In recent years, disputes have arisen on the Internet and in reality about the average salary in the USSR. Some people claim that in the Soviet Union the middle class had to practically starve, while their opponents talk about an amazingly rich life. Let's try to figure out how it really was.
What was the average salary in the USSR?
It will not be easy to answer this question unequivocally, because the USSR has existed for many decades, and the salary has changed almost every year. Moreover, the first 30 years (from 1917 to 1947) were very difficult - the consequences of the First World War, the Civil War, collectivization, the Great Patriotic War. It is a miracle that the country did not cease to exist after such shocks!
So let's start from later times, when the country more or less recovered from all these terrible upheavals. So, what is the average salary in the USSR by years?
In 1960, it amounted to 73 rubles. Ten years later, in 1970, 121 rubles. For 1980, this figure rose to 174. And just before the collapse of a powerful power - 303 rubles.
Probably someone will note that the growth is not too big - only a few rubles a year. However, it is worth considering the fact that the growth was clear. That is, he did not generate inflation. In our time, the situation is completely different - as soon as the salary in a certain area increases, the prices of products, services, travel by public transport and everything else increase immediately. As a result, the people are only getting poorer, inflation is rapidly “eating up” the whole increase. When the average salary increased during the USSR period, prices remained unshakable. Therefore, every time a salary increased by a ruble, this ruble really allowed to buy something new, for which a year ago there was not enough money.
How much did representatives of different professions get?
Now let's talk about how wages changed depending on the scope of work. Moreover, such an average salary in the USSR for calculating a pension can be useful to people who began to work at a time when the Soviet Union still existed.
He received ordinary rubles 7 rubles - a small amount, but it was enough for pleasant things, and the army supplied him with everything else.
The average scholarship at the university was 40 rubles. And on it, though half-starving, but it was quite possible to live and even invite the girl you liked on a date in an inexpensive cafe or in a movie. Moreover, without taking into account the help from the parents - not many in those days indulged in twenty-year-old “kids”, trying to accustom them to complete independence.
Arriving at the production site, the young specialist could immediately count on a salary of 65 to 130 rubles - it’s already quite good, you could live by allowing yourself many amenities.
Nurses received an average of 80 rubles.
What was the average salary of an engineer in the USSR? A specialist who had no experience of 3 years received 150 rubles - very good money at that time. And then, with an increase in seniority, the salary was constantly growing - this money was enough to support a family of 4-5 people.
Teachers had good salaries. Primary school principals received approximately 140 rubles in 1984. Subject teachers earned more - in the region of 172 rubles. And this is already significantly more than the average salary in the country. Moreover, when the conversation was about 172 rubles, it was understood that approximately so much (plus or minus 10-20 rubles) were received by teachers in Moscow and in a remote village in Siberia. Today, one can only dream of such equality.
The military had very good salaries - quite rightly, because at any moment they could go to the front lines, risk their lives to protect the country and people. Therefore, the young lieutenant had a salary of at least 250 rubles.
Surprisingly, although in the highest echelons of power, the salary, although it was much higher than that of a simple person, it cannot be called astronomical. So, the minister in the union republic received about 600 rubles. And the Minister of the USSR - about 800 rubles. Yes, about 10 times more than a nurse, almost 6 times more than a young engineer. But compare this with modern differences, when a teacher in a provincial town receives 8 thousand rubles, and the number of zeros in the salary of the Minister of Education is difficult to calculate.
How did salaries vary by region?
The USSR was the largest country in history. Of course, the salaries of the same specialist in the Baltic states, in the Far North, in Moscow, Uzbekistan and the Far East varied significantly. As, by the way, and prices - after all, many people remember those times when prices for everyday products changed in three zones.
The highest salaries were among the inhabitants of the Baltic states. Also, many men sought to go north - here you could earn as much in six months as in other regions in a few years. True, the working conditions in these harsh places were extremely harsh.
In general, the average salary of the former Soviet republics varied greatly. In addition to the Baltic countries, they earned a lot in Armenia and Georgia. Significantly less income was in Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan. The RSFSR, Belarus, Ukraine and Turkmenistan were approximately in the middle.
What could be bought for the ruble?
And now we come to one of the most interesting and important questions. After all, it is not enough to know what the average salary in the USSR was. It is also necessary to have an idea of purchasing power - otherwise it is difficult to imagine the wealth of people.
To begin with, pennies were not just in use, but also had real value! So, just for one penny you could buy a glass of soda (though without syrup), a pencil or a box of matches. Having spent two pennies, you could make a phone call, buy a 12-sheet school notebook, a newspaper, or order sweet tea in a cafe.
Having 10 cents, a Soviet citizen could buy a portion of berry ice cream, a kilogram of potatoes, a bottle of soda, a hematogen tile, a jar of cosmetic mink Vaseline, a set of contour maps for geography of grade 9-10. He could also boo, taking a taxi ride (no more than 1 kilometer) or eat a sandwich with sausage in a cafe.
50 kopecks was already a pretty good amount. That is how much a pack of OPAL, Apollo or even Bulgarian TU-154 cigarettes cost. And half a ruble, you could order a comprehensive lunch in the dining room - not particularly exquisite, but quite tasty and satisfying, just without flavor enhancers. This amount was enough to please the child by buying him a set of plasticine from 12 colors.
Finally, the ruble. Having it, many housewives boldly went to the store for groceries, if large purchases were not planned. When visiting the dining room it was possible to "gulnut" by ordering the first and second, a glass of sour cream, two compotes and a sweet bun. So much was a soldering iron and lipstick. It was possible to purchase a pack of pipe tobacco or 100 meters of fishing line. Arriving at the grocery store, for this amount a citizen could immediately buy a kilogram of potatoes, a loaf of white bread, a bottle of soda, half a liter of milk, a kilogram of salt and the same amount of liverwurst - quite edible, unlike modern. So the purchasing power was very, very good.
Did the USSR live from pay to pay?
Quite often, in conversations where the average salary of the former USSR is discussed, the argument is used that money was barely enough from salary to advance, and from advance to salary.
Of course, first of all, it depends on the place of work and the ability to spend money - many people today, earning 50-100 thousand, also always sit in loans, complaining that the funds are critically short of even the most necessary.
But let's look at a typical Soviet family. For example, the reference book “The National Economy of the USSR for 1990” reports that with an average distribution of salaries, citizens save on average 8.3% of the family budget. Very good amount! Not everyone today can boast that he has the opportunity to save almost 10% of his salary every month.
So to say that most families really lived out the last days before pay, tightening their belts, is definitely impossible.
What was the salary spent on?
Now let's see how Soviet citizens planned their budget, for which they spent more money, and for which less.
The main item of expenditure was food. The average family spent on food 32% of salaries. Of course, this applies primarily to urban residents - in villages and small towns, where everyone had a subsidiary farm, costs decreased several times. In addition, it is very important to take into account that all the goods that fall on the shelves in stores, without exception, met state standards, and they were quite high. There was no soy, flavor enhancers, thickeners, flavors, palm oil or other harmful ingredients. Only exclusively natural components, which not every Russian can afford today.
To pay all taxes, pay fees and utility bills, had to pay almost 10% of the family budget. On average, 18% of the money was spent on the purchase of shoes and clothes. Cultural and household services cost 10%. Furniture and amenities cost about 7% per month.
As you can see, the budget was pretty accurately planned.
Why did salaries grow so slowly?
Someone, perhaps, will be surprised that salaries grew quite slowly. For example, the average salary in 1960 was 73 rubles, a year later it grew by 4 rubles, the next - by 3.8, and by 1963 - only by 1.5 rubles.
However, it should be borne in mind that the prices of products, consumer goods, books, clothes, equipment and everything else did not grow. Today it’s hard to imagine, but it was just that. On many items, prices were knocked out at the manufacturing plant. Because state planning stipulated that, for example, a pan costing 7 rubles 20 kopecks today would retain its price in ten years. In addition, the price indicated on the product excluded the possibility of speculation.
Almost all prices were regulated by the state, due to which the increase in salaries or demand for certain goods did not lead to sharp jumps in value.
Separately, it is worth mentioning that in order to overcome the post-war crisis, the authorities decided not to raise salaries for people, but ... to lower prices for products and other most important things. From 1949 to 1953 On March 1 or April 1, certain goods became cheaper throughout the country. The average cost reduction was 20%. In total, in just five years, the goods that were bought most often fell in price by half. But the salaries remained the same. Can you imagine this in our time?
What was the average pension?
Another issue that interests no less than average salaries in the former USSR countries is the size of pensions. Of course, one cannot answer unequivocally - much depended on the place of work, seniority, the availability of additional benefits and many other factors.
The average pension was 120 rubles - not much less than the salary of a young engineer. This was enough for a comfortable old age.
The exception was military personnel and employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, who were retiring from officer posts. They could well count on 250 and even 300 rubles! And this is already really huge money at that time.
Did Soviet citizens receive little or a lot?
Today it is customary to say that the well-being of people has increased dramatically compared to Soviet times. After all, salaries have grown, you can buy much more products for one salary.
However, it is worth considering the fact already mentioned earlier. Yes, 20 varieties of sausages could not be seen in any Soviet store. But in 2-3 available varieties there was definitely no soy, emulsifiers, regulators, dyes and flavor enhancers. And it costs a lot.
The treatment was free. Moreover, this was not only prescribed in the Constitution, but also acted in practice. The same can be said about training. Parents did not have to buy textbooks for children or pay large sums for extra circles. Higher education could not be paid in principle - only talented and intelligent youth entered universities, regardless of whether they came from poor or rich families.
Utilities cost ridiculously little - less than 3% of family income. Compare with modern indicators - about 11%.
Children's rest was fully paid by the state. And any worker from the factory, and not just leading specialists, could send his child to the camp. Today, not every family can afford to spend 30-50 thousand rubles for a child to spend 2 weeks in the camp.
Flights by air, which today are mainly the prerogative of very wealthy people, could be afforded by many Soviet citizens who knew how to plan their budget wisely.
Conclusion
So our article comes to an end. From it you learned how much different specialists in the Soviet Union received on average. Yes, much of what has been said today seems to be something fantastic, completely implausible. But it was so, and not somewhere, but in our country, not long ago, but only several decades ago. Let's hope you enjoyed the article. You also learned from it what the average salary in the USSR was for years — it can be very useful for calculating a pension.