South Africa vs United States: Median hourly earnings of employees
Median hourly earnings of employees over time
- South Africa
- United States
How they compare
United States currently reports 26.8 against 17.31 in South Africa, a difference of 9.49.
That makes United States's figure about 1.5 times South Africa's.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 14 shared years of data; in 2000 it was United States ahead.
South Africa ranks 36th and United States ranks 34th of 55 countries.
United States has averaged higher in every one of the 2 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | South Africa | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 8.46 | 13.95 | 5.49 | United States |
| 2010s | 16.85 | 16.85 | 0.0022 | United States |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher median hourly earnings of employees, South Africa or United States?
- United States, at 26.8 against 17.31 in South Africa as of 2025.
- What is the difference in median hourly earnings of employees between South Africa and United States?
- 9.49, with United States ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for South Africa and United States?
- 14 years are reported by both, from 2000 to 2015.
- How do South Africa and United States rank globally for median hourly earnings of employees?
- South Africa ranks 36th and United States ranks 34th of 55 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- International Labour Organization, published as Median hourly earnings of employees (15+, Local currency). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
With the aim of promoting international comparability, statistics presented on ILOSTAT are based on standard international definitions wherever feasible and may differ from official national figures. The earnings of employees relate to the gross remuneration in cash and in kind paid to employees, as a rule at regular intervals, for time worked or work done together with remuneration for time not worked, such as annual vacation, other type of paid leave or holidays. Earnings exclude employers' contributions in respect of their employees paid to social security and pension schemes and also the benefits received by employees under these schemes. Earnings also exclude severance and termination pay. The median is the middle value, with half of employees earning less and half earning more. Data are converted to U.S. dollars as the common currency, using exchange rates or using purchasing power parity (PPP) rates for private consumption expenditures. The latter series allows for international comparisons by taking account of the differences in relative prices between countries. For more information, refer to the Wages and Working Time Statistics (COND) database description.