The share of expenses that people use to buy food in each country differs. Percentage-wise, Ukrainians spend a much higher portion of their wages on food than Germans, although the absolute expenses aren’t that different.
How expenses for food differ between Ukraine and Germany
Ukraine is a cheap country, so people should be spending on food much less than in Germany, right?
After all, the average monthly wage in Ukraine in January 2020 was 10,726 hryvnia (368 Euro), according to Ukrstat. While in Germany the monthly pay check was 3,771 Euro. Both payments are before tax.
We are talking about monthly payments, since in Ukraine people usually consider wages per calendar month, rather than weekly.
If salaries in of Germans and Ukrainians differ 10 times, does it mean that expenses also are approximately relevant? Not at all.
- An average citizen of Germany spends 200 Euro per month on groceries, while a regular Ukrainian forks out 140 Euro, ua reported.
- Percentage-wise, people in Germany use just over 5% of their wages on food, and in Ukraine 38%. In other words, the difference is 7-fold!
- In absolute numbers, groceries expenditure of Ukrainians is 30% less than the one of Germans.
What do Ukrainians buy when buying groceries?
On average, monthly expenses on groceries include the following:
- Meat and processed meat: 940 hryvnia (€33)
- Fish: 210 UAH (€7)
- Alcohol: 94 UAH (€3)
- Non-alcoholic drinks: 224 UAH (€8)
- Dairy products: 418 UAH (€15)
Germans spend about €55 per month on meat, €5 on fish, €48 on alcohol, €22 on soft drinks, and €31 on dairy.
It’s quite remarkable that with such a giant difference in income, the cost of groceries that a person consumes is comparable.
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Prices for groceries in Germany must be the lowest in the industrial countries of Europe. There is great quality and also an unbelievable selection of food available. Germany has the most variations of bread and sausage in the world. The portion of the income that people spend on groceries currently is the lowest it has been since 1950.
In direct comparison to Germany, here in Canada the selection is smaller and the prices are higher!
Hello Elena, There is one number in your article that is a little misleading! If the income before taxes in Germany is 3.700 Euros, the actual amount that shows up in your bank account is somewhere around 50% of that. The balance goes to tax and to contributions to unemployment insurance, medical insurance, pensions, etc. The income here in western Canada is in most cases much higher than the average income in Germany and the government is not as greedy. I really enjoy your articles in here!!! All the best to all of you in this virus crisis!!! Stay healthy!… Read more »