Catalans achieve much higher productivity than Madrileños, but they have lower salaries.

BarcelonaProductivity growth among Catalan workers was significantly higher than that of employees in the Community of Madrid, and also much higher than the Spanish average, according to 2024 regional accounting data published Tuesday by the National Statistics Institute (INE). According to the INE, Catalan productivity improved by 1.82%, while that of Madrid workers increased by only 0.04%. The Spanish average stood at 1.20%. In contrast, workers in Madrid were much better paid than their Catalan counterparts. The average salary in Madrid was €46,850 per year, while in Catalonia it was €43,411. However, in both cases, this was significantly higher than the national average of €40,514 per year. In the ranking of highest-paid workers, Madrid takes first place (€46,850), followed by the Basque Country (€45,321), Catalonia (€43,411), and Navarre in fourth place (€43,109). At the other end of the spectrum, the lowest average salary is in Extremadura (€33,695), behind Murcia (€34,573) and Andalusia (€35,505). Another aspect covered by the INE (National Institute of Statistics) is the growth in investment, which, according to the latest data from Idescat (Statistical Institute of Catalonia) It has become the main engine of the Catalan economyThus, according to the INE (National Institute of Statistics), investment in Catalonia in 2024 grew by 7.1%, the same percentage as in the region presided over by Isabel Díaz Ayuso, and two points above the national average (5.1%). In fact, the regions where investment grew the most last year were Ceuta and Melilla (9.7%), Cantabria (8.8%), and Catalonia and Madrid (7.1%). Investment fell in only one region, La Rioja, with a decrease of 1.7%.

Catalonia improves growth

In 2024 it also served to allow Catalonia to somewhat close down the gap in GDP growth (an indicator that measures the size of an economy) relative to Madrid. Thus, while in 2022 and 2023 Madrid grew more than Catalonia (8.1% versus 6.4% and 3.4% versus 2.9%), in 2024 the situation reversed, with Catalonia growing by 3.7% compared to Madrid's 3.6%.

Despite this improvement in the last year, Madrid's GDP, in absolute terms, far exceeds Catalonia's. In current euros, Madrid's GDP in 2024 amounted to 316,193 million euros, while Catalonia's was 302,304 million. In this way, Madrid consolidates its position as the leading region contributing to Spain's GDP (19.83%), with Catalonia in second place (18.96%), a situation that first occurred in 2018, when Madrid did the overtaking in Catalonia, which had always led the contribution to GDPAnd, in fact, in recent years the gap has widened, since back then Madrid contributed 19.2% to the Spanish economy and Catalonia 19%; that is, the difference was only two-tenths of a percentage point, whereas now the difference is almost a full point. Another matter entirely is how the wealth generated in each region impacts its citizens. This can be measured by GDP per capita, that is, the wealth generated divided by the number of citizens in each region. In 2024, the Community of Madrid was once again the region with the highest GDP per capita, at €44,749, followed by the Basque Country (€41,010) and Navarre (€39,096), according to data from the National Statistics Institute (INE). Catalonia, with €37,477, ranks fourth. According to INE figures, the lowest GDP per capita was recorded in Andalusia (€24,542), Extremadura (€25,224), and the Canary Islands (€25,861).