A Comprehensive Comparison of Average Salaries Across European Countries
Moving abroad can be a daunting prospect, especially when you don't know if you'll be able to get a decent job in the country of your choosing. That's why we've previously compiled a list of the countries with the best salaries.
But what if your heart is set on a specific country that's not listed? How do you know for sure that you'll be paid enough for your expertise? And if you wanted to take your career in a new direction, what's the top-paying job in the country of your choice?
To answer these questions and more, we've put together a comprehensive guide to the average salaries across European countries. Let's take a look at Europe's average and minimum wages now.
Comparison of Average Salaries Across European Countries - Comparison TableCountry | Average Monthly Salary | Minimum Wage (per month unless otherwise specified) |
Switzerland | $7,524 | N/A |
Luxembourg | $6,776 | $2,694 |
Denmark | $6,400 | N/A |
Iceland | $6,018 | N/A |
Belgium | $5,400 | $2,100 |
Norway | $5,053 | N/A |
Germany | $4,900 | $2,063 |
France | $4,400 | $1,877 |
Finland | $4,171 | N/A |
Ireland | $3,910 | $12.14 per hour |
UK | $3,316 | $2,079 |
Netherlands | $3,063 | $2,143 |
Sweden | $2,790 | N/A |
Austria | $2,700 | N/A |
Italy | $2,821 | N/A |
Greece | $2,618 | $977 |
Cyprus | $2,380 | $1,008 |
Slovenia | $2,369 | $1,292 |
Spain | $2,280 | $1,353 |
Lithuania | $2,148 | $902 |
Estonia | $2,012 | $779 |
Czechia | $1,888 | $783 |
Malta | $1,654 | $897 |
Poland | $1,628 | $871 |
Slovakia | $1,627 | $752 |
Hungary | $1,588 | $670 |
Romania | $1,582 | $649 |
Latvia | $1,212 | $666 |
Croatia | $1,150 | $752 |
Portugal | $1,121 | $953 |
Montenegro | $1,067 | $573 |
Bosnia & Herzegovina | $1,067 | $327 |
Bulgaria | $1,060 | $428 |
North Macedonia | $984 | $352 |
Russia | $783 | $166 |
Serbia | $783 | $495 |
Albania | $715 | $343 |
Belarus | $683 | $196 |
Moldova | $680 | $222 |
Ukraine | $399 | $181 |
As you can see from the table above, salaries vary across European countries, and it goes without saying that in most of these countries, your salary will depend on your level of expertise, years of experience, and the industry you work in.
Let's now take a closer look at different European countries in terms of salaries.
Western EuropeLike this infographic? Feel free to use it on your website or blog, but please remember to give us credit by linking back totechreport.com/statistics/average-salaries-across-european-countriesin your post.
In this section, we'll cover Western European countries located in the west and the southwest of Europe, including Spain, Portugal, France, Belgium, The Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Luxembourg and Switzerland.
Five of these countries are in the top ten countries for the highest salaries, ranging from$4,400 in France to $7,524 in Switzerland. Generally, the region offers fairly high salaries compared to the rest of Europe, with the exception of Scandinavia.
The minimum wage in these countries ranges fromnothing in Austria and Switzerlandto $2,694 per month in Luxembourg.
France has experienced significant minimum wage growth in the last few years, rising from 1,555 in February 2021 to 1,747 in July 2023. Luxembourg saw similar minimum wage growth rates over those dates, rising from 2,202 to 2,508.
In terms of average wage growth, the highest rate of growth (8%) was seen by Luxembourg. Portugal and Austria saw the biggest falls in average monthly wages. Wages in Portugal dropped by 12% in 2023, compared to the previous year, and Austria's 2022 wages were 13% lower than 2021.
UK and IrelandSource: Statista
The United Kingdom and Ireland are both in our list of the top 20 countries with the best salaries.
The minimum wage in the UK is 10.42 per hour. Average salary figures are published by the Office of National Statistics, and as of July 2023, the average weekly wage in the UK is 664. That amounts to approximately 2,656 per month, or $3,316.
Compared to the period 12 months before, when the average weekly wage was 615and the average monthly wage amounted to 2,460,UK salaries are on the rise. However, due to the country's ongoing cost-of-living crisis, wages don't go nearly as far as they did twenty or even ten years ago.
For the Emerald Isle, average annual wages have been falling since reaching their peak of 54,400 in 2020. As of 2023 anaverage Irish person receives a salary of $3,910 per month.
Northern EuropeLike this infographic? Feel free to use it on your website or blog, but please remember to give us credit by linking back totechreport.com/statistics/average-salaries-across-european-countriesin your post.
Northern Europe encompasses the Scandinavian countries, plus Iceland. All the countries in Northern Europe -Iceland, Norway, Finland, Sweden, and Denmark - are on our list of the top 20 countries with the best wages.
None of these countries have a mandated minimum wage in place. As of 2022, Denmark has the highest average wage per month in the region, amounting to approximatelyDKK 44,763 or $6,400.
Sweden is at the other end of the spectrum - its average monthly wages amount to a little over $2,700 in 2023. Iceland, Norway, and Finland have average monthly wages ranging from $4,200 in Finland to $6,000 in Iceland.
Eastern & Southern EuropeLike this infographic? Feel free to use it on your website or blog, but please remember to give us credit by linking back totechreport.com/statistics/average-salaries-across-european-countriesin your post.
Finally, we come to Eastern and Southern Europe. This section includes the Balkan and Baltic states, Greece, Cyprus, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Bulgaria, Romania, Czechia, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia.
Many of these countries appeared on our list of the cheapest European countries to live in.
Baltics
First, let's take a look at the Baltic States - Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. They all use euros, and Lithuania and Estonia have an average monthly wage of $2,148 and $2,012, respectively.
Latviais somewhat behind, with an average monthly wage of $1,212in 2023. Its minimum wage of $666 is also less than Estonia's $779 and Lithuania's $902.
BalkansNow let's take a look at the Balkan states - Serbia, Croatia, Montenegro, Albania, North Macedonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Given Croatia's transition to the Euro in 2023, it's perhaps no surprise its minimum wage of $752is the highest in the region. The same also applies to the average monthly salary, which is $1,150 in 2023.
Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina have the same level of average monthly wages, at $1,066.However, perhaps given Montenegro's use of the Euro, its minimum wage of$573 is higher than Bosnia and Herzegovina's $327.
Of the remaining three countries, Serbia has the highest minimum wage of $495. However, its average monthly salary of $784 is lower than that of North Macedonia, which amounts to$954. Albania has the lowest monthly wages in the Balkans, adding up to $716 per month.
Central & South EuropeLike this infographic? Feel free to use it on your website or blog, but please remember to give us credit by linking back totechreport.com/statistics/average-salaries-across-european-countriesin your post.
In this section, we'll cover Greece, Italy, Cyprus, Slovenia, and Hungary. Italy is the only one of these countries that doesn't have a minimum wage in place. It's also the country with the highest average monthly wage of the five - $2,805, as of 2022.
Italy is followed by Greece, which has an average monthly wage of $2,618, Cyprus at $2,382, Slovenia at $2,370, and Hungary at $1,577. The last country also has the lowest minimum wage at $670 per month.
Eastern EuropeThis section consists of Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, Ukraine, Belarus, Czechia, Slovakia, and Russia.
As you might expect, the EU countries on the list have higher average wages than non-EU ones. The EU country with the best average monthly wages is Czechia, with an average monthly wage of almost $1,900.
Poland follows closely behind, in second place with $1,612. Out of the EU countries in this group, Bulgaria has the lowest average monthly wage of $1,058 and the lowest minimum wage of $429.
As for the non-EU countries, Russia takes the lead with an average monthly wage of $784, with Belarus following at $683. However, neither country is the leader for minimum wages - that medal goes to Moldova, which has a minimum wage of $222 in 2023.
References- Albania Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Austria Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Average annual salaries of the largest economies in Europe from 1991 to 2022 (Statista)
- Average annual wages for selected European countries in 2022 (Statista)
- Average annual wages in the Netherlands from 2000 to 2022 (Statista)
- Average Salary in Greece 2023 (Salary Explorer)
- Average Salary in The Netherlands (WeAreDevelopers)
- Average weekly earnings in Great Britain: September 2023 (Office for National Statistics)
- Belarus Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Belgium Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Best Paying Jobs in 2023 (Salary Explorer)
- Bosnia and Herzegovina Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Bulgaria Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Croatia Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Cyprus Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Czech Republic Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Estonia Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Finland Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- France Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Germany Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Greece Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Highest paying jobs in the UK (with salaries and definitions) (Indeed)
- Hungary Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Iceland Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Italy Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Ireland Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Latvia Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Lithuania Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Luxembourg Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Malta Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Minimum Wage - Cyprus (WageIndicator)
- Minimum Wage - Ukraine (WageIndicator)
- Minimum Wage Updated in Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina from 01 January 2023 - January 26, 2023 (WageIndicator)
- Minimum Wage Updated in Moldova from 01 January 2023 - February 25, 2023 (WageIndicator)
- Moldova Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Montenegro Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Monthly average earnings in Denmark from 2010 to 2021 (Statista)
- National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage rates (Gov.uk)
- Netherlands Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Norway Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Poland Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Portugal Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Romania Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Russia Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Serbia Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Slovakia Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Slovenia Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Spain Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Switzerland Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Top 10 Highest-Paying Jobs in France (CareerAddict)
- Top 10 Highest Paying Jobs In Norway In 2023 (The Workers Rights)
- Turkey Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- Ukraine Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
- United Kingdom Wages: Minimum And Average (Take-Profit)
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