Tax wedge rankings

These rankings sort all 38 OECD countries by the labour-tax questions people search for most: which countries have the highest tax wedge, the lowest tax wedge, the highest employer social security, and the best net take-home pay. The OECD average single-worker wedge is 34.9%. All figures are modelled OECD averages, not personal tax advice.

Source: OECD Taxing Wages. Data as of June 2026 (OECD Taxing Wages, 2023 data year).

The OECD countries where labour is taxed most heavily, ranked by total tax wedge.

Where the gap between labour cost and take-home pay is smallest, lowest wedge first.

Where employer contributions add most to the cost of hiring (the invisible part of the wedge).

Where an average worker keeps the largest share of gross wage, by net average tax rate.

Want every country in one table? See the full country index. To compare two countries, use the comparison pages or the estimator.

Last updated: 2026-06-29