Education · Work
What adults earn at each skill level
The OECD tested how well adults in 31 countries read and handle numbers, then looked at what they are paid. Better skills mean better pay everywhere — but the pay gap between countries is far wider at the bottom of the skill range than at the top.
A typical worker in the UK earns $23.03 an hour — close to what an American at Level 2 numeracy earns ($24.25), and below the typical American’s $26.44. Both countries’ figures are adjusted for what money buys there.
Countries — up to 5
Circle size is the share of adults at that level. Hover or tab a circle for its numbers.
Show these numbers as a table
| Country | Skill | Level 1 or below | Level 2 | Level 3 | Level 4/5 | All levels |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | Literacy | $18.727.6% of adults | $23.428.5% of adults | $31.130.6% of adults | $37.913.2% of adults | $26.4 |
| United States | Numeracy | $18.734.2% of adults | $24.227.7% of adults | $31.826.2% of adults | $42.112.0% of adults | $26.4 |
| United Kingdom | Literacy | $17.117.6% of adults | $20.031.5% of adults | $25.736.6% of adults | $31.414.3% of adults | $23.0 |
| United Kingdom | Numeracy | $17.020.9% of adults | $20.030.6% of adults | $25.733.1% of adults | $34.215.4% of adults | $23.0 |
How to read this
The levels. PIAAC sorts adults into proficiency levels. At literacy Level 1 or below an adult understands short, simple sentences and familiar words. At numeracy Level 1 or below they manage single-step operations like counting. Level 4 and above is roughly what a university education asks for.
The money. Each point is the median gross hourly wage of employed and self-employed adults aged 25-65, gross hourly earnings including bonuses, in ppp-adjusted 2022 usd— so an hour’s pay buys roughly the same basket in every country shown.
The circles. Circle area is the share of adults sitting at that level. A wide circle low on a line means a lot of people earning that little. Wages cover employed and self-employed adults aged 25-65; the shares cover all adults aged 16-65. PIAAC publishes no wage-weighted share, and we would rather show you the two real populations than invent a third.
The countries. PIAAC surveyed England rather than the whole UK, and Flanders rather than the whole of Belgium; both are shown under their country’s name. There are no US state figures — the survey does not produce them.
Source
OECD Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC) 2023, fieldwork 2023. Tables A.4.7 (L), A.4.7 (N), A.2.2 (L), A.2.2 (N). See the OECD report. Retrieved 2026-08-10. The same survey drives four measures on this site: adult literacy, adult numeracy, and the share of adults with weak literacy or weak numeracy. Every source on the site is listed on the sources page.
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