Anker Research Institute

What Anker Research Institute does

Anker Research Institute (ARI) is a private, non-profit research organization founded in 2017 by Richard Anker and Martha Anker, and hosted by Social Accountability International (SAI) in New York. The institute specializes in estimating living wages and living incomes for specific geographic locations using the proprietary Anker Methodology, which combines secondary analysis of household size, expenditures, and worker count with on-ground field research into local costs of nutritious food, healthy housing, healthcare, and education. ARI has measured over 200 living wage numbers across more than 40 countries in Latin America, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, with estimates updated annually for inflation and economic conditions.

The institute's product portfolio includes country-level Reference Value Reports, location/sector-specific Benchmark Reports, Living Wage Updates, the ARI Country Index, the ARI Sector Index, and an ARI Database (in development) that exposes the full dataset through community membership and licensing. Distribution occurs primarily through free downloadable reports on the ARI website (gated by email), supplemented by webinars, a newsletter, and corporate sponsor recognition. ARI serves a horizontal mix of customer segments — multinational companies with developing-country supply chains, governments setting minimum wages, trade unions, certification bodies (Fairtrade, Rainforest Alliance, FSC, Goodweave, SAN, UTZ, SAI), and academic researchers.

ARI's business model is donation- and sponsorship-based, with no equity or debt funding. Revenue streams comprise corporate sponsorships tiered at $2,000-$5,000 (companies under $100M revenue) or $5,000-$10,000 (companies $100M+), individual donations, and database/community membership licensing. Named corporate sponsors include BOLDR, OFI (Olam Food Ingredients), Rabobank, Primark, Towa, Lenzing AG, and Aralar. The institute operates with approximately 10 employees and is supported by the Global Living Wage Coalition, an alliance of major sustainability standards organizations that collectively use the Anker Methodology as the foundation for living wage benchmarks in global supply chains.

Name

Anker Research Institute

Legal name

Anker Research Institute

Website

https://ankerresearchinstitute.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Anker Research Institute is a non-profit research organization founded in 2017 that produces living wage and living income estimates for 200+ locations across 40+ countries using its proprietary Anker Methodology, serving multinational companies, governments, trade unions, and certification bodies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Labor Market Research

NAICS

Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (54169), Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416), Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (541)

akta.pro primary industry

Economic & Macroeconomic Research (BPAHALAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Industry & Sector Research (Syndicated/Custom) (BPAHALAE), Economic Research, Statistics & Policy Advisory (BPADAMAJ), Policy, Regulatory & Public Affairs Research (BPAHALAF)

Keywords

• Living wage research
• Labor income analysis
• Wage estimation methodology
• Supply chain wage analysis
• Household expenditure studies

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Corporate Sponsorships: Companies adopt ethical standards in supply chains and pay annual donations based on their revenue to support living wage research. Recommended donations of $2,000-$5,000 for companies with revenue under $100 million, and $5,000-$10,000 for companies with revenue $100 million+. Corporate sponsors gain recognition, first-look webinars, and group discussion sessions with researchers.
2. Individual Donations: The institute accepts individual donations from supporters who wish to contribute to living wage and living income research as a public good.
3. Database Access and Community Membership: Access to the ARI database with living wage and living income estimates, custom dashboards, and resource library through a community membership licensing agreement.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Anker Research Institute is a non-profit research organization that produces rigorous living wage and living income estimates for specific countries, sub-national regions, and sectors using the proprietary Anker Methodology, which combines secondary household survey analysis with on-ground primary field research on local costs of food, housing, healthcare, and education. It disseminates these estimates through country and sector indexes, benchmark and reference value reports, annual inflation-adjusted updates, and a licensed database accessed by companies, governments, standards bodies, and unions.

Product overview

Anker Research Institute offers a portfolio of living wage and living income research products based on its proprietary Anker Methodology. The core offerings include Reference Value Reports (national-level estimates using statistical regressions) and Benchmark Reports (detailed studies for specific locations and sectors). These are accessible through the ARI Country Index and ARI Sector Index databases, with full data available through the ARI Database platform. The Institute also provides an annual sponsorship program for corporations seeking to support living wage research. All estimates are updated yearly to account for inflation and regulatory changes.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Anker Methodology: A rigorous methodology for estimating living wages and living incomes that combines secondary data analysis on household size, expenditures, and number of workers with on-ground field research on the local cost of nutritious food, healthy housing, adequate health care, and children's education.
• ARI Country Index
• ARI Sector Index

Products and services

• Living Wage Research & Estimates

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 200 living wage numbers measured globally and updated annually
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Global Living Wage CoalitioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Global Living Wage Coalition supports ARI and uses the Anker Methodology to create high quality, detailed, and transparent living wage estimates. Coalition members include Fairtrade International, Forest Stewardship Council, Goodweave International, Rainforest Alliance, Social Accountability International, Sustainable Agriculture Network, and UTZ.
• Social Accountability International (SAI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSocial Accountability International hosts the Anker Research Institute in New York, USA. SAI is also a member of the Global Living Wage Coalition.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• WageIndicator Foundation: WageIndicator is a foundation that produces living wage estimates globally and provides online wage data, directly competing with ARI in the same living wage research and dataset category for companies, certifiers, and policymakers.
• Fair Wage Network: Fair Wage Network develops methodologies and assessments for fair and living wages across countries, directly competing with ARI's Anker Methodology as an alternative standard for measuring decent wages.

Broad incumbents

• Fairtrade International: Fairtrade is a major certification body and Global Living Wage Coalition member that uses ARI's Anker Methodology, making it a buyer-distributor of ARI's research and a comparable standards organization operating broadly in ethical sourcing.
• Social Accountability International (SAI): SAI hosts ARI and co-develops living wage work through the Global Living Wage Coalition; comparable as a broader social compliance and standards organization that overlaps with ARI's mission.
• International Labour Organization (ILO): ILO is the UN agency setting global labor standards and wage policy, representing the broad incumbent counterpart whose official statistics and conventions frame ARI's niche methodology-driven work.
• Rainforest Alliance: Rainforest Alliance is a certification body and Global Living Wage Coalition member using ARI living wage estimates, comparable as a large incumbent that drives adoption of ARI's data through its certification standards.

Regional players

• Asia Floor Wage Alliance: Asia Floor Wage Alliance calculates a regional living wage benchmark for Asian garment-producing countries, serving as an alternative methodology and advocacy-driven counterpart to ARI in Asian apparel supply chains.

Emerging players

• MIT Living Wage Calculator: MIT's Living Wage Calculator estimates location-specific living wages in the United States using a different statistical methodology, representing a complementary academic peer with overlapping end-users (companies, policymakers).
• IDH - The Sustainable Trade Initiative: IDH convenes supply-chain stakeholders and funds living wage roadmaps, including the IDH Salary Matrix tool, making it a partial competitor and frequent collaborator with ARI in living wage data and program delivery.

Others

• Responsible Purchasing Practices (RPP) / Sustainability standards consultancies: RPP and similar consulting bodies help brands implement living wage commitments using ARI data, comparable as adjacent ecosystem participants that distribute and apply ARI's research outputs.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/anker-research-institute

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Anker Research Institute