Average monthly nominal earnings in Georgia reached GEL 2,389.3 in the second quarter of 2026, up GEL 177.3, or 8.0%, from the same quarter of 2025. The headline increase is meaningful, but nominal pay does not measure purchasing power. The relevant question is how much of the additional income remained after consumer prices rose.
According to a descriptive calculation by BTU researchers, the year-on-year Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices rose by 5.92% in April, 5.43% in May and 5.62% in June 2026. Their simple average is 5.66%. Adjusting the official 8.0% nominal wage increase by that price change yields an estimated real increase of about 2.2%.
This is not an official real-wage index. It is a transparent analytical approximation that compares quarterly nominal wage growth with the simple average of monthly year-on-year HICP inflation during the same quarter. It is useful for interpreting the scale of purchasing-power improvement, but it does not represent the inflation rate experienced by every household.
| Indicator | Value | Period / status | Why it matters |
| Average nominal wage | GEL 2,389.3 | Q2 2026, Geostat | Headline income level |
| Nominal annual growth | 8.0% | Q2 2026 vs Q2 2025 | Pay growth before inflation |
| Average annual HICP change | ≈5.66% | Apr–Jun 2026, BTU descriptive average | Price adjustment benchmark |
| Descriptive real wage growth | ≈2.2% | BTU calculation | Approximate purchasing-power gain |
| August HICP | 4.94% | August 2026, Geostat | Inflation moderated after Q2, but Q3 wage data are not yet available |
An 8% pay rise is not an 8% increase in purchasing power
The Q2 2025 average wage was GEL 2,212.0. Applying the 5.66% descriptive price adjustment implies that roughly GEL 2,337.2 would have been required in Q2 2026 simply to preserve the purchasing power of that earlier wage. The actual average was GEL 2,389.3 – about GEL 52 higher.
This is a more intuitive way to read the data. Nominal pay rose by GEL 177.3 a month, but most of that increase compensated for a higher price level. Under this simple adjustment, around GEL 52 of the increase represents additional purchasing power. The figure should not be interpreted as a household-specific gain because spending baskets differ substantially across families.
For employers, the distinction matters as well. A nominal salary adjustment may look sizeable in payroll budgets while still feeling modest to employees if food, energy, housing-related costs or transport prices are rising quickly.
The real picture differs sharply across sectors
The highest average wages in Q2 2026 were recorded in information and communication at GEL 4,400.4, financial and insurance activities at GEL 4,074.1, construction at GEL 3,496.6, and professional, scientific and technical activities at GEL 3,304.8. But high wage levels do not necessarily imply strong real wage growth.
Using the same 5.66% HICP adjustment, information and communication’s 5.4% nominal increase translates into a marginal real decline of about 0.2%. Construction’s 0.8% nominal increase implies a real decline of roughly 4.6%. By contrast, financial and insurance activities show an estimated real increase of about 3.4%, while professional, scientific and technical activities show around 4.4%.
The implication for labour-market competition is straightforward: businesses should monitor not only the level of pay but also whether annual salary changes are keeping pace with the cost of living. In sectors where skilled workers are mobile, a nominal increase that fails to protect purchasing power may still leave retention pressure unresolved.
| Group / sector | Nominal growth | BTU descriptive real growth* | Signal |
| Georgia average | 8.0% | ≈2.2% | Positive real growth, but far below nominal growth |
| Women | 8.9% | ≈3.1% | Growth above the price benchmark |
| Men | 7.6% | ≈1.8% | Positive but weaker real growth |
| Business sector | 6.6% | ≈0.9% | Small purchasing-power improvement |
| Non-business and financial sector | 10.6% | ≈4.7% | Stronger real growth |
| Information & communication | 5.4% | ≈−0.2% | Nominal growth slightly below inflation benchmark |
| Financial & insurance activities | 9.2% | ≈3.4% | Positive real growth |
| Construction | 0.8% | ≈−4.6% | Real decline |
| Professional, scientific & technical | 10.3% | ≈4.4% | Relatively strong real growth |
* Formula: (1 + nominal growth) / (1 + descriptive Q2 HICP average of 5.6581%) − 1. This is not an official real-wage index.
Gender and regional gaps remain large
Women earned an average of GEL 1,927.0 in Q2 2026, compared with GEL 2,856.4 for men. The difference was GEL 929.4. According to calculations by BTU researchers, women’s average pay was about 67.5% of men’s pay, equivalent to a descriptive gap of roughly 32.5% relative to male earnings.
Women’s annual wage growth was faster – 8.9% versus 7.6% for men. After the same price adjustment, that corresponds to estimated real growth of about 3.1% for women and 1.8% for men. A single quarter, however, is not enough to conclude that the structural gender pay gap is closing. Sector, occupation, working time and workforce composition all matter.
Regional differences are also substantial. Tbilisi recorded an average wage of GEL 2,758.5, about 15.5% above the national average. Racha-Lechkhumi and Kvemo Svaneti recorded GEL 1,235.4, about 48.3% below the national average. Tbilisi’s figure was roughly 2.23 times higher. Geostat notes that some enterprises are assigned to regions according to the location of their head office, which limits direct interpretation of regional wage levels.
Inflation eased after the quarter, but the next wage answer is not yet available
Georgia’s HICP annual rate eased to 4.94% in August 2026, below the 5.66% descriptive average used for Q2. That is a favourable direction for purchasing power, but it cannot yet be translated into a Q3 real-wage estimate because the corresponding quarterly wage data have not been published.
The National Bank of Georgia kept the policy rate at 8.25% on September 9. Under the national CPI methodology, August inflation was 5.6%, while the NBG’s central scenario placed average 2026 inflation at around 5.2%. The inflation target is 3%. HICP and national CPI are different measures and should not be treated as interchangeable, but both confirm that price growth remains material for wage analysis.
The NBG continues to attribute much of the current inflation overshoot to supply-side pressures, particularly energy prices. This makes the distinction between nominal and real wage growth especially relevant: firms can raise payroll expenditure while employees still experience a much smaller improvement in day-to-day purchasing power.
What this means for employers and policymakers
According to an assessment by BTU researchers, the key signal in the Q2 data is the large gap between nominal and real wage dynamics. For businesses, that gap affects retention, compensation planning and productivity expectations. A 5–6% annual salary increase can be almost fully absorbed when consumer prices are rising at a similar pace.
A more useful compensation dashboard therefore combines three indicators: nominal wage growth, an inflation-adjusted purchasing-power estimate, and productivity. If pay rises substantially faster than prices but productivity does not improve, cost pressures may intensify. If pay rises slower than prices, retention and household welfare risks increase even if payroll expenditure is higher in nominal terms.
The same principle matters for public debate. An average wage of GEL 2,389.3 is an important benchmark, but it should not be interpreted as evidence that the average employee became 8% better off. After the price adjustment used here, the improvement is closer to 2.2%.
Conclusion
Yes, average wages in Georgia increased in real terms in Q2 2026 – but much less than the 8% nominal headline suggests. According to a descriptive calculation by BTU researchers, adjusting for an average Q2 HICP rate of 5.66% leaves real wage growth of about 2.2%.
The nominal increase of GEL 177.3 therefore overstates the gain in purchasing power. Preserving the purchasing power of the Q2 2025 average wage would have required roughly GEL 2,337 in Q2 2026; the actual average was GEL 2,389.3, implying an additional real-equivalent gain of about GEL 52 a month under this method.
The national average also hides sharp sector, gender and regional differences. The more useful question for Georgia’s labour market is no longer simply how fast wages are rising, but how much of that increase remains after prices have risen.
Data and Main Sources
National Statistics Office of Georgia (Geostat) – Average Monthly Nominal Earnings of Employees, Q2 2026.
National Statistics Office of Georgia (Geostat) – Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices, including special aggregates and year-on-year monthly data through August 2026.
National Bank of Georgia – Monetary Policy Committee decision, September 9, 2026; Inflation Target.
Prepared by the academic team of Business and Technology University and the BTUAI Research Team, Tbilisi, Georgia.