The latest figures from the National Institute of Statistics (INE) paint a clear picture of the salary situation in Spain in 2023. They confirm a reality where wages for a large part of the population remain rather moderate. According to the data, half of Spanish workers earned 23,349 euros gross or less per year in the past year, corresponding to a monthly gross amount of 1,945 euros for twelve payments. Alarming is the increasing concentration of workers around the minimum wage. Just two years ago, the most common salary was 15,574 euros gross annually, already alarmingly close to the 2023 minimum wage of 15,120 euros gross per year.
The INE’s wage structure survey, considered the most comprehensive indicator of wages in Spain and collecting data from around 220,000 workers, provides detailed insights. The median salary of 23,349 euros saw an increase of 4.3% compared to 2022. In 2023, nine million workers in Spain received this salary or less, bearing in mind that income tax and social security contributions must be deducted from this amount. The average salary, which can be distorted by the relative concentration of very high salaries, stood at 28,050 euros and also increased by 4.1%. A closer look at the salary pyramid reveals that one in four employees in 2023 earned between 14,000 and 20,000 euros per year. The largest concentration of workers, 4.6%, is found in the salary bracket between 15,000 and 16,000 euros.
Despite a stronger wage increase for women in 2023 (5.1% compared to 3.4% for men), the gender pay gap remains significant. While women earned an average of 25,591 euros, men received an average salary of 30,372 euros. This results in a considerable difference of 4,800 euros.
The best-paid sector in the country was the supply of electricity, gas, steam, and air conditioning, with an average gross annual salary of 54,448 euros. At the lower end of the scale was once again the hospitality sector, where the average earning of not even 17,000 euros gross per year was barely 12% above the minimum wage.
Regarding employment levels, directors and managers top the salary pyramid, with an average salary of 60,986 euros per month, more than double the national average. Unskilled workers in the service sector, on the other hand, earned an average of 15,277 euros per year, practically at the minimum wage. Geographically, the Basque Country recorded the highest average salary with 33,505 euros gross per year, while Extremadura ranked at the lower end of the country’s salary scale with 23,684 euros.
