Pay packets in Exeter lag thousands of pounds behind workers just 70 miles away.
It highlights an east-west pay gap that has emerged across the south west - where pay generally is rising at half the rate of the national average
There is a huge pay gap between workers living in the East and West of the South West region, with the people living in the East the best paid, earning up to £17,000 more than those living in the West.
It shows Exeter's annual pay average of £23,900 against table-topping Bath with £36,700.
The findings come with a new ManpowerGroup Pay League.
Based on the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings from the Office of National Statistics, the findings show that average pay for those living in the region rose 0.8% – half the rate of increase in the UK as a whole, where pay has risen 1.6%.
At an average of £24,400, annual pay in the South West is almost £3,000 lower than the UK average of £27,200.
It also revealed people living in Bath are the region's best paid, earning £36,700 annually, whereas workers living in Torridge, receive the South West's lowest salaries, an average of £19,700 per annum.
The higher salaries in the East of the region are driven by a number of high value employers including GCHQ and aeronautics companies who offer higher pay for the skilled workers they require.
There is a marked contrast between the fortunes of workers in some of the South West's key sectors and a huge gulf between highly skilled, highly paid workers and less skilled roles, which command much lower salaries that do not grow at the same rate.
The energy sector powers the South West's economy and workers here are the region's best paid, earning £48,200 annually on average.
