Living standards in the Republic are higher than in Northern Ireland, a new report by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) has found.
Household disposable income was €36,900 in the South compared to €33,400 in the North in 2022, a gap of 10.4%.
Hourly earnings were 29% higher in the Republic last year.
Life expectancy, which is a key indicator of income, education and access to health services, is longer in the South with men living two years longer and women 1.5 years longer.
In 2022 life expectancy was 80.9 years for men and 84.2 for women in the Republic compared to 78.9 and 82.7 in the North.
Economic activity per head of population was significantly higher in the South with gross national income per capita €63,500 compared to €34,500 in Northern Ireland a gap of 84% in 2023.
The population in the South grew by 14.8% between 2015 and 2024 compared to 3.9% in the North over the same period.
In 12 months to June 2025 the Republic's domestic economy grew by 3.2% while growth was 2.8% in Northern Ireland.
The ESRI said: "Employment increased in both jurisdictions in 2025 compared to 2024, with Ireland adding 63,900 jobs (a 2.3% annual increase) and Northern Ireland adding 20,640 jobs (a 2.5% annual increase) in the year ending Q2 2025."
The report’s co-author Adele Bergin said: "Northern Ireland continues to show lower levels of disposable income compared to Ireland, and also lower levels of educational attainment, labour force participation and export intensity."
She added: "However, the most recent data show comparable rates of employment growth in the year ending Q2 2025 (2.3% in Ireland and 2.5% in Northern Ireland)."
The report said that last year Republic had a higher labour force participation, which measures how many people are active in the jobs market, at 78.5% and an employment rate of 75.1% compared to the North which had 75.7% and 74.3% respectively.
However, Northern Ireland has a lower unemployment rate of 1.8% compared to 4.4% in the Republic last year.
The report called, Assessing Economic Trends in Ireland and Northern Ireland, is part of a joint research programme between the ESRI and the Shared Island Unit in the Department of the Taoiseach.
