Gov ScoreAustralia

Context

Prices vs wages since the election

Have wages kept up with the cost of essentials?

Prices vs wages since the election.

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Latest
6of 8 essential price categories rose faster than wages · June quarter 2022 → June quarter 2026
Since the government took office
No comparable figure from mid-2022.
Over the past year
Not a time series, so no yearly change is shown.

Prices vs wages since the election

  • Original
  • Insurance43.3%
  • Electricity37.5%
  • Rents24.0%
  • Education22.9%
  • Health19.9%
  • Food18.1%
  • All prices (CPI)16.8%
  • Wages (WPI)15.1%
  • Child care14.1%
  • Petrol & fuel−0.6%
  • Wages (black line)
  • All prices
  • Essential items
Change in each price index, June quarter 2022 to June quarter 2026. The black line marks wage growth over the same period: bars that pass it rose faster than wages.

What this is

This compares how much the prices of everyday essentials have risen since mid-2022 with how much wages have risen. Wages are measured by the ABS Wage Price Index, which tracks pay for the same jobs over time.

Why it matters

If the things you must buy rise faster than your pay, you are worse off even if your pay rose. It shows where the squeeze on households is coming from.

More from the figures

  • Wages (Wage Price Index) are up 15.1%; overall prices are up 16.8%.
  • Rising faster than wages: Insurance, Electricity, Rents, Education, Health, Food.
  • The ABS counts government energy bill rebates as a cut in electricity prices while they are paid, so the electricity figure is after taxpayer-funded rebates.

How it’s calculated

Percentage change in each ABS CPI expenditure-class index and the Wage Price Index between the June quarter 2022 and the latest quarter available for all series.

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