Bulgaria reported the highest annual increase in hourly wage costs in the European Union in the second quarter of 2025, with wages up 13.4%, new data has shown.
According to the Eurostat data, hourly wage costs were also up by double digits in Hungary (+11.0%), Romania (+10.4%), Estonia (+10.3%) and Greece (+10.1%) in the second quarter, compared to the corresponding period a year ago.
The lowest increase in hourly wage costs, on an annual basis, was reported in France (+1.4%), Denmark (+1.5%) and Malta (+1.9%), meanwhile.
Across the EU as a whole, hourly wage costs rose by 4.0% in the second quarter, compared to Q2 of last year, while in the euro area, wage costs were up 3.6%.
The two main components of labour costs are wages and salaries and non-wage costs – in the EU, the cost of wages and salaries was up 4.1%, while the non-wage component increased by 3.8%. In the euro area, these values were up 3.7% and 3.4%, respectively.
Sector by sector
At EU level, labour costs increased by 4.4% in the business economy and 3.1% in the (mainly) non-business economy. Industry saw hourly labour costs rise by 3.9%, construction by 4.8%, and services by 4.6%.
In the euro area, meanwhile, hourly labour costs were up 4.0% in the business economy and 2.7% in the (mainly) non-business economy, Eurostat‘s data showed. Read more here.
Hourly Wage Cost Increases by EU Member State – Q2 2025 (%)
| Country | Labour Cost Index (Total) | Wages & Salaries | Other Labour Costs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belgium | 3.3 | 3.3 | 3.3 |
| Bulgaria | 13.2 | 13.4 | 12.3 |
| Czechia | 7.7 | 7.7 | 7.8 |
| Denmark | 2.2 | 1.5 | 6.3 |
| Germany | 3.5 | 3.8 | 2.7 |
| Estonia | 10.3 | 10.3 | 10.6 |
| Ireland | 3.4 | 3.7 | 1.9 |
| Greece | 9.7 | 10.1 | 7.9 |
| Spain | 3.7 | 3.4 | 4.6 |
| France | 1.4 | 1.4 | 1.5 |
| Croatia | 9.2 | 9.0 | 10.8 |
| Italy | 3.8 | 3.4 | 4.9 |
| Cyprus | 4.1 | 4.2 | 4.1 |
| Latvia | 8.7 | 8.5 | 9.1 |
| Lithuania | 9.4 | 9.4 | 8.0 |
| Luxembourg | 2.6 | 2.6 | 2.9 |
| Hungary | 10.9 | 11.0 | 10.1 |
| Malta | 1.8 | 1.9 | 0.1 |
| Netherlands | 6.0 | 5.9 | 6.4 |
| Austria | 3.8 | 3.6 | 4.6 |
| Poland | 9.5 | 9.5 | 9.7 |
| Portugal | 5.2 | 5.3 | 5.1 |
| Romania | 10.4 | 10.4 | 10.6 |
| Slovenia | 7.5 | 7.5 | 7.2 |
| Slovakia | 9.6 | 9.1 | 11.0 |
| Finland | 4.8 | 4.5 | 6.3 |
| Sweden | 3.1 | 2.9 | 3.6 |
