Gender wage gap in Italy
Italy: Gender wage gap was -2.5% in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Gender wage gap in Italy, 2008–2020
Source: International Labour Organization (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2020, gender wage gap in Italy stood at -2.5%. That is the lowest value across all 13 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 82.9% on the previous year and down 354.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, gender wage gap in Italy peaked at 0.4% in 2014 and was at its lowest, -2.5%, in 2020.
That places Italy 53rd out of 67 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Gender wage gap in Italy, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | -0.0% | — |
| 2009 | -0.9% | +9477.8% |
| 2010 | -0.6% | -35.7% |
| 2011 | -0.3% | -46.8% |
| 2012 | 0.4% | -247.1% |
| 2013 | -0.2% | -145.4% |
| 2014 | 0.4% | -326.4% |
| 2015 | -2.1% | -578.0% |
| 2016 | -2.5% | +14.9% |
| 2017 | -2.5% | +2.7% |
| 2018 | -1.9% | -23.4% |
| 2019 | -1.4% | -28.6% |
| 2020 | -2.5% | +82.9% |
Italy compared with similar countries
- Italy's -2.5% is below the median for high income countries, which is 14.9%. (21 countries reporting)
- Italy's -2.5% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 10.7%. (16 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Gender wage gap in Italy changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | -9477.8% | -0.0% | -0.9% |
| 2015 | -578.0% | 0.4% | -2.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | -0.4% | -0.9% | -0.0% | 2 |
| 2010s | -1.1% | -2.5% | 0.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | -2.5% | -2.5% | -2.5% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Italy
More work & labour data for Italy
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.6708 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.6794 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.662 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -2.03 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.0094 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 44,671 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 10,422 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 17,512 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 17,865 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 35,377 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is gender wage gap in Italy?
- Gender wage gap in Italy was -2.5% in 2020, according to International Labour Organization (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest gender wage gap recorded in Italy?
- The highest recorded value was 0.4% in 2014.
- What is the lowest gender wage gap recorded in Italy?
- The lowest recorded value was -2.5% in 2020.
- How does Italy rank for gender wage gap?
- Italy ranks 53rd out of 67 countries with data for 2020.
- Is gender wage gap rising or falling in Italy?
- Over the last ten years it is down 354.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Italy data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Gender wage gap. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Difference between average earnings of men and average earnings of women expressed as a percentage of average earnings of men.