REVEALED: Where in Germany people earn the most (and least)
New figures from the German Federal Employment Agency reveal how widely salaries vary throughout the country, with the highest-earning areas making over twice as much as the lowest-earning ones.
New data from the Federal Employment Agency obtained by Zeit Online, breaks down how much full-time, social security-insured workers earn in approximately 4,200 municipalities throughout the country. On average, full-time employees who are socially insured earn a median gross monthly salary of €3,657 per month. But wages differ greatly by region.
Highest earners in the Bavarian outskirts
The highest earners in Germany live in Bavarian municipalities such as Icking (€5,463), Pullach (€5,754), and Baierbrunn (€5,785). These areas are situated in the outskirts of Munich, with Baierbrunn approximately a half-hour S-Bahn ride away from the Bavarian capital.
Interestingly, 48 out of the top 50 highest-earning municipalities throughout the country are located in the outskirts of major cities. Many residents in these regions commute to major cities, such as Frankfurt's banking district or Wolfsburg for the automotive industry.
READ ALSO: Germany ranks third worldwide in number of 'ultra-rich' residents
On the other end of the spectrum, the lowest earning regions can be found in the three Saxon municipalities of Seiffen, Deutschneudorf, and Heidersdorf, which are located in the Erzgebirge region near the Czech border.
In these areas, the median monthly salary is just €2,421. This pattern is also evident in resorts like Seiffen and tourist hotspots such as the Baltic Sea resort of Heringsdorf, where employees in clinics, hotels, and gastronomy earn comparatively little, with an average salary of €2,514 per month.
Real wage disparities
Real wages, meaning salaries adjusted for inflation, had been rising steadily in Germany for years prior to the pandemic. However, starting in 2020 and worsening with the start of the war in Ukraine in 2022, real wages have been declining.
Last year, the record-breaking inflation rate of 7.9 percent in Germany saw real wages fall more sharply than at any time since the current statistical analyses began in 2008.
READ ALSO: 'Real' wages fell at record speed in Germany last year
The recent data from the Federal Employment Agency also found that in almost all municipalities, real wages have decreased since 2020.
They fell by four percent in Cologne, 3.7 percent in Munich, 2.8 percent in Hamburg, and 1.1 percent in Berlin.
They decreased most strongly in the Lower Saxony municipality of Boldecker Land, where residents earned 9.7 percent less than in the first year of the pandemic.
In only every twelfth municipality in Germany, wages have increased despite inflation - though usually only minimally.
What stands out is that almost all of these places are located in the east, for example, Amt Niemegk in Brandenburg (by 2.3 percent) or the Thuringian town of Ronneburg (three percent). Workers in Großhartmannsdorf, a town in Saxony with less than 2,500 inhabitants, and in Mönchgut-Granitz on Rügen have seen the highest increase to their salaries, with residents earning 4.9 percent more than at the beginning of the pandemic.
READ ALSO: Is Germany becoming a 'low wage' country?
In general, wages in eastern Germany have decreased much less strongly than in the west. While salaries in the east increased by 15.8 percent over the past 21 years, in the west, it was only 2.3 percent.
Nevertheless, even almost 33 years after reunification, people in the east excluding Berlin (€3,088) earn much less than in the west (€3,756).
Where rents decouple from salaries
Lower salaries do not necessarily mean that people have little money to live on - as the comparison with rents, which account for the largest portion of expenses for many households, shows.
Often, in places where salaries are low, the average rents are also relatively affordable.
READ ALSO: Rents in Germany predicted to rise 'much more than wages'
However, there are also many regions where people with low salaries have to pay a lot for housing. For example, on the islands of Norderney and Sylt, where residents earn €2,763 and €2,997 respectively per month, cold rents are €16.67 and €18.19 per square metre.
It's a completely different story for people in Lehre in Lower Saxony, however. There, workers earn €4,663, and the offered rent is a low €7.92 per square metre.
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New data from the Federal Employment Agency obtained by Zeit Online, breaks down how much full-time, social security-insured workers earn in approximately 4,200 municipalities throughout the country. On average, full-time employees who are socially insured earn a median gross monthly salary of €3,657 per month. But wages differ greatly by region.
Highest earners in the Bavarian outskirts
The highest earners in Germany live in Bavarian municipalities such as Icking (€5,463), Pullach (€5,754), and Baierbrunn (€5,785). These areas are situated in the outskirts of Munich, with Baierbrunn approximately a half-hour S-Bahn ride away from the Bavarian capital.
Interestingly, 48 out of the top 50 highest-earning municipalities throughout the country are located in the outskirts of major cities. Many residents in these regions commute to major cities, such as Frankfurt's banking district or Wolfsburg for the automotive industry.
READ ALSO: Germany ranks third worldwide in number of 'ultra-rich' residents
On the other end of the spectrum, the lowest earning regions can be found in the three Saxon municipalities of Seiffen, Deutschneudorf, and Heidersdorf, which are located in the Erzgebirge region near the Czech border.
In these areas, the median monthly salary is just €2,421. This pattern is also evident in resorts like Seiffen and tourist hotspots such as the Baltic Sea resort of Heringsdorf, where employees in clinics, hotels, and gastronomy earn comparatively little, with an average salary of €2,514 per month.
Real wage disparities
Real wages, meaning salaries adjusted for inflation, had been rising steadily in Germany for years prior to the pandemic. However, starting in 2020 and worsening with the start of the war in Ukraine in 2022, real wages have been declining.
Last year, the record-breaking inflation rate of 7.9 percent in Germany saw real wages fall more sharply than at any time since the current statistical analyses began in 2008.
READ ALSO: 'Real' wages fell at record speed in Germany last year
The recent data from the Federal Employment Agency also found that in almost all municipalities, real wages have decreased since 2020.
They fell by four percent in Cologne, 3.7 percent in Munich, 2.8 percent in Hamburg, and 1.1 percent in Berlin.
They decreased most strongly in the Lower Saxony municipality of Boldecker Land, where residents earned 9.7 percent less than in the first year of the pandemic.
In only every twelfth municipality in Germany, wages have increased despite inflation - though usually only minimally.
What stands out is that almost all of these places are located in the east, for example, Amt Niemegk in Brandenburg (by 2.3 percent) or the Thuringian town of Ronneburg (three percent). Workers in Großhartmannsdorf, a town in Saxony with less than 2,500 inhabitants, and in Mönchgut-Granitz on Rügen have seen the highest increase to their salaries, with residents earning 4.9 percent more than at the beginning of the pandemic.
READ ALSO: Is Germany becoming a 'low wage' country?
In general, wages in eastern Germany have decreased much less strongly than in the west. While salaries in the east increased by 15.8 percent over the past 21 years, in the west, it was only 2.3 percent.
Nevertheless, even almost 33 years after reunification, people in the east excluding Berlin (€3,088) earn much less than in the west (€3,756).
Where rents decouple from salaries
Lower salaries do not necessarily mean that people have little money to live on - as the comparison with rents, which account for the largest portion of expenses for many households, shows.
Often, in places where salaries are low, the average rents are also relatively affordable.
READ ALSO: Rents in Germany predicted to rise 'much more than wages'
However, there are also many regions where people with low salaries have to pay a lot for housing. For example, on the islands of Norderney and Sylt, where residents earn €2,763 and €2,997 respectively per month, cold rents are €16.67 and €18.19 per square metre.
It's a completely different story for people in Lehre in Lower Saxony, however. There, workers earn €4,663, and the offered rent is a low €7.92 per square metre.
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