Only eight of the 29 European countries that have a national minimum wage raised it in their national currency between January and July 2026, according to Eurostat data.
The largest increase over the six-month period was recorded in North Macedonia—6.9%.
Next were Romania and Estonia—both at 6.8%—followed by Belgium at 5.8%, Greece at 4.5%, Luxembourg at 2.5%, France at 2.4%, and the Netherlands at 1.9%.
In the remaining 21 countries, the minimum wage in national currency remained unchanged between January 1 and July 1. This group includes, in particular, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Poland, Germany, Spain, Portugal, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Ukraine.
At the same time, the absence of an increase in the nominal minimum wage effectively means a decline in its purchasing power in countries where consumer prices continued to rise during this period.
Eurostat publishes comparative data on minimum wages twice a year—as of January 1 and July 1. Changes that occur between these dates are reflected in the next semi-annual update of the statistics.
As of July 1, 2026, the minimum wage among EU countries ranged from 620 euros in Bulgaria to 2,771 euros in Luxembourg. When candidate countries are included, the lowest figure was recorded in Ukraine—169 euros.
