Being a man called Ed could be the key to maximising your pay, earning you more than three times the amount a woman named Paige would be paid on average.
Adzuna’s global survey has revealed that the highest earning female name typically earns £22,570 less than the highest earning male name.
| Male | Female | |||
| 1 | Ed | £61,362 | Liz | £38,792 |
| 2 | Giles | £59,390 | Jo | £38,741 |
| 3 | Gerry | £58,257 | Michele | £36,305 |
| 4 | Philippe | £57,787 | Alexis | £36,240 |
| 5 | Bill | £56,731 | Jean | £35,468 |
| 6 | Ralph | £56,144 | Philippa | £35,027 |
| 7 | Ron | £55,565 | Sue | £35,013 |
| 8 | Ashok | £54,830 | Anne | £34,466 |
| 9 | Sergey | £54,173 | Carolyn | £34,355 |
| 10 | Geoff | £53,991 | Kate | £33,825 |
The highest earning name is Ed, which attracted an average salary of £61,362, compared to the highest earning female name Liz, who earned an average salary of £38,792.
As a reflection of the gender pay gap, the first female name appears in 317th place.
The job search engine’s ValueMyName tool took first name and salary data from more than 500,000 CVs to provide an average salary for 1200 first names.
Nine out of 10 of the lowest earning names are female, including Paige (£20,190), Chelsea (£21,044) and Bethany (£21,488). The lowest earning male name is Reece (£22,952), which comes behind Connor (£24,471) and Patryk (£25,207).
Andrew Hunter, co-founder of Adzuna, said: “This tool has shown us that the gender pay gap is not just evident across different industries, but also ties in heavily to males and females anywhere and specifically, names.”
The most valued Welsh names are Huw, which commands an average salary of £49,333 and Rhiannon (£25,470).
Scottish name Bruce attracts an average salary of £48,794 and the popular Scottish female name Agnes earns £28,325.
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For names with Irish roots, a male called Neil will typically earn £45,455, while Ciara earns an average of £29,968.
English names dominate the Top 10 list on ValueMyName, but they are joined by French name Philippe (£57,787) in fourth place and the Indian name Ashok (£54,830) in eighth.
1 comment
Addressed as Victoria, i find that my clients are more likely to take me seriously and open to engage or interview with myself, however, if I am introduced as my informal name Vicki…. I often receive a very different reaction.
I certainly believe if I was to be offered a salary as Vicki, this would come in much lower than an offer to Victoria, if they were to offer at all!
One colleague once quipped, oh you have a hairdressers name, as if I would not be capable of running a function or even a company.
Who knew that people would pre-judge your abilities, intelligence or worth based on a name, its hard enough contending with gender bias….But I have learnt they most certainly do!
Note to all Vicki, Tori, Vicky and Vickies….. You stand better chance at equal pay and standing, by being addressed by your birth right of Victoria, its a Queen’s name after all!