Who earned how much in Austria last year? Since people don’t like to talk about salaries in this country, this question is rarely answered openly. The current one Stepstone-Salary report provides insight into the serious differences in income and also reveals which industry, which state and which professional experience can contribute to more money. The results are sometimes astonishing. The interactive graphics show the detailed rankings.
There will be an increase in average salary for 2025 – full-time employees will earn an average of 60,500 euros gross per year. When it comes to the average value, however, it should be noted that individual outliers – particularly high or very low salaries – can noticeably distort the value, as it is calculated as an arithmetic mean.
The gross median income in Austria is 55,000 euros, which is around 5,500 euros below the average salary. The median value is used to compensate for extreme outliers upwards or downwards: exactly half of all employees earn less, the other half earn more. That’s why the median income is also included in all further evaluations because it is considered a more reliable indicator of the expected middle.
A quarter of those in employment earn less than 43,500 euros gross per year, another quarter earn more than 71,000 euros per year.
Leadership responsibility has a significant impact on the income of Austrians. Employees with disciplinary personnel responsibility earn on average around 21 percent more than those without a management function: the average annual salary is 63,000 euros, compared to 52,000 euros for employees without personnel responsibility. It should be noted that the Stepstone salary report only covers disciplinary management, but not professional management functions.
In Austria, academics earn on average around 27 percent more than people without a university degree – specifically, 66,500 euros compared to 52,250 euros annually. Although the shortage of skilled workers now affects almost all industries, qualified specialists from technology, medicine, law, IT, finance and natural sciences are still particularly in demand. Employers are increasingly willing to pay for this specialist knowledge.
The often greater complexity of the tasks, more responsibility and better negotiation skills also play an important role in the higher income of academics. Many people know their market value better and use it specifically. However, the salary report also shows that not all academics automatically earn more and there are also many well-paid jobs that do not require academic training. Numerous factors ultimately influence the individual salary.
A look at educational qualifications shows clear differences in income: according to the salary report, academics earn around 17 percent more than people who have completed a vocational or general secondary school or a master craftsman or foreman examination.
At the lower end of the scale, the gap is smaller: compulsory school graduates earn on average around nine percent less than people with an apprenticeship qualification. This shows that the higher the educational qualification, the greater the wage advantage – at least at the upper end of the income distribution.
As professional experience increases, salaries also rise significantly: those who have been working for more than 25 years earn a median gross of around 65,000 euros, which is almost one and a half times as much as young professionals whose income is around 45,000 euros. But even after just a few years there is a noticeable difference. Employees with three to five years of experience receive, on average, around 14 percent more than newcomers.
When it comes to regional salary comparisons, Vienna is unsurprisingly at the top: the average annual income in the federal capital is just under 59,000 euros. Burgenland is significantly lower, where the median salary is more than 7,000 euros lower. Upper Austria is currently in the middle range with 56,500 euros and Styria with 54,500 euros.
The top earners in Austria combine several factors: They work in Vienna, work in large companies with more than 5,000 employees, have an academic education and have more than 25 years of professional experience. Those who have these characteristics have an average annual gross of over 63,000 euros.
An industry comparison offers a detailed look at the top earners in Austria. In the banking industry, the average gross salary is around 71,750 euros per year. However, the absolute top earners are found in the health sector: doctors earn a median salary of 109,750 euros. This is followed by managers with 72,750 euros.
In the Stepstone salary report 2025, the banking industry leads the ranking of the best-paid sectors: the median salary there is around 71,750 euros. It is closely followed by the IT and Internet industry with around 69,000 euros and the pharmaceutical industry with 68,500 euros.
The hotel, restaurant and catering industry brings up the rear in the salary comparison: with a median salary of around 43,000 euros, employees there earn around 40 percent less than in the best-paid industry, the banking sector. There is also a clear gap of around 4,000 euros to the next highest industry – agriculture, forestry, fishing and horticulture.
The difference in income in small and large companies is considerable: in companies with over 5,000 employees, the median annual salary is around 63,750 euros – around 18,000 euros higher than in start-ups with a maximum of ten employees, where the median income is around 46,000 euros. The jump in salaries is particularly noticeable in the transition from the smallest companies to those with up to 50 employees – employees here earn around eleven percent more on average.
Additional benefits and the overall package of benefits also play a central role in choosing an employer.
At a glance
The Stepstone Salary Report 2025 is based on the database with salary information by location and region, professional group, industry, professional experience and much more. Over 57,200 compensation data were evaluated for the 2025 salary report. The information is representative of the working population at federal and state level according to the criteria of age, gender and university degree.
This article was originally published on January 26, 2026 and was updated on June 29, 2026.
