County comparison · Ireland
Galway vs Meath
Median annual earnings · Source: CSO 2024
Meath pays 5% more than Galway · €46,272 vs €43,995
Meath has the higher median salary at €46,272 per year, against €43,995 in Galway — a gap of 5%. Looking at the longer trend, Galway has grown faster, at +2.4% per year on average — so Galway is closing the gap over time even though Meath still pays more today. Financial, Insurance and Real Estate Activities is the sector where the two counties diverge most, with a difference of €11,963.
Growth Comparison
+2.4%
Galway annual growth (CAGR) since 2011
+2.2%
Meath annual growth (CAGR) since 2011
Compare Next
This county head-to-head is usually the midpoint, not the end. Open either county directly or drill into the sector where the gap is most revealing.
Search Another Sector Or County
Use this county comparison as a waypoint, then pivot into either county directly or the sector that best explains the gap.
Galway
Meath
Galway Gender Pay Gap
12%
Meath Gender Pay Gap
22%
Sector-by-Sector Comparison
| Sector | Galway | Meath | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Information and Communication | €70,556 | €79,286 | €-8,730 |
| Public Administration and Defence; Compulsory Social Security | €54,987 | €59,875 | €-4,888 |
| Education | €59,410 | €54,413 | +€4,997 |
| Financial, Insurance and Real Estate Activities | €47,978 | €59,941 | €-11,963 |
| Professional, Scientific and Technical Activities | €47,835 | €50,411 | €-2,576 |
| Industry (B to E) | €45,154 | €50,340 | €-5,186 |
| Construction | €43,962 | €47,434 | €-3,472 |
| Human Health and Social Work Activities | €45,493 | €45,436 | +€57 |
| Transportation and Storage | €39,555 | €46,332 | €-6,777 |
| Administrative and Support Service Activities | €35,389 | €41,711 | €-6,322 |
| Wholesale and Retail Trade; Repair of Motor Vehicles and Motorcycles | €33,557 | €35,143 | €-1,586 |
| Arts, Entertainment, Recreation and Other Service Activities | €26,795 | €29,676 | €-2,881 |
| Accommodation and Food Service Activities | €27,265 | €25,220 | +€2,045 |
Next Step
Need salary benchmarks with live job-market context?
Salaries.ie shows the public data. If you want current openings, employer demand, and a stronger sense of what roles are actually live in Ireland, use RoleUp alongside the salary pages.
Keep Exploring
County comparison pages are most useful when they feed the next question: which sector explains the gap, and what does each county look like on its own?
Open the full Galway county page
See the sector table, gender split, and age breakdown for Galway.
Open the full Meath county page
Jump into the broader county benchmark for Meath.
Check the widest sector gap in Galway
Financial, Insurance and Real Estate Activities is one of the strongest differentiators between these counties.
Compare the same sector in Meath
Use the same sector slice to see where Meath lands.
Compare Meath with a nearby county
Keep exploring by testing the stronger county against Cork.
Browse the county rankings
Move from this head-to-head view into the full county league table.