When talking about high wages in Europe, many think immediately in countries like Luxembourg. However, the latest data on average net income reveals some surprises. A report released by Eurostat, based on 2024 data, allows you to realize where you earn more, how much you really earn after taxes and where Portugal is in this table.
The highest income are in the north and west
In general terms, the northern and western countries of Europe continue to present the highest net income, according to Eurostat, cited by Human Resources Portugal. Even after adjustments to purchasing power, the difference between regions remains expressive, albeit less pronounced.
In the European Union (EU), the average annual net profits for a single person, without children and with an income equal to 100% of the national average salary, was 29,573 euros. Portugal comes up below, with 16,947 euros.
The surprise comes from outside the EU
When data from EFTA and Turkey countries are included, the top of the table changes. Switzerland leads with net income of 85,631 euros, followed by Iceland with 57,573 euros. Norway also is among the first, with 47,232 euros annual liquids.
These values reinforce the domain of countries outside the EU regarding citizens’ net profits, especially when compared to the average levels of the community space.
Luxembourg is no longer at the absolute top
Despite the fame, Luxembourg occupies only fourth place with 50,410 euros. Within the EU, it is still the country with higher net income, but it is behind non -community countries. Here are the Netherlands, with 47,892 euros, and Ireland with 46,208 euros.
Other Nordic countries such as Denmark, Finland and Sweden also have high values, all of them above 36,000 net euros per year, the same source says.
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Portugal and the lowest group
Southern and eastern European countries continue to record lower net income. In Portugal, the value was set at 16,947 euros, close to the level of Greece (18,709 euros) and below Spain (24,571 euros) and Italy (24,797 euros).
Below in the table, Romania come up with 12,655 euros, Hungary with 13,883 euros and, at the bottom of the list, Bulgaria, with only 11,074 euros. Turkey, the EU candidate country, has a similar net income with 11,440 euros.
The weight of purchasing power
When data is adjusted to purchasing power standards (PPS) in Europe, the disparity between countries decreases, but does not disappear. In this indicator, net income range from the 16,784 euros of Slovakia and the 40,948 euros in the Netherlands.
Even with this adjustment, Portugal remains in a modest position. It is considered an atypical case: it is geographically in the West, but economically closer to East countries, with a level of PPS below 20,000.
Reduced but still striking
The difference between the country with the highest nominal net income (luxembourg) and the lowest (bulgaria) value is greater than 4.5 times, refers to the aforementioned source. Adjusting to purchasing power, this difference goes down to about 2.4 times, but remains relevant. Among the four largest EU economies, only Germany is above average in purchasing power. France, Italy and Spain are all below.
Families with children earn more
The report also shows that family aggregates with children have higher net income than those who do not have. A couple with just one income and two children, for example, earns an average of 35,656 euros in the EU, compared to the 29,573 euros of a single person, also refers to the data provided by Eurostat.
In Portugal, this difference is also verified. A single person without children has a net income of 16,947 euros, while a couple with two children and only one yield reaches the 20,383 euros. If both couple members work, the value rises to 35,394 euros.
In most EU countries, families with children benefit from allowances and tax deductions, which explains the difference. The exception is Turkey, where net income is practically the same, regardless of the constitution of the aggregate.
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