Mapped: Europe’s Minimum Wages, Adjusted for Living Costs

Pallavi Rao
2025-06-05 01:31:00
www.visualcapitalist.com

See this visualization first on the Voronoi app.

Mapped: Europe’s Minimum Wages, Adjusted for Living Costs

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

Key Takeaways

Europe’s minimum wages look very different in euros vs PPS (purchasing power standard).
Luxembourg has the highest national monthly minimum wage in euros (€2,638), while Ukraine has the lowest (€182).
However, when adjusted for living costs, Germany has the highest (1,992 PPS) and Albania is the lowest (564 PPS).

Consider the minimum wage, the most controversial but widespread tool governments use to tackle income inequality.

In fact nearly half the world’s countries have some kind of minimum wage, though different levels of government can set different standards.

This is because a rate that works in one area may be too high or low in another—causing labor market distortions.

We illustrate this phenomenon in the map above. The national monthly minimum wage (as of January, 2025) is visualized for several European countries, including 22 EU members.

Data is sourced from Eurostat, both in euros and PPS for easy comparisons.

Denmark, Italy, Austria, Finland & Sweden do not have a national minimum wage & thus cannot be included on this map.

The PPS unit is an artificial currency created by the EU to compare wages while accounting for living costs. Theoretically, 1 PPS can buy the same goods and services across the continent.

European Countries With Highest & Lowest National Minimum Wage

Luxembourg has the highest national monthly minimum wage in euros (€2,638), while Ukraine has the lowest (€182).

Euro Rank	Country	ISO Code	National Monthly Minimum Wage (€)	National Monthly Minimum Wage (PPS)
1	Luxembourg	LUX	€2,638	1,969
2	Ireland	IRL	€2,282	1,664
3	Netherlands	NLD	€2,193	1,875
4	Germany	DEU	€2,161	1,992
5	Belgium	BEL	€2,070	1,764
6	France	FRA	€1,802	1,606
7	Spain	ESP	€1,381	1,517
8	Slovenia	SVN	€1,278	1,427
9	Poland	POL	€1,091	1,523
10	Lithuania	LTU	€1,038	1,264
11	Portugal	PRT	€1,015	1,170
12	Cyprus	CYP	€1,000	1,076
13	Croatia	HRV	€970	1,298
14	Greece	GRC	€968	1,129
15	Malta	MLT	€961	1,056
16	Estonia	EST	€886	878
17	Czechia	CZE	€826	935
18	Slovakia	SVK	€816	973
19	Romania	ROU	€814	1,340
20	Latvia	LVA	€740	902
21	Türkiye	TUR	€708	No Data
22	Hungary	HUN	€707	1,030
23	Montenegro	MNE	€670	1,079
24	Serbia	SRB	€619	946
25	Bulgaria	BGR	€551	931
26	Albania	ALB	€408	564
27	Moldova	MDA	€285	No Data
28	Ukraine	UKR	€182	No Data

Note: Eurostat no longer publishes comparative data for the UK. PPS figures are unavailable for Moldova, Ukraine, & Türkiye. If a European country is not listed, it’s due to unavailability from the source.

However, when adjusted for living costs, Germany has the highest (1,992 PPS) and Albania is the lowest (564 PPS).

Interestingly, second-ranked Ireland’s living cost-adjusted national minimum (1,664 PPS) is closer to France (1,606 PPS), while in euros, it’s €480 higher.

What does that mean? Countries where wages are lower in PPS than in euros have a higher cost of living and vice-versa.

So even though Ireland’s euro wage is much higher than France, it essentially buys exactly the same things that France’s euro wage does.

Learn More on the Voronoi App

Another good map to compare with this is: Mapped: Europe’s GDP Per Capita to see correlations or inconsistencies with real wages.

Source Link

Keep your files stored safely and securely with the SanDisk 2TB Extreme Portable SSD. With over 69,505 ratings and an impressive 4.6 out of 5 stars, this product has been purchased over 8K+ times in the past month. At only $129.99, this Amazon’s Choice product is a must-have for secure file storage.

Help keep private content private with the included password protection featuring 256-bit AES hardware encryption. Order now for just $129.99 on Amazon!

Start your free Amazon Prime trial
today and unlock unlimited streaming and more!

Help Power Techcratic’s Future – Scan To Support

If Techcratic’s content and insights have helped you, consider giving back by supporting the platform with crypto. Every contribution makes a difference, whether it’s for high-quality content, server maintenance, or future updates. Techcratic is constantly evolving, and your support helps drive that progress.

As a solo operator who wears all the hats, creating content, managing the tech, and running the site, your support allows me to stay focused on delivering valuable resources. Your support keeps everything running smoothly and enables me to continue creating the content you love. I’m deeply grateful for your support, it truly means the world to me! Thank you!

BITCOIN

Bitcoin Logo