Disposable incomes in Ireland: The counties with the highest and lowest levels

Dublin continues to have the highest disposable income per person in the State, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO).

The agency’s latest county incomes and regional gross domestic product (GDP) report shows workers in Dublin city and county had the highest average disposable income in 2020 of €27,686.

This was 18 per cent above the State average and more than 50 per cent above workers in Donegal, who had the lowest (€18,322 per person). Disposable income is defined as total income minus taxes and social insurance contributions.

After Dublin, workers in Limerick had the next highest (€26,248 per person) followed by those in Cork (€23,856 per person).

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The CSO noted that while the figures involve a degree of uncertainty, the gap between the lowest and highest county income per capita has widened considerably and is now at €9,364, 10 per cent up on the gap recorded in 2019.

Total disposable income in Dublin overall was also the highest in the State, rising for the fourth consecutive year to €39 billion. This was followed by the southwest region — comprising counties Cork and Kerry — which accounted for €16.7 billion.

The mid-east region ranked third with €16.4 billion due in large part to counties Kildare (€5.5 billion) and Meath (€4.5 billion).

The midlands have the lowest total income in 2020 and have consistently remained the poorest region in the State, followed by the Border area. Both places have a lower concentration of industry and manufacturing and are reliant on the public sector to generate value and employment, said the CSO.

The agency’s report also indicated that more than a third of all employees in the Republic worked in Dublin in 2020 while 12 per cent worked in Cork.

The highest proportion of workers resided in Dublin, Cork, Galway and Limerick in that order. “Cities in Ireland have the highest proportion of workers due to higher populations and the fact they attract workers from surrounding counties,” the CSO noted. “Conversely, counties in the midland and Border regions have the lowest percentage of employed people in the state due to low populations and lack of industry in these regions.”

Dublin, as an economic region, recorded the highest GDP in the State at €157.2 billion, followed by the southwest region at €103.2 billion.

CSO statistician Aoife Crowe said: “Disposable income in Dublin City and County remained the largest in the state in 2020, accounting for €39 billion of the state total, an 9.5 per cent rise from 2019. The midlands region continued to be the lowest in terms of disposable income. The income of the region accounted for €5.8 billion overall and was 18.7 per cent below the state average per person.”

Employment boost

Separate CSO figures show almost all sectors of the economy experienced a rise in employment last year with the largest annual increases seen in the accommodation and food services activities (11.1 per cent), financial, insurance and real estate activities (11 per cent) and information and communication (7.4 per cent).

The agency’s new “monthly estimates of payroll employees” use real-time Revenue data to pinpoint trends in the Irish labour market.

The latest figures show seasonally adjusted employment in the Republic rose by 5.4 per cent last year, a period that corresponded with the reopening of the economy in the wake of Covid.