Average salaries across Europe: Which countries have the highest pay?
Average salaries differ widely across Europe. The cost of living does too. So, which countries offer the highest pay? And how do salaries compare when adjusted for purchasing power standards?
There are various definitions of salary, wages, and earnings, each reflecting different aspects. The average full-time adjusted salary per employee is particularly useful.
Eurostat's calculation is based on the average gross annual salary for a full-time job. Euronews converted these figures into monthly salaries by simply dividing by 12.
In 2023, the average full-time adjusted monthly salary per employee ranged from €1,125 in Bulgaria to €6,755 in Luxembourg. The EU average was €3,155.
Denmark is the only EU country besides Luxembourg with a salary over €5,000. It offers €5,634.
Ireland (€4,890) and Belgium (€4,832) come very close to this threshold.
Austria (€4,542), Germany (€4,250), and Finland (€4,033) also offer salaries above €4,000.
Some 10 of 26 EU countries pay under €2,000
Among the 26 EU countries (excluding the Netherlands due to missing Eurostat data), 10 reported an average gross salary below €2,000.
In four member states, the average salary was below €1,500. Poland stood just above this level at €1,505. In Romania, Greece, and Hungary, salaries were around €1,400s.
Germany (€4,250) offers the highest average salary among the EU's four largest economies, followed by France (€3,555). Both Italy (€2,729) and Spain (€2,716) were below the EU average by more than €400.
Eurostat data covers 26 EU countries. While not directly comparable due to methodological differences, OECD's the average annual wages per full-time equivalent employee includes more European countries.
According to the OECD, the average salary in Switzerland was €8,104, making it the highest-paying country in Europe. Another European Free Trade Association (EFTA) country, Norway, offered an average salary of €5,027. The UK had an average salary of €4,220.
With €4,629, the Netherlands ranks among the top-paying EU countries.
Turkey, an EU candidate country, recorded the lowest average salary at €873, making it the only country below the €1,000 mark.
The general trend shows that Western and Northern European countries lead in salary levels, while Southern and Eastern Europe tend to offer significantly lower nominal wages.
Highest salaries in Europe by purchasing power
The gap in average salaries narrows when measured in purchasing power standards (PPS), as this eliminates the effect of price level differences. PPS is an artificial currency unit, where one unit can theoretically purchase the same amount of goods and services in each country
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