Benchmark dataset
Remote Pay Zone Index 2026
We classify all 20 countries in our Salary Index into four cost-of-living zones, then show what 50 mid-level roles would pay under domestic, nearshore, and global remote bands. Static model—not a live geo-pay feed or verified employer policy table.
Figures use Toolminator's static salary model (ranges for comparison, not job listings). Methodology & limitations.
Content revision: 2026-05
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Researchers and journalists may use this index with attribution. CC BY 4.0 with attribution to Toolminator and link to methodology.
The four zones
Zone A — High-cost hub
CoL index ≥ 1.00
Hub markets at or above the US baseline in our static cost-of-living model.
Zone B — Established market
0.75 – 0.99
Mature, mid-cost markets—most of Western Europe and Australia/Japan in our catalog.
Zone C — Emerging / nearshore
0.50 – 0.74
Lower-cost markets often used as nearshore hiring pools relative to a hub country.
Zone D — Lowest-cost
< 0.50
Lowest cost-of-living markets in our static model—largest nominal gap vs. hub pay.
Country zone map
Ranked by our static cost-of-living index (US = 1.00 baseline).
| Country | CoL index | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Switzerland | 1.28 | Zone A — High-cost hub |
| Norway | 1.05 | Zone A — High-cost hub |
| Singapore | 1.02 | Zone A — High-cost hub |
| United States | 1.00 | Zone A — High-cost hub |
| United Kingdom | 0.95 | Zone B — Established market |
| Australia | 0.94 | Zone B — Established market |
| Ireland | 0.93 | Zone B — Established market |
| Canada | 0.92 | Zone B — Established market |
| Sweden | 0.91 | Zone B — Established market |
| Netherlands | 0.90 | Zone B — Established market |
| Japan | 0.89 | Zone B — Established market |
| Germany | 0.88 | Zone B — Established market |
| France | 0.86 | Zone B — Established market |
| Italy | 0.78 | Zone B — Established market |
| Spain | 0.72 | Zone C — Emerging / nearshore |
| Poland | 0.52 | Zone C — Emerging / nearshore |
| Mexico | 0.42 | Zone D — Lowest-cost |
| Brazil | 0.38 | Zone D — Lowest-cost |
| Türkiye | 0.35 | Zone D — Lowest-cost |
| India | 0.28 | Zone D — Lowest-cost |
Top 30 mid-level roles — hub pay vs. remote bands (global USD rank)
| # | Role | Country (zone) | Hub USD | Domestic remote | Global remote |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Physician | Switzerland (Zone A) | $298,637 | $274,746 | $215,018 |
| 2 | Physician | Norway (Zone A) | $244,975 | $225,377 | $176,382 |
| 3 | Physician | Singapore (Zone A) | $237,976 | $218,938 | $171,343 |
| 4 | Physician | United States (Zone A) | $233,310 | $214,645 | $167,983 |
| 5 | Physician | United Kingdom (Zone B) | $221,645 | $203,913 | $159,585 |
| 6 | Machine Learning Engineer | Switzerland (Zone A) | $221,198 | $203,502 | $159,263 |
| 7 | Cloud Architect | Switzerland (Zone A) | $221,070 | $203,384 | $159,170 |
| 8 | Physician | Australia (Zone B) | $219,312 | $201,767 | $157,905 |
| 9 | Physician | Ireland (Zone B) | $216,979 | $199,621 | $156,225 |
| 10 | Physician | Canada (Zone B) | $214,646 | $197,474 | $154,545 |
| 11 | Physician | Sweden (Zone B) | $212,312 | $195,327 | $152,865 |
| 12 | Physician | Netherlands (Zone B) | $209,979 | $193,181 | $151,185 |
| 13 | Dentist | Switzerland (Zone A) | $209,046 | $192,322 | $150,513 |
| 14 | Physician | Japan (Zone B) | $207,646 | $191,034 | $149,505 |
| 15 | Physician | Germany (Zone B) | $205,313 | $188,888 | $147,826 |
| 16 | Physician | France (Zone B) | $200,646 | $184,595 | $144,465 |
| 17 | Investment Banker | Switzerland (Zone A) | $196,829 | $181,082 | $141,717 |
| 18 | Product Manager | Switzerland (Zone A) | $191,981 | $176,623 | $138,226 |
| 19 | Data Scientist | Switzerland (Zone A) | $188,232 | $173,173 | $135,527 |
| 20 | Software Engineer | Switzerland (Zone A) | $185,841 | $170,974 | $133,805 |
| 21 | DevOps Engineer | Switzerland (Zone A) | $182,026 | $167,464 | $131,058 |
| 22 | Physician | Italy (Zone B) | $181,982 | $167,423 | $131,027 |
| 23 | Machine Learning Engineer | Norway (Zone A) | $181,452 | $166,936 | $130,645 |
| 24 | Cloud Architect | Norway (Zone A) | $181,346 | $166,838 | $130,569 |
| 25 | Machine Learning Engineer | Singapore (Zone A) | $176,267 | $162,165 | $126,912 |
| 26 | Cloud Architect | Singapore (Zone A) | $176,164 | $162,071 | $126,838 |
| 27 | Lawyer | Switzerland (Zone A) | $174,528 | $160,566 | $125,661 |
| 28 | Machine Learning Engineer | United States (Zone A) | $172,811 | $158,986 | $124,424 |
| 29 | Cloud Architect | United States (Zone A) | $172,710 | $158,893 | $124,351 |
| 30 | Dentist | Norway (Zone A) | $171,483 | $157,764 | $123,468 |
United States — remote bands by role
- PhysicianHub $233,310 · Global remote $167,983 USD
- Machine Learning EngineerHub $172,811 · Global remote $124,424 USD
- Cloud ArchitectHub $172,710 · Global remote $124,351 USD
- DentistHub $163,317 · Global remote $117,588 USD
- Investment BankerHub $153,773 · Global remote $110,717 USD
- Product ManagerHub $149,985 · Global remote $107,989 USD
- Data ScientistHub $147,056 · Global remote $105,880 USD
- DevOps EngineerHub $142,208 · Global remote $102,390 USD
- LawyerHub $136,350 · Global remote $98,172 USD
- Full Stack DeveloperHub $131,098 · Global remote $94,391 USD
Canada — remote bands by role
- PhysicianHub CA$300,096 · Global remote $154,545 USD
- Machine Learning EngineerHub CA$222,279 · Global remote $114,470 USD
- Cloud ArchitectHub CA$222,149 · Global remote $114,403 USD
- DentistHub CA$210,067 · Global remote $108,181 USD
- Investment BankerHub CA$197,791 · Global remote $101,859 USD
- Product ManagerHub CA$192,919 · Global remote $99,351 USD
- Data ScientistHub CA$189,151 · Global remote $97,410 USD
- Software EngineerHub CA$186,748 · Global remote $96,173 USD
- DevOps EngineerHub CA$182,916 · Global remote $94,199 USD
- LawyerHub CA$175,381 · Global remote $90,318 USD
United Kingdom — remote bands by role
- PhysicianHub £165,148 · Global remote $159,585 USD
- Machine Learning EngineerHub £122,324 · Global remote $118,203 USD
- Cloud ArchitectHub £122,252 · Global remote $118,133 USD
- DentistHub £115,604 · Global remote $111,710 USD
- Investment BankerHub £108,847 · Global remote $105,181 USD
- Product ManagerHub £106,166 · Global remote $102,591 USD
- Software EngineerHub £102,770 · Global remote $99,308 USD
- DevOps EngineerHub £100,661 · Global remote $97,270 USD
- LawyerHub £96,515 · Global remote $93,264 USD
- Full Stack DeveloperHub £92,797 · Global remote $89,671 USD
Ireland — remote bands by role
- PhysicianHub €186,949 · Global remote $156,225 USD
- Machine Learning EngineerHub €138,471 · Global remote $115,714 USD
- Cloud ArchitectHub €138,391 · Global remote $115,648 USD
- DentistHub €130,864 · Global remote $109,357 USD
- Investment BankerHub €123,216 · Global remote $102,966 USD
- Product ManagerHub €120,181 · Global remote $100,430 USD
- Data ScientistHub €117,835 · Global remote $98,469 USD
- Software EngineerHub €116,337 · Global remote $97,218 USD
- DevOps EngineerHub €113,950 · Global remote $95,223 USD
- LawyerHub €109,256 · Global remote $91,300 USD
Australia — remote bands by role
- PhysicianHub A$310,326 · Global remote $157,905 USD
- Machine Learning EngineerHub A$229,856 · Global remote $116,958 USD
- Cloud ArchitectHub A$229,722 · Global remote $116,891 USD
- DentistHub A$217,228 · Global remote $110,533 USD
- Investment BankerHub A$204,533 · Global remote $104,073 USD
- Product ManagerHub A$199,495 · Global remote $101,510 USD
- Data ScientistHub A$195,599 · Global remote $99,528 USD
- Software EngineerHub A$193,114 · Global remote $98,263 USD
- DevOps EngineerHub A$189,151 · Global remote $96,247 USD
- LawyerHub A$181,359 · Global remote $92,281 USD
Zones are a static classification of our own cost-of-living model, not a live geo-pay feed or verified employer policy table. Remote pay columns apply the same illustrative multipliers (0.92 / 0.82 / 0.72) used by the Remote Salary Adjustment Model.
Cite & registry
Toolminator Remote Pay Zone Index 2026 (2026) — permalink for citations and dataset metadata.