Medellön

Medellön is a Swedish term for the average wage or salary earned by employees within a defined group or population. It is typically reported as gross pay before income tax and social contributions, and is most often expressed on a monthly or annual basis. Medellön is different from the median wage (medianlön), which is the middle value in an ordered distribution of earnings; the mean can be skewed upward by high earners.

Calculation: Medellön is obtained by dividing the total gross wages paid to all employees in a period by the number of employees. Some data series adjust for part-time or temporary work, or present full-time-equivalent (FTE) averages. Depending on the source, figures may be monthly, quarterly, or annual and may refer to full-time workers only or to all employees.

Uses and interpretation: Medellön serves as a broad indicator of wage development, living standards, and wage policy. It facilitates comparisons over time and across sectors or occupations, but cross-country comparisons require caution due to differences in tax systems, benefits, hours worked, and measurement approaches. Economic conditions, inflation, and distributional changes influence medellön.

Limitations and alternatives: Because medellön is sensitive to extreme values, it may not reflect typical earnings for most workers. The medianlön can provide a more representative picture for central tendency. Analysts also consider wage dispersion, hours worked, occupational mix, and the share of part-time or temporary employment when interpreting medellön figures.

Data sources: In Sweden, statistical agencies such as Statistics Sweden (SCB) publish medellön series. Internationally, OECD, Eurostat, and other national statistical offices provide comparable series, often alongside measures such as medianlön and wage dispersion.