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.
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
- Legislation on sexual harassment in employment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Criminal sanctions or compensation for workplace sexual harassment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Women can take the same jobs as men 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 49.3% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15+) 58.3% (2025)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) 70.0% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 40.8% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15-6 66.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) 75.7% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 57.4% (2025)
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.
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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.