[spookie]

It's similar, in relative terms. In France the minimum wage is currently at 75.5% of the median, in Portugal it is 73.1%.

However, the issue lies in the absolute amounts. In France, the median (monthy) is 2340€, but in Portugal it is 1039€.

When you are taxed in relative terms this amounts to quite a big difference when comparing what both government get from their citizens.

I concur that France's cost of living is higher and that I'm wayyyy oversimplifying it.