About PlainGlobalPay

Our Mission

PlainGlobalPay exists because workers, employers, and researchers making cross-border compensation decisions deserve transparent, data-driven comparisons that go beyond nominal salary figures. A $100,000 salary in Switzerland, the United States, and Japan represents vastly different purchasing power, tax burdens, and take-home amounts. Yet most salary comparison tools either ignore taxes entirely or use proprietary estimates disconnected from official government data.

We believe international tax and salary data should be accessible to everyone, not locked behind consulting fees or opaque proprietary models. PlainGlobalPay transforms complex OECD tax wedge calculations into intuitive country comparisons at 29 salary levels, three family types, and 38 countries. Every calculation traces back to its official source, every methodology choice is documented, and every limitation is stated clearly.

Our goal is to make international compensation comparisons genuinely useful for real decisions: job offers across borders, relocation planning, policy research, and understanding how tax systems shape take-home pay differently around the world.

Our Data Sources

OECD Taxing Wages 2024

The primary data source for PlainGlobalPay is the OECD Taxing Wages publication, the most authoritative international comparison of income tax burdens. This annual report calculates the "tax wedge" (total taxes and social contributions as a percentage of labor costs) for all 38 OECD member countries at standardized wage levels. Data is available at oecd.org/tax.

World Bank International Comparison Program (ICP)

Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) conversion factors come from the World Bank ICP, which compares prices of goods and services across countries to determine how much a unit of currency can buy in each location. We use household final consumption PPP factors, which best reflect individual cost-of-living differences. Data is available at data.worldbank.org.

OECD Average Wages Dataset

National average wage benchmarks come from the OECD's annual average wages dataset, reported in PPP-adjusted US dollars. This provides the baseline against which we calculate tax rates at different salary levels (67%, 100%, and 167% of average wage). Average wages vary enormously across OECD members: from approximately $16,000 in Mexico to over $77,000 in Luxembourg (in PPP-adjusted terms).

These benchmarks are critical because OECD tax wedge calculations are defined relative to the average wage, not in absolute dollar terms. A "100% of average wage" worker in Switzerland earns far more than the equivalent in Poland, making percentage-based comparisons essential for meaningful cross-country analysis.

Tax Foundation

Statutory corporate and personal income tax rates, including top marginal rates, come from the Tax Foundation, a US-based independent tax policy research organization. These rates supplement OECD data for salary levels beyond the OECD's standard benchmarks. Data is available at taxfoundation.org.

How We Process the Data

PlainGlobalPay transforms raw OECD and World Bank data through several processing steps:

Tax rate interpolation: OECD Taxing Wages provides tax wedge calculations at 67%, 100%, and 167% of the national average wage. We interpolate between these data points to estimate tax burdens at 29 salary levels from $20,000 to $300,000.
High-salary extrapolation: For salaries above 167% of the national average wage, we apply the statutory top marginal rate with conservative adjustments. These extrapolations carry higher uncertainty and are clearly marked.
PPP adjustment: All salary comparisons use household consumption PPP factors to convert local currencies into comparable USD amounts that reflect real purchasing power rather than market exchange rates.
Family type scenarios: We compute tax burdens for three family types defined by the OECD: single no children, single two children, and married two children with one earner. Each scenario reflects different tax credits and deductions available in each country.
Employer cost calculation: Beyond employee take-home pay, we calculate total employer costs including mandatory social security contributions, providing a complete picture of the labor cost from both employer and employee perspectives.

Data Currency

PlainGlobalPay currently displays data from the OECD Taxing Wages 2024 release, which reflects tax rules and rates in effect during the 2023 tax year. The OECD publishes this report annually, typically in the spring. PPP factors reflect the most recent World Bank ICP release. We update PlainGlobalPay within 30 days of each new OECD release.

Tax laws change frequently. The rates shown reflect legislated rules as of the OECD publication date. Countries may have enacted changes since then. For current rates, consult the relevant national tax authority or a qualified tax advisor.

Editorial Independence

Content on PlainGlobalPay is compiled by our editorial team. Raw data from the OECD (Taxing Wages, Average Wages), the World Bank International Comparison Program (PPP factors), and the Tax Foundation is transformed into readable country profiles and comparisons by our continuous editorial pipeline, validated against the source before publication. The PlainGlobalPay editorial team, operating under Kiznis Studio, is responsible for editorial standards, methodology, and corrections.

We do not accept payment, sponsorship, or promoted placement from governments, tax advisory firms, relocation consultancies, payroll providers, or any covered country or organization. Our only revenue source is contextual display advertising served by Google AdSense — advertisers do not influence which countries we cover or how we present data, and they do not receive preferential placement.

Limitations & Disclaimers

PlainGlobalPay is an informational resource for understanding international tax and salary differences. It has important limitations:

Not tax advice: This site should not be used for tax compliance purposes. Tax obligations vary based on individual circumstances, residency status, treaty provisions, and frequently changing laws. Always consult a qualified tax professional.
OECD countries only: Coverage is limited to the 38 OECD member countries. Many major economies (China, India, Brazil, Indonesia) are not included because they are not OECD members and comparable data is not available.
Simplified tax models: Real-world tax calculations involve deductions, credits, exemptions, and special provisions that vary by individual situation. OECD models use standardized assumptions that may not match your specific circumstances.
Extrapolation uncertainty: Tax rates for salaries above 167% of average wage are extrapolated and carry higher uncertainty than rates within the OECD's calibrated range.
PPP limitations: PPP adjustments reflect national average price levels and may not capture city-level cost differences. Living costs in London, Tokyo, and New York are substantially higher than their respective national PPP factors suggest.
Temporal lag: OECD Taxing Wages reflects tax rules from the prior calendar year. Countries frequently revise tax brackets, rates, and social contribution thresholds. Always verify current rates with the relevant national tax authority before making financial decisions.

Despite these limitations, OECD Taxing Wages remains the gold standard for international tax comparison because it applies consistent methodology across all 38 member countries, enabling the most apples-to-apples comparison available anywhere. No other dataset offers this level of standardization for cross-country tax analysis.

Contact

Questions, corrections, or feedback? Email us at hello@plainglobalpay.com.

We welcome:

Questions about data sources or methodology
Reports of incorrect tax rates or PPP factors
Suggestions for additional countries or features
Media and research inquiries
Partnership proposals from international tax research organizations

PlainGlobalPay is published by ", a data intelligence company that builds free, public-interest data portals.