021: 18.2 Percentage of full-time employment2022: 18.1 Percentage of full-time employment2023: 36.7 Percentage of full-time employment2024: 17.7 Percentage of full-time employment

Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage of full-time employment.

Analysis

The most recent figure for incidence of low and high pay — high pay incidence in Germany is 17.67 Percentage of full-time employment, measured in 2024.

That represents a change of down 51.8% on the previous year and down 5.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, incidence of low and high pay — high pay incidence in Germany peaked at 36.69 Percentage of full-time employment in 2023 and was at its lowest, 15.54 Percentage of full-time employment, in 1994.

Germany ranks 25th of 32 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 16.61 Percentage of full-time employment 15.54 Percentage of full-time employment 17.27 Percentage of full-time employment 8
2000s 16.6 Percentage of full-time employment 15.93 Percentage of full-time employment 17.98 Percentage of full-time employment 10
2010s 18.63 Percentage of full-time employment 17.19 Percentage of full-time employment 20.06 Percentage of full-time employment 10
2020s 21.72 Percentage of full-time employment 17.67 Percentage of full-time employment 36.69 Percentage of full-time employment 5

Countries ranked near Germany

  1. 22 Austria 19.42 Percentage of full-time employment compare
  2. 23 Costa Rica 19.27 Percentage of full-time employment compare
  3. 24 France 19 Percentage of full-time employment compare
  4. 26 Malta 16.95 Percentage of full-time employment compare
  5. 27 Italy 16.27 Percentage of full-time employment compare
  6. 28 Finland 15.84 Percentage of full-time employment compare

See the full ranking of 40 places →

More reference data data for Germany

All data for Germany →

Frequently asked questions

What is incidence of low and high pay — high pay incidence in Germany?
Incidence of low and high pay — high pay incidence in Germany was 17.67 Percentage of full-time employment in 2024, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
What is the highest incidence of low and high pay — high pay incidence recorded in Germany?
The highest recorded value was 36.69 Percentage of full-time employment in 2023.
What is the lowest incidence of low and high pay — high pay incidence recorded in Germany?
The lowest recorded value was 15.54 Percentage of full-time employment in 1994.
How does Germany rank for incidence of low and high pay — high pay incidence?
Germany ranks 25th out of 32 countries with data for 2024.
Is incidence of low and high pay — high pay incidence rising or falling in Germany?
Over the last ten years it is down 5.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Germany data come from?
The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Incidence of low and high pay — High pay Incidence. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Incidence of low and high pay — High pay Incidence in Germany. Statizoid, drawing on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 20 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/incidence-of-low-and-high-pay-high-pay-incidence/germany/

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About this data

Indicator
Incidence of low and high pay — High pay Incidence
Unit
Percentage of full-time employment
Source
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Licence
OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage
40 places, 618 data points, 1985–2025
Last refreshed

This dataset contains series on the incidence of low-paid workers defined as the share of full-time workers earning less than two-thirds of gross median earnings of all full-time workers; the incidence of high-paid workers defined as the share of full-time workers earning more than one-and-half time gross median earnings of all full-time workers.