EU countries by people who cannot afford a week of holiday

Romania had the highest people who cannot afford a week of holiday of 27 EU countries in 2016, at 66.6%. Sweden had the lowest, at 8.2%. The median was 37.1% and the figure for the European Union (27) was 33.5%. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

Highest66.6Romania

Lowest8.2Sweden

Median37.127 EU countries

European Union (27)33.5History

Map of EU countries, 2016

Under 17
17 to 29
29 to 41
41 to 50
50 and over

%, 2016. Source: Eurostat, Inability to afford paying for one week annual holiday away from home, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes02). Boundaries: Natural Earth (public domain).

All EU countries, 2016

%. Source: Eurostat, Inability to afford paying for one week annual holiday away from home, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes02). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

Rank	EU countries	2016 (%)	Change on 2015
1	Romania	66.6	-1 pts
2	Croatia	61.2	-4.6 pts
3	Bulgaria Series break	56.4	-4 pts
4	Greece	53.6	-0.1 pts
5	Hungary	50.7	-4.6 pts
6	Cyprus	50.6	-2.9 pts
7	Portugal	47.2	-4.1 pts
8	Italy	45.3	-2 pts
9	Slovakia	44.9	-1.7 pts
10	Lithuania	44.2	0 pts
11	Poland	41.2	-2.8 pts
12	Spain	40.3	-1.2 pts
13	Ireland	37.8	-4.3 pts
14	Latvia	37.1	-4 pts
15	Malta	36.8	-7.6 pts
16	Estonia	29.6	-2.3 pts
17	Czechia	28.9	-3.5 pts
18	Slovenia	26.9	-1.3 pts
19	Belgium	26.3	-0.1 pts
20	France	23.4	-0.6 pts
21	Germany	18.4	-1.3 pts
22	Netherlands Series break	16.2	-0.5 pts
23	Austria	15.4	-2.1 pts
24	Finland	14.2	+0.9 pts
25	Denmark	13.8	-2.5 pts
26	Luxembourg Series break	13.2	+0.1 pts
27	Sweden	8.2	-1 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Share of the population living in households that cannot afford to pay for one week of annual holiday away from home (EU-SILC, all household types and incomes).

EU statistics on income and living conditions (EU-SILC). The reference year is the survey year. Self-reported by households; a share of people, not of households.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the EU countries are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

Eurostat. Inability to afford paying for one week annual holiday away from home, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes02). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc_mdes02/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

Eurostat, European Commission. (2026). Inability to afford paying for one week annual holiday away from home, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes02) (EU countries by people who cannot afford a week of holiday, 2016) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc_mdes02/default/table

MLA 9

Inability to afford paying for one week annual holiday away from home, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes02), EU countries by people who cannot afford a week of holiday, 2016. Eurostat, European Commission, 17 Sept. 2026, https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc_mdes02/default/table. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/cannot-afford-holiday/eu-countries?period=2016. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

Eurostat, European Commission. 2026. Inability to afford paying for one week annual holiday away from home, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes02). EU countries by people who cannot afford a week of holiday, 2016. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc_mdes02/default/table. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/cannot-afford-holiday/eu-countries?period=2016.

Harvard

Eurostat, European Commission (2026) Inability to afford paying for one week annual holiday away from home, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes02), EU countries by people who cannot afford a week of holiday, 2016 [Dataset]. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc_mdes02/default/table, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/cannot-afford-holiday/eu-countries?period=2016 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{eurostat_eu_countries_by_people_2016,
  author = {{Eurostat, European Commission}},
  title = {{Inability to afford paying for one week annual holiday away from home, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc\_mdes02): EU countries by people who cannot afford a week of holiday, 2016}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc_mdes02/default/table},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/cannot-afford-holiday/eu-countries?period=2016. Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Inability to afford paying for one week annual holiday away from home, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc\_mdes02). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc\_mdes02/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}

RIS

TY  - DATA
AU  - Eurostat, European Commission
TI  - Inability to afford paying for one week annual holiday away from home, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes02): EU countries by people who cannot afford a week of holiday, 2016
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/17
PB  - Eurostat, European Commission
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc_mdes02/default/table
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/cannot-afford-holiday/eu-countries?period=2016
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/cannot-afford-holiday/eu-countries?period=2016.
N1  - Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Inability to afford paying for one week annual holiday away from home, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes02). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/ilc_mdes02/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -

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Rank EU countries by people who cannot afford a week of holiday using official data, and cite the source.

rank_places {"indicator":"unable_to_afford_holiday_share","level":"country","within":"European Union (27)","limit":10}
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Questions

Which EU country has the highest people who cannot afford a week of holiday?

Romania, with 66.6% in 2016, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

Which EU country has the lowest people who cannot afford a week of holiday?

Sweden, with 8.2% in 2016.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Eurostat, European Commission, Inability to afford paying for one week annual holiday away from home, total population, all household types and incomes (ilc_mdes02). Retrieved 2026-10-12.