Graduate salaries around the world
Updated 133 countries · data 2015–2025 How we use data
In the typical country we cover, employees with tertiary education earn a median of +53% compared with all employees (128 countries). Their median unemployment rate is 4.6%, against 4.3% for all adults.
Sources: ILOSTAT (ILO)
- +53%median degree premium across countries
- 4.6%median unemployment for tertiary-educated adults (all adults: 4.3%)
- 58countries where tertiary-educated adults have higher unemployment than average
Key findings
- Highest degree premium: Kenya (+617%), Rwanda (+559%), Burundi (+550%), Namibia (+507%), and Niger (+346%).
- Lowest degree premium: Myanmar (-16%), Sudan (-3%), Pakistan (0%), Bosnia and Herzegovina (0%), and Armenia (0%).
- Tertiary-educated adults have lower unemployment than average in 72 countries and higher unemployment in 58.
All countries
| Year | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kenya | +617% | 997 | 139 | 6.6% | 4.2% | 2019/2021! |
| Rwanda | +559% | 639 | 97 | 8.8% | 4.3% | 2024/2025 |
| Burundi | +550% | 442 | 68 | 8.8% | 0.8% | 2020! |
| Namibia | +507% | 2,369 | 390 | 10.4% | 16.6% | 2018! |
| Niger | +346% | 1,097 | 246 | 4.7% | 6.1% | 2022/2017! |
| Eswatini | +303% | 1,627 | 404 | 21.6% | 30.5% | 2021/2023! |
| Botswana | +300% | 1,882 | 471 | 18.0% | 20.8% | 2024 |
| Mozambique | +296% | 1,232 | 311 | 7.5% | 4.7% | 2022 |
| Burkina Faso | +250% | 906 | 259 | 14.6% | 5.1% | 2025 |
| Tanzania | +219% | 1,663 | 522 | 4.3% | 1.9% | 2025 |
| Senegal | +212% | 1,090 | 349 | 14.2% | 4.4% | 2024/2025 |
| Zambia | +200% | 991 | 330 | 7.7% | 4.2% | 2024 |
| Angola | +200% | 578 | 193 | 20.4% | 7.5% | 2024/2025 |
| Côte d’Ivoire | +186% | 999 | 349 | 8.5% | 1.9% | 2022 |
| Lesotho | +186% | 652 | 228 | 16.7% | 16.1% | 2024 |
| Saint Lucia | +185% | 2,166 | 760 | 5.1% | 5.9% | 2016/2025! |
| Chad | +167% | 946 | 355 | 5.3% | 2.0% | 2022 |
| Mali | +161% | 949 | 364 | 9.6% | 2.5% | 2024 |
| Uganda | +151% | 456 | 182 | 8.2% | 2.6% | 2021! |
| Honduras | +150% | 1,783 | 713 | 5.0% | 4.0% | 2025 |
| Cape Verde | +149% | 1,076 | 433 | 4.2% | 9.5% | 2015/2018! |
| Guatemala | +127% | 2,181 | 960 | 2.6% | 1.5% | 2025 |
| Guinea-Bissau | +117% | 589 | 272 | 6.0% | 2.6% | 2022 |
| Kiribati | +110% | 960 | 458 | 1.8% | 7.5% | 2023/2020! |
| Costa Rica | +106% | 2,941 | 1,431 | 4.0% | 4.7% | 2025 |
| Brazil | +105% | 1,743 | 852 | 3.0% | 4.5% | 2025 |
| Dominican Republic | +101% | 2,030 | 1,008 | 4.0% | 3.8% | 2025 |
| Barbados | +99% | 1,667 | 836 | 3.0% | 4.7% | 2016/2024! |
| Peru | +97% | 1,557 | 789 | 4.5% | 3.6% | 2025 |
| South Africa | +96% | 1,107 | 566 | 11.4% | 28.9% | 2020/2024! |
| India | +94% | 1,467 | 756 | 8.3% | 2.5% | 2025 |
| Benin | +83% | 535 | 292 | 8.5% | 1.3% | 2022 |
| Tunisia | +83% | 1,341 | 732 | 20.6% | 12.8% | 2019/2023! |
| Trinidad and Tobago | +81% | 2,106 | 1,164 | 2.4% | 3.2% | 2016/2024! |
| Bangladesh | +79% | 758 | 424 | 9.5% | 2.2% | 2024 |
| Suriname | +78% | 1,226 | 689 | — | — | 2016! |
| Liberia | +77% | 550 | 310 | 8.3% | 5.4% | 2017! |
| Equatorial Guinea | +77% | 1,088 | 616 | 5.8% | 4.7% | 2023 |
| Chile | +75% | 2,639 | 1,506 | 7.2% | 7.9% | 2024/2025 |
| Djibouti | +75% | 1,422 | 812 | 23.5% | 29.5% | 2017/2025! |
| Thailand | +74% | 2,136 | 1,226 | 0.6% | 0.3% | 2025 |
| Ghana | +73% | 571 | 330 | 5.0% | 2.7% | 2025 |
| Ethiopia | +72% | 409 | 238 | 6.1% | 3.1% | 2021! |
| Panama | +72% | 2,416 | 1,409 | 6.4% | 6.5% | 2025 |
| Türkiye | +70% | 2,874 | 1,691 | 7.0% | 7.1% | 2025 |
| Palau | +68% | 1,399 | 831 | — | — | 2023 |
| Madagascar | +68% | 272 | 162 | 6.0% | 1.2% | 2015! |
| Belize | +67% | 1,412 | 847 | 4.4% | 5.8% | 2019! |
| Marshall Islands | +67% | 1,007 | 604 | 1.3% | 7.3% | 2019/2021! |
| Colombia | +67% | 1,501 | 901 | 8.0% | 7.0% | 2025 |
| Democratic Republic of the Congo | +66% | 303 | 183 | 5.1% | 1.4% | 2016/2020! |
| Uruguay | +65% | 2,219 | 1,349 | 1.8% | 5.0% | 2024/2025 |
| Bhutan | +64% | 1,948 | 1,188 | 4.5% | 2.0% | 2025 |
| Indonesia | +60% | 701 | 437 | 2.2% | 1.8% | 2023 |
| Mauritius | +60% | 2,008 | 1,255 | 3.3% | 4.3% | 2024 |
| Mexico | +60% | 1,238 | 775 | 2.9% | 2.0% | 2025 |
| Sri Lanka | +58% | 743 | 470 | 5.5% | 2.5% | 2024 |
| Ecuador | +55% | 1,653 | 1,065 | 5.0% | 2.4% | 2025 |
| Nepal | +55% | 774 | 501 | 6.0% | 8.2% | 2017! |
| Gambia | +54% | 285 | 185 | 5.9% | 5.5% | 2018/2025! |
| Philippines | +54% | 1,128 | 733 | 2.3% | 1.5% | 2024 |
| Cambodia | +54% | 1,086 | 706 | 2.3% | 2.1% | 2025 |
| Togo | +54% | 363 | 236 | 6.9% | 1.7% | 2022 |
| Samoa | +53% | 940 | 613 | 2.6% | 3.2% | 2022 |
| Bulgaria | +53% | 3,930 | 2,572 | 1.4% | 3.1% | 2025 |
| Croatia | +52% | 5,374 | 3,526 | 2.5% | 3.9% | 2025 |
| Maldives | +50% | 1,481 | 987 | 2.4% | 2.8% | 2019! |
| Jordan | +50% | 1,401 | 934 | 22.3% | 12.6% | 2024 |
| Timor-Leste | +50% | 673 | 449 | 1.7% | 1.2% | 2021/2022! |
| Paraguay | +49% | 1,118 | 751 | 2.2% | 2.8% | 2017! |
| Bahamas | +47% | 2,259 | 1,536 | 3.5% | 7.2% | 2024 |
| Guyana | +46% | 1,800 | 1,234 | 6.4% | 10.2% | 2024/2021! |
| Portugal | +43% | 2,610 | 1,827 | 3.8% | 5.0% | 2025 |
| Germany | +42% | 7,449 | 5,248 | 2.9% | 3.4% | 2022/2025 |
| Malta | +40% | 4,068 | 2,906 | 2.2% | 2.5% | 2020/2025! |
| Antigua and Barbuda | +40% | 1,626 | 1,162 | 3.2% | 6.2% | 2023/2018! |
| Fiji | +40% | 1,632 | 1,169 | 4.0% | 3.9% | 2024 |
| Moldova | +39% | 1,140 | 821 | 2.8% | 1.2% | 2025 |
| Argentina | +37% | 1,663 | 1,210 | 2.9% | 5.7% | 2025 |
| Nigeria | +36% | 256 | 188 | 8.3% | 2.7% | 2024 |
| Romania | +36% | 4,334 | 3,183 | 1.3% | 4.8% | 2025 |
| United States | +35% | 6,067 | 4,481 | 2.7% | 3.4% | 2025 |
| Lebanon | +35% | 1,804 | 1,336 | 10.4% | 8.6% | 2019! |
| Comoros | +33% | 439 | 329 | 8.6% | 3.6% | 2021! |
| Lithuania | +33% | 4,682 | 3,527 | 3.8% | 6.4% | 2025 |
| Luxembourg | +32% | 10,003 | 7,599 | 5.1% | 5.6% | 2025 |
| Switzerland | +32% | 7,391 | 5,621 | 3.6% | 4.3% | 2025 |
| Puerto Rico | +30% | 2,186 | 1,680 | 8.4% | 12.9% | 2020! |
| Hungary | +30% | 2,559 | 1,971 | 1.8% | 3.8% | 2025 |
| Slovenia | +29% | 6,152 | 4,764 | 2.3% | 3.2% | 2025 |
| Bolivia | +29% | 1,334 | 1,037 | 3.7% | 2.1% | 2025 |
| Spain | +29% | 5,605 | 4,357 | 5.7% | 9.4% | 2025 |
| Estonia | +28% | 4,649 | 3,620 | 4.7% | 6.3% | 2025 |
| Australia | +28% | 4,255 | 3,324 | 2.6% | 3.1% | 2021/2025! |
| Latvia | +28% | 4,454 | 3,483 | 3.7% | 6.3% | 2025 |
| Afghanistan | +27% | 823 | 647 | 8.4% | 4.5% | 2020/2021! |
| Ireland | +26% | 4,524 | 3,595 | 3.0% | 3.6% | 2021/2025! |
| El Salvador | +26% | 1,161 | 924 | 3.0% | 2.2% | 2025 |
| Vietnam | +25% | 1,397 | 1,117 | 1.3% | 1.0% | 2024 |
| Georgia | +25% | 913 | 731 | 7.2% | 7.0% | 2023/2025 |
| France | +25% | 6,337 | 5,079 | 4.7% | 6.2% | 2025 |
| Slovakia | +25% | 4,422 | 3,550 | 2.1% | 4.9% | 2025 |
| Cyprus | +23% | 4,724 | 3,851 | 3.4% | 3.8% | 2025 |
| Czechia | +22% | 4,464 | 3,669 | 1.3% | 2.3% | 2025 |
| Serbia | +21% | 3,211 | 2,645 | 5.3% | 6.3% | 2025 |
| Italy | +21% | 5,856 | 4,844 | 2.9% | 5.4% | 2025 |
| Iceland | +20% | 5,986 | 4,977 | 2.8% | 3.5% | 2020/2025! |
| United Kingdom | +20% | 4,633 | 3,861 | 2.8% | 3.4% | 2025 |
| Poland | +19% | 4,363 | 3,656 | 1.3% | 2.4% | 2025 |
| Netherlands | +19% | 7,862 | 6,636 | 2.7% | 2.8% | 2025 |
| Austria | +18% | 7,610 | 6,444 | 3.9% | 5.0% | 2025 |
| Finland | +17% | 6,491 | 5,547 | 4.9% | 8.0% | 2025 |
| Guinea | +16% | 614 | 531 | 16.7% | 4.7% | 2019! |
| Denmark | +15% | 7,116 | 6,198 | 4.9% | 5.0% | 2025 |
| Canada | +14% | 4,561 | 3,988 | 5.1% | 5.7% | 2025 |
| Greece | +13% | 3,386 | 2,999 | 6.2% | 8.2% | 2025 |
| Belgium | +12% | 8,420 | 7,489 | 3.5% | 5.1% | 2025 |
| Norway | +12% | 6,881 | 6,127 | 2.5% | 2.8% | 2025 |
| Sweden | +12% | 5,424 | 4,852 | 5.0% | 6.6% | 2025 |
| Mongolia | +11% | 1,694 | 1,524 | 4.1% | 4.9% | 2025 |
| Egypt | +10% | 719 | 656 | 9.1% | 4.1% | 2024 |
| Laos | +1% | 542 | 539 | 2.2% | 0.9% | 2022 |
| Tonga | 0% | 714 | 711 | — | — | 2023 |
| Armenia | 0% | 865 | 865 | 6.9% | 7.2% | 2023 |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | 0% | 2,601 | 2,601 | 7.2% | 9.5% | 2025 |
| Pakistan | 0% | 397 | 397 | 9.0% | 5.1% | 2025 |
| Sudan | -3% | 348 | 358 | 20.5% | 6.2% | 2022 |
| Myanmar | -16% | 349 | 413 | 0.4% | 0.7% | 2020! |
| Japan | — | — | — | 2.4% | 2.7% | 2020! |
| Malaysia | — | — | — | 2.2% | 2.3% | 2022 |
| New Zealand | — | — | — | 2.6% | 3.3% | 2020! |
| Singapore | — | — | — | 3.2% | 3.0% | 2025 |
| South Korea | — | — | — | 2.6% | 2.7% | 2025 |
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PPP$ = international dollars per month, adjusted for price differences. Degree premium = median monthly earnings of employees with advanced (tertiary) education compared with all employees. Unemployment = adults aged 25 and over. Latest year per country; years differ between countries.
How to read this data
The International Labour Organization collects these figures from national labour force and household surveys. “Advanced education” means short-cycle tertiary, bachelor's, master's and doctoral levels (ISCED 5–8). Earnings are for employees only, so self-employed people are not included.
A high degree premium can mean that graduates are scarce, not only that degrees are valuable. Where few people hold degrees, graduates often earn much more than average; where many do, the gap is usually smaller. Unemployment can be higher for graduates in countries where young graduates wait longer for suitable jobs.
Frequently asked questions
How much more do university graduates earn?
In the typical country, employees with tertiary education earn a median of +53% compared with all employees, across 128 countries with ILO data. The biggest premiums are in Kenya (+617%), Rwanda (+559%), and Burundi (+550%). The gap is smaller in countries where many adults have degrees.
Are graduates less likely to be unemployed?
Usually, but not everywhere. The median unemployment rate for tertiary-educated adults is 4.6%, against 4.3% for all adults. Graduates have lower unemployment than average in 72 countries and higher unemployment in 58.
What does PPP$ mean?
PPP$ (purchasing power parity dollars) adjust for differences in prices between countries, so an amount in PPP$ buys roughly the same basket of goods everywhere. It is the fairest way to compare pay across countries.
Can I download this data?
Yes. The full table is free to download as CSV or JSON under a CC BY 4.0 licence. Please credit CourseToJob and the International Labour Organization.
Sources
- ILOSTAT — Median monthly earnings of employees by education — EAR_EMTM_SEX_EDU_CUR_NB_A
- ILOSTAT — Unemployment rate by age and education — UNE_DEAP_SEX_AGE_EDU_RT_A
How to cite this page: CourseToJob (2026). Graduate salaries around the world: the degree premium by country. https://coursetojob.com/graduate-salaries/ (accessed September 26, 2026)