The start of the new year is the ideal time to change jobs, and salary plays a key role in many employees' decisions. In this context, it is interesting to watch how much people earn in different countries in Europe, the Bulgarian press writes.
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For many employees, salary is a deciding factor in choosing the next career step. In addition to clear differences between sectors, wages also vary significantly between European countries – both in nominal terms and when purchasing power is taken into account. Here's how wages differ across Europe, according to Eurostat's latest data from 2024.
The average salary in the EU is almost 40,000 euros
The average annual salary of an employee in the EU is 39,808 euros. However, the differences between countries are huge – from 15,387 euros in Bulgaria to 82,969 euros in Luxembourg, which is 5.4 times more.
Apart from Luxembourg, the average salary exceeds €50,000 in five other countries: Denmark, Ireland, Belgium, Austria and Germany. At the bottom of the ranking, apart from Bulgaria, the average annual salary is below 20,000 euros in Greece and Hungary. In many countries, a large part of the population works part-time. Eurostat adjusts the data to show what the average wage would be if all employees worked full-time.
In general, wages are higher in Western and Northern Europe and lower in Eastern and South-Eastern Europe.
Why are there such differences?
Giulia De Lazzari, an economist at the International Labor Organization (ILO), pointed out that the economic structure and productivity of nations is a major reason for the differences between countries.
“Higher productivity allows countries to maintain higher wages,” she told Euronews Business.
Lazari pointed out that countries with a higher share of high-value-added sectors such as finance, IT and high-tech manufacturing have higher wages compared to countries where employment is concentrated in low-wage areas – such as agriculture, textiles or basic services.
The presence and strength of unions, the scope of collective labor agreements, as well as the level of the legal minimum wage also have a significant impact,” she added.
Dr Agnieszka Piasna, senior researcher at the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI), explained that low unionization rates and higher unemployment are likely to undermine workers' market power. “This is often seen as an explanation for low wages in many Central and Eastern European countries, which have some of the lowest unionization rates in the EU,” she told Euronews Business.
Romania climbs from 22nd to 13th place
The difference narrows when measured in purchasing power standards (PPS), which means cost of living differences between states are taken into account. A PPC unit can theoretically buy the same amount of goods and services in each country. Measured this way, full-time wages range from 21,644 in Greece to 55,051 in Luxembourg. The ratio between the highest and the lowest salary drops to 2.5 times.
Apart from Luxembourg, the top ranked countries are Belgium, Denmark, Germany and Austria – all over 48,500 PPC. The five countries with the lowest wages are Greece, Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria and Estonia – all below 28,000 PPC. The ILO's Lazarri pointed out that the cost of living and price levels also have an impact on wages and incomes. “Countries with higher consumer prices tend to have higher nominal wages”
The ranking of some countries changes a lot when comparing euro values with PPCs. For example, Romania moves up from 22nd to 13th and performs much better in CPCs, while Estonia drops from 16th to 22nd when price differences are taken into account.
If the average growth of the last five years continues, the average wage in the EU is expected to reach €41,600 in nominal terms in 2025 and €43,400 in 2026, although growth rates vary considerably between countries. (Material made with the support of Rador Raio Romania)
