Gasoline Index: how many litres of gasoline can you buy for the average salary in Canada and around the world?

This is an archived report. The latest ranking is available here.

Picodi.com team examined the change in gasoline prices in several dozen countries and calculated how many litres of gasoline an average Canadian can afford in 2020.

Cheaper gasoline

Due to the volatility of prices in the gasoline market, just like last year, we gathered data about gasoline prices in the first half of the year. In 17 out of 22 considered American countries, gasoline prices in the first half of the year 2020 were lower than in 2019. The largest decrease was noted in Puerto Rico (−21.8%), Panama (−19.9%), and El Salvador (−18.4%).

In Canada, the decrease in gasoline prices amounted to 14.7% (4^th place). A slightly lower drop was noted in Honduras (−13.5%), the United States (−13.1%), and Guatemala (−13.1%).

Interestingly, in Chile, the prices of gasoline noted a moderate increase (5.3%), and in Argentina gasoline went up by as much as 36.2%.

Gasoline Index 2020: who can fill up the biggest amount of gasoline in the Americas?

(click the arrows to see data from the remaining 21 countries)

Ecuadorians can enjoy the cheapest gasoline in both Americas — the average gasoline price in their country is 49 cents. Uruguayans pay the highest price — $1.27.

We contrasted the average prices of gasoline in the first half of the year 2020 with the latest data on average salaries. For the second year in a row, the United States can boast the best gasoline price to an average salary ratio in both North and South America. The average pay in this country allows its citizens to buy 5,715 litres of gasoline.

In Canada, according to Statistics Canada latest data the average salary amounts to C$3,665. It means that an average Canadian can buy 3,179 litres of gasoline with their pay (2^nd place). Puerto Rico completes the podium with 2,741 litres.

Lower in the ranking were Panama (1,203 litres), Ecuador (1,019 litres), and Bolivia (986 litres). Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Cuba took the last three places. The average salary in these countries is worth 338, 148, and 28 litres respectively.

World gasoline ranking

(Hover over the country to see the information)

In the world ranking, top positions are taken by Persian Gulf countries. In Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Kuwait, you could buy from 5,112 to 8,210 litres of gasoline for the average pay. It is worth noting that Kuwaitis can afford 139 litres less than last year. On the other hand, in 2020 Saudis and Qataris can buy around 4,933 and 1,605 litres more.

The worst situation was noted in Cuba, where the average salary is equal to the price of only 28 litres (an increase of 2 litres). Despite the fact that Tajikistan and Zambia accompany Cuba in the lower part of the ranking, their citizens can afford even seven times more gasoline than Cubans (151 and 219 litres respectively).

It turns out that being an oil tycoon does not always mean easier access to gasoline for the citizens. Nigeria, for example, produces the biggest amounts of gasoline in Africa. Despite one of the lowest prices of gasoline in the whole world (€0.31), the relatively low average salary (€165) does not allow Nigerians to buy many litres of gasoline — just 539. It is similar to the European oil heaven, Russia. In a country which is the second-biggest oil producer in the world, for the average salary you can afford only 919 litres.

Another interesting fact is the situation in Venezuela. In this South American country, there are limits which allow buying only 120 litres of gasoline per capita in a month for the price amounting to around 0.025 dollars per litre. Once the limit is exceeded, gasoline can be bought only at the “market” price which is 0.5 dollar per litre, and only in 200 gasoline stations in the country. Our calculations show that the average salary in Venezuela is enough for just 148 litres of gasoline (120 litres subsidised and 28 litres fully paid), which is a drastic difference compared to theoretical 14 billion litres from the last year.

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Methodology

This report uses the average net wages according to the latest available data provided by offices for national statistics or relevant ministries. The average prices for the first half of 2020 in over 100 countries are based on data from globalgasolineprices.com and other local sources. In order to obtain the number of litres, we divided the average wage by the average price of 1 litre of gasoline. For currency conversion, we used the average exchange rate for the last 90 days.

Public Use

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