Household electricity prices across the European Union fell by 2.2% in the first half of 2026, while average household gas prices declined by 10.2%, separate Eurostat releases have found.
The average EU household electricity price was €0.28 per kilowatt hour, down from €0.29 in the second half of 2025. Despite the reduction, prices remained above levels recorded before the energy crisis of 2022. Taxes and levies accounted for 28.4% of the final household electricity bill, down from 28.9% in the second half of 2025.
Ireland recorded the highest household electricity price in the EU, at €0.39 per kWh. Germany and Belgium followed at €0.36. Six Member States recorded prices above €0.30 per kWh, while five were below €0.20. Hungary had the lowest price, at €0.11, followed by Malta and Bulgaria at €0.13.
The annual comparison showed that electricity prices increased most sharply in Romania, where they rose by 51.6% compared with the first half of 2025. Ireland recorded an increase of 19.8%, followed by Finland at 18.4%. Denmark recorded the largest decrease, at 31.7%, while prices in Luxembourg fell by 24.1%, Eurostat noted.
Household gas prices
Household gas prices moved in the opposite direction, with the EU average falling to €0.11 per kWh in the first half of 2026, a decrease of 10.2% compared with the second half of 2025 and 3.5% compared with the first half of last year
According to Eurostat, this was the lowest average household gas price recorded in the EU since the first half of 2022.
Sweden had the highest household gas price at €0.22 per kWh, followed by the Netherlands at €0.16 and France and Portugal at €0.13. Hungary recorded the lowest price at €0.03, while Croatia stood at €0.05 and Romania and Slovakia at €0.06.
Compared with the first half of 2025, gas prices fell in 12 countries, increased in seven and remained broadly stable in four. Bulgaria recorded the largest decrease at 14.5%, followed by Greece at 11.3% and Spain at 10.0%. The largest increases were recorded in Romania, at 9.3%, Croatia at 8.9% and Slovakia at 6.6%. Read more here and here.
