At what age will you earn the most money?

The amount of time you have to earn the money you want is shorter than you think, according to new research into growth in pay, and pay by gender.

In fact, studies conducted by PayScale.com found women’s pay peaks at 39-years-old, when they are earning a median amount of US$60,000 (S$76,000).

There may be slight peaks in pay following this, but research suggests that in actual fact, women are more likely to earn that $60,000 for the rest of their lives.

While that amount is nothing to frown upon, it does become a slightly more concerning issue when you realise men’s pay peaks at around age 48 and at a median of US$95,000 (S$121,000).

So why do men’s wages grow faster and for a longer period of time than women’s?

The study suggests two reasons: job choice and family responsibilities. Overall, men gravitate towards different careers than women, which often tend to be jobs that start out on a higher wage and promise a higher percentage of growth with experience gained.

For men, these jobs include things like software developers (89% men, 11% women), construction project managers (91% men, 9% women) and computer systems administrators (90% men, 10% women).

The most common jobs for women – teachers, registered nurses and HR administrators – offer wage growth with experience gained as well, but nowhere near at the same rate as men.

And even when men and women have similar background, education and experience in the same profession, men still out earn women.

For example, a male software developer will earn 4% more than a woman with the same experience.

As for family responsibility, the study states women’s pay growth stops growing as fast as men’s at around age 30, which is when the majority of tertiary-educated women will start having children.