In which regions of Ukraine are salaries highest, and who receives them?

In the Mykolaiv region, a facade worker is offered 2.5 times less pay than in Zakarpattia

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10 Sep 2026

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In Ukraine, the salary of a worker in the same profession can differ by more than twice depending on the region. OLX Robota analysts recorded the largest difference in the construction sector. The situation with façade workers was particularly striking: the median salary in vacancies in Zakarpattia is 115,000 hryvnias, while in Mykolaiv Oblast it is only 45,000 hryvnias. The gap reaches 70,000 hryvnias, or 155,6%.

The study is compiled based on vacancy market data for July 2026. It is important that these are the median salaries indicated by employers in vacancies, not the average actual income received by all residents of a particular region. The median means that half of the relevant offers are below this figure and half are above it.

First place in the wage gap was taken by façade workers. In Zakarpattia Oblast the median offer is 115,000 hryvnias, in Mykolaiv Oblast – 45,000 hryvnias. For the same specialty the difference is 70,000 hryvnias, or 155,6%.

For construction painters the highest median salary was recorded in Lviv Oblast – 94,250 hryvnias. In Chernivtsi Oblast this indicator is 45,750 hryvnias. The difference is 48,500 hryvnias, or 106%.

Tilers are offered the most in Kyiv Oblast – median 107,500 hryvnias. In Poltava Oblast – 52,500 hryvnias. The gap reaches 55,000 hryvnias, or 104,8%.

For bricklayers the difference is twofold: in Lviv Oblast the median salary is 115,000 hryvnias, while in Zhytomyr Oblast it is 57,500 hryvnias. A similar picture is seen with plasterers: in Kyiv they are offered a median of 100,000 hryvnias, while in Zaporizhzhia Oblast – 50,000 hryvnias.

A large gap was also found among chat operators. In Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast the median salary for such work is 95,000 hryvnias, in Zaporizhzhia Oblast – 50,000 hryvnias. The difference reaches 45,000 hryvnias, or 90%.

For long-haul truck drivers the highest figure was recorded in Khmelnytskyi Oblast – 87,500 hryvnias, the lowest among the compared regions – in Sumy Oblast, where the median is 50,000 hryvnias. The difference is 37,500 hryvnias, or 75%.

Electricians in construction in Sumy Oblast are offered 72,500 hryvnias, while in Chernivtsi Oblast – 45,000 hryvnias. The difference is 27,500 hryvnias, or 61,1%.

Auto body repairers at service stations in Kyiv are offered a median of 90,000 hryvnias, in Kharkiv Oblast – 57,500 hryvnias. The gap is 56,5%.

For a typical construction worker vacancy the median in Lviv Oblast is 70,000 hryvnias, in Zaporizhzhia Oblast – 45,000 hryvnias. The difference is 25,000 hryvnias, or 55,6%.

For comparison with non-construction specialties: dentists in Kirovohrad Oblast are offered a median of 95,000 hryvnias, while in Zhytomyr Oblast – 57,500 hryvnias. The gap is 37,500 hryvnias, or 65,2%. A head of sales department in Vinnytsia Oblast can expect a median offer of 110,000 hryvnias, while in Zhytomyr Oblast – 68,750 hryvnias. The difference is 41,250 hryvnias, or 60%.

Mykolaiv region again among regions with lower offers

Mykolaiv Oblast fell into the lower part of the comparison for several more professions. For example, production electricians in Kirovohrad Oblast are offered a median of 79,702 hryvnias, while in Mykolaiv region – 52,500 hryvnias. The difference is 27,202 hryvnias, or 51,8%. Plumbers in Chernihiv Oblast are offered 70,000 hryvnias, while in Mykolaiv Oblast – 50,000 hryvnias. The difference is 20,000 hryvnias, or 40%.

Thus, in the OLX Robota study Mykolaiv region twice appeared among regions with the lowest median pay for certain professions – façade workers and plumbers – and also significantly lagged behind Kirovohrad Oblast in production electricians’ salaries. For broader context: according to official statistics for May 2026, the average nominal salary of staff employees in Mykolaiv Oblast was 27,287 hryvnias, while across Ukraine it was 30,961 hryvnias. Thus the region lagged behind the national level by 3,674 hryvnias, or nearly 12%.

So, we compiled a ranking of regions by salaries based on OLX Robota data. Average median salary across the professions listed in the OLX Robota sample. The data do not cover the same set of professions in each region.

1 Kyiv Oblast – 107,500 UAH
2 Lviv Oblast – 93,083 UAH
3 Vinnytsia Oblast – 90,000 UAH
4 Khmelnytskyi Oblast – 87,500 UAH
5 Kirovohrad Oblast – 87,351 UAH
6 Zakarpattia Oblast – 80,500 UAH
7 Volyn Oblast – 80,000 UAH
8 Kyiv – 80,000 UAH
9 Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast – 73,333 UAH
10 Chernihiv Oblast – 60,000 UAH
11 Zhytomyr Oblast – 58,438 UAH
12 Rivne Oblast – 58,125 UAH
13-14 Kharkiv Oblast – 57,500 UAH
13-14 Sumy Oblast – 57,500 UAH
15 Cherkasy Oblast – 56,250 UAH
16 Poltava Oblast – 52,500 UAH
17 Ternopil Oblast – 50,000 UAH
18 Mykolaiv Oblast – 49,167 UAH
19 Zaporizhzhia Oblast – 48,333 UAH
20 Chernivtsi Oblast – 45,375 UAH

Mykolaiv Oblast ranks 18th out of the 20 represented regions. The average median salary across the 3 professions for which data are provided for Mykolaiv region in the study is about 49.2 thousand hryvnias. Only Zaporizhzhia Oblast – 48.3 thousand hryvnias and Chernivtsi Oblast – 45.4 thousand hryvnias have lower figures in this sample.

Why identical work is paid so differently

OLX Robota explains that the greatest imbalance currently mainly arises between western and eastern or southern regions of the country. Reasons cited include the security situation, local demand for workers, and a shortage of specific specialists. Where staff are especially scarce, employers are forced to raise wages to find and retain people.

At the same time, the pattern is not absolute. For example, the frontline Sumy Oblast offers construction electricians 61,1% more than Chernivtsi Oblast. Therefore, the level of security alone does not explain all differences – the number of vacancies, volume of work and shortages of particular specialists also matter.

In Mykolaiv region the problem has another side: employers are already complaining not only about pay levels but also about a shortage of people. Previously, regional leadership estimated the staff deficit in a number of key areas at roughly 30–40%, and communal enterprises separately reported shortages of fitters, tractor drivers, excavator operators and welders.