With a total of €49,592, the people of Switzerland have significantly higher per capita purchasing power in 2023 than the inhabitants of their neighboring countries, Austria and Germany. Austrians have €26,671 per capita available for spending this year, while Germans have €26,271. This means that Germany now comes last in the German-speaking region.
Tim Weber, GfK expert for geomarketing, comments: “In all three countries in the DACH region, there will be gains in purchasing power in 2023 compared with the revised figures for the previous year; but at 5.3 percent, these will be significantly higher in Austria than in Germany and Switzerland. As a result, the Austrians are overtaking the Germans in per capita purchasing power this year and occupy second place in the ranking among the German-speaking countries. However, this increase in purchasing power will not really reach citizens in all three countries, but will fall victim to rising consumer prices.”
With a population of more than 8.7 million, Switzerland’s total purchasing power in 2023 will be €433.4 billion (excluding Liechtenstein), according to GfK forecasts. On the other hand, the nearly 9 million Austrians will have a total purchasing power of around €239.5 billion in 2023, while the total purchasing power of the >83.2 million Germans will amount to €2,186.7 billion.
However, differences in the level of net disposable income are not only evident between countries; there are also significant regional differences within each country.
Switzerland
A look at the regional distribution of purchasing power in Switzerland offers exciting insights into where people with particularly high spending potential live. Zug, Schwyz and Nidwalden lead the ranking among the Swiss cantons, as in previous years. With €79,207 per capita, the canton of Zug is clearly in the first place. This means that people there have almost 60 percent more money available for their spending than the average person in Switzerland.
Austria
A look at the Austrian provinces shows that per capita purchasing power is distributed relatively homogeneously throughout the country. As in the previous year, Lower Austria took first place with €27,935 per capita, just under five percent above the Austrian national average, closely followed by Vorarlberg with a spending potential of €27,865. Coming in last, as in 2022, is the capital city of Vienna, with a per capita spending power of €25,138, just under 6 percent below the national average.
Germany
Among the German states, Bavaria, with a per capita purchasing power of €28,453, is more than 8 percent above the national average and, as in previous years, in the first place. What is new in 2023, however, is that Baden-Württemberg moves past Hamburg into second place: In the third most populous state in the republic, people can spare €28,125 per capita for their spending or for saving. In addition, Berlin and Saarland swap tenth and eleventh place in 2023, with Saxony and Bremen taking 12th and 13th place.
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