2019–2026: higher wages, fewer gyros

Wage after contributions, before income tax, annual income divided by 12. Nominal wage and price changes. Purchasing power in classic gyros, not overall living costs.

What we compare

The comparable minimum wage in the Gyronomics series is 637.76 € for 2019 and 924.46 € for 2026. These amounts are after employee contributions and before income tax, with annual income divided by 12 to include bonuses and holiday pay. They are not the amount of one monthly payment.

Both years use the same basis. We do not compare a gross wage with income after contributions, or one payment with annual income spread over twelve months.

Why the 2019 price needs explaining

The reference price for the wrap sold at the time is 2.30 € in 2019. Rescaled to the classic product, it becomes 2.07 €. The comparable 2026 price is 4.25 €, a change of +105.3%.

Rescaling uses the series' assumptions about composition and portion size. The comparable price is a model result, not a second price found on a menu. Strong evidence for the original price does not remove uncertainty in that rescaling.

The sources contain different observations and samples. They do not track the same shop at two dates. The series change therefore does not measure how much a particular shop raised its price.

Do not subtract the percentages

A price change of +105.3% and a wage change of +45.0% do not yield the purchasing-power change by subtraction. Divide the wage ratio by the price ratio, then subtract one. The result is -29.4%.

The index divides the wage by the classic gyro price. About 308 and 218 are rounded for display; the percentage uses the ratios before rounding. Wage and price changes are nominal. We do not subtract inflation again from a ratio that already compares a wage with a product price.

What wage would buy as many as before?

At the 2026 price, retaining the 2019 purchasing power in classic gyros would require about 1,309.41 € on the same basis: after contributions, before income tax, annual income divided by 12. This uses the reference year's unrounded ratio.

This is a hypothetical amount for one product. It is not a wage-policy recommendation or an estimate of what a household needs to live on.

What the comparison can tell us

A wage increase in euros can coexist with a loss of purchasing power for a particular good. That is what this index captures. It does not measure rent, electricity, total food costs or changes in the average wage.

The year 2019 provides a reference before the pandemic; it does not prove that one event explains the entire change. Causes require separate evidence. Use the chart links to open the comparison, inspect both years and download the image with its data version.