Tashkent, 27 October. The average accrued wage in Uzbekistan in January–September 2026 rose 18% year on year to 7.27 million soums a month, and the National Statistics Committee published an experimental estimate of the median wage for the first time, at 4.17 million soums for January–August, the committee said in a press release dated 27 October.
The median is the value that splits workers in half: half earn less, half more. Unlike the average, it depends less on the highest salaries. The gap between the average (7.27 million soums) and the median (4.17 million) shows that a sizeable share of the wage bill goes to a small group of well-paid workers. The committee's figures exclude small enterprises, micro-firms and farms, so they do not cover everyone in work.
The highest average wage is in Tashkent, at 12.3 million soums (+18.3% over the year), about 1.7 times the national average. Next come Navoi region (8.82 million) and Tashkent region (6.89 million). Wages are lowest in Kashkadarya (4.97 million) and Surkhandarya (4.99 million) regions: the gap between the capital and Kashkadarya is almost 2.5 times.
By sector, finance and insurance lead at 19.71 million soums, followed by information and communications at 17.01 million, and programming and related services at 22.28 million. Pay is lowest in health and social services at 4.45 million soums, despite growth of 18.2% over the year. In education the average is 5.02 million, but school teachers receive 4.79 million, or 65.9% of the national average against 67.1% a year earlier, and kindergarten staff 2.85 million soums.
What it means: Wages in Uzbekistan are growing faster than inflation, but unevenly: the capital and the financial sector are pulling ahead, while schools are falling further behind the economy-wide average than a year ago. The median shows for the first time what a typical worker, rather than an average one, earns.
Who benefits: Workers in finance, telecoms and IT in Tashkent, whose incomes are rising fastest. Teachers and medics gain less: their pay relative to the average is shrinking. The new median data are useful to the government and to researchers measuring income inequality.
Background: In January–September 2025 wages in Uzbekistan rose 19.2% with annual inflation at 8%. Uzbekistan is the most populous country in Central Asia.
We have also reported that Uzbekistan increased electricity exports by 21.4% in nine months.
