Herzliya tops wages ladder

The National Insurance Institute's wages report shows rising earnings, but very wide gaps between different cities in Israel.

The average gross monthly wage in Israel was NIS 15,098 in the first half of 2025, according to the National Insurance Institute’s (NII) wages report, published for the second time. In June, the last month for which there are data, the average wage was NIS 15,542 monthly. The NII report gives a different picture from the equivalent report by the Central Bureau of Statistics, and provides an insight into the ability of state agencies to provide accurate administrative data.

The NII examines actual data as filed by employers who report employee wages, as opposed to a survey. In addition, the NII can collate data relating to the same worker in different jobs, which is much harder for the Central Bureau of Statistics to do. Since the NII counts workers and not just jobs, the average wage figure that it produces is higher than that of the Central Bureau of Statistics, which was NIS 14,219 in June.

If, for example, a doctor works in a hospital, in a health fund, and in a private surgery, and earns NIS 10,000 monthly in each place, he or she will be counted at the Central Bureau of Statistics as three NIS 10,000 jobs, whereas the NII is able to tell that this is one worker earning NIS 30,000 monthly. And indeed, the average wage per job according to the NII is much closer to the average wage according to the Central Bureau of Statistics, at NIS 14,095 monthly in June. 9% of wage earners in Israel are employed in more than one job, and that is part of the explanation of the gap between the two agencies. The NII also publishes the median wage, which is NIS 10,586.

The average wage in the first half of 2024 according to the NII was NIS 14,655, which means that the NIS 15,098 figure for the first half of 2025 represents a 3% rise. In real terms, taking account of the rise in the Consumer Price Index between the two periods, the rise is just 0.7%. This finding is similar to that of the Central Bureau of Statistics, which even reported a year-on-year fall in wages in real terms in certain months. According to the latest Central Bureau of Statistics reports, however, real wages have reverted to rising, as inflation has declined. The CBS figures are more up-to-date, and are published in the middle of each month for the previous month.

Narrowing gaps

The median wage (that is, the wage that half the workers are above and half are below, a figure not supplied by the Central Bureau of Statistics) rose by slightly more in real terms between the first half of 2024 and the first half of 2025: 1%. This indicates that wage gaps are narrowing. The ratio of the mean average wage to the median average is one measure of inequality, and it has fallen in recent years. In the first half of 2023, the mean average was 43.7% higher than the median. In the first half of 2025, the gap fell to 43.1%, and in the first half of 2025 it fell a little further, to 42.6%. In other words, inequality in earnings has slightly declined in the past two years.

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The gap in the first half of 2025 was, however, slightly higher than in the second half of 2024, which may be the result of the seasonal fluctuations in wages consistently shown in the Central Bureau of Statistics reports. The wage gap between men and women was narrower in the first half of 2025 than in the first half of 2024, but wider than in 2023.

Other notable gaps are between different large cities in Israel. The highest average gross monthly wage is in Herzliya, at NIS 22,951. Next come Ra’anana, Modi’in, Tel Aviv (NIS 22,359), and Kfar Sava. The large city with the lowest average monthly wage in Israel is Modi’in Ilit (NIS 8,161). Above it in ascending order are Rahat, Bnei Brak, Nazareth, Bet Shemesh, and Jerusalem (NIS 11,415).

The gathering of real data on wage-earners in Israel by the NII began during the Covid pandemic when the Central Bureau of Statistics was unable to carry out reliable surveys. The government introduced an obligation on employers to report wages to the NII. Now, in the light of the success of the move, the government seeks to expand the use of real data in a much more detailed way, on working hours, different occupations, and places of work, in order to formulate more precise labor market policy.

NII acting director general Zvi Cohen said on the publication of the repot, "Alongside the longest war in Israel’s history, the wage report figures indicate an active and growing labor market, and at the same time they highlight the deep social gaps that make long-term economic policy planning necessary."

Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on December 21, 2025.

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