Data / Rankings / Nominal unit labour cost, annual growth / EU countries

EU countries by nominal unit labour cost, annual growth, 2025

Bulgaria had the highest nominal unit labour cost, annual growth of 26 EU countries in 2025, at 9.4%. Ireland had the lowest, at -3%. The median was 3.7% and the figure for the European Union (27) was 3.3%. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

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Highest9.4Bulgaria
Lowest-3Ireland
Median3.726 EU countries
European Union (27)3.3History

Map of EU countries, 2025

Austria: 3.2 %Belgium: 2.9 %Bulgaria: 9.4 %Cyprus: 2.1 %Czechia: 4.2 %Germany: 4.4 %Denmark: 0.8 %Estonia: 3.3 %Spain: 4.4 %Finland: 2 %France: 1.6 %Greece: 3.4 %Hungary: 8.1 %Ireland: -3 %Italy: 3.5 %Lithuania: 6 %Luxembourg: 4.3 %Latvia: 3.3 %Malta: 3.5 %Netherlands: 4.1 %Poland: 4 %Portugal: 5.2 %Romania: 3.8 %Sweden: -0.3 %Slovenia: 5.6 %Slovakia: 5.3 %
  • Under -1.6
  • -1.6 to 0
  • 0 to 3.4
  • 3.4 to 4.3
  • 4.3 and over
  • No data
%, 2025. Red areas are below zero and blue areas above it. Hatched areas have no value for this period. Source: Eurostat, Labour productivity and unit labour costs, nominal unit labour cost based on persons, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc). Boundaries: Natural Earth (public domain).

All EU countries, 2025

Bulgaria: 9.4 %Bulgaria9.4Hungary: 8.1 %Hungary8.1Lithuania: 6 %Lithuania6Slovenia: 5.6 %Slovenia5.6Slovakia: 5.3 %Slovakia5.3Portugal: 5.2 %Portugal5.2Germany: 4.4 %Germany4.4Spain: 4.4 %Spain4.4Luxembourg: 4.3 %Luxembourg4.3Czechia: 4.2 %Czechia4.2Netherlands: 4.1 %Netherlands4.1Poland: 4 %Poland4Romania: 3.8 %Romania3.8Italy: 3.5 %Italy3.5Malta: 3.5 %Malta3.5Greece: 3.4 %Greece3.4Estonia: 3.3 %Estonia3.3Latvia: 3.3 %Latvia3.3Austria: 3.2 %Austria3.2Belgium: 2.9 %Belgium2.9Cyprus: 2.1 %Cyprus2.1Finland: 2 %Finland2France: 1.6 %France1.6Denmark: 0.8 %Denmark0.8Sweden: -0.3 %Sweden-0.3Ireland: -3 %Ireland-3Bulgaria: 9.4 %Bulgaria9.4Hungary: 8.1 %Hungary8.1Lithuania: 6 %Lithuania6Slovenia: 5.6 %Slovenia5.6Slovakia: 5.3 %Slovakia5.3Portugal: 5.2 %Portugal5.2Germany: 4.4 %Germany4.4Spain: 4.4 %Spain4.4Luxembourg: 4.3 %Luxembourg4.3Czechia: 4.2 %Czechia4.2Netherlands: 4.1 %Netherlands4.1Poland: 4 %Poland4Romania: 3.8 %Romania3.8Italy: 3.5 %Italy3.5Malta: 3.5 %Malta3.5Greece: 3.4 %Greece3.4Estonia: 3.3 %Estonia3.3Latvia: 3.3 %Latvia3.3Austria: 3.2 %Austria3.2Belgium: 2.9 %Belgium2.9Cyprus: 2.1 %Cyprus2.1Finland: 2 %Finland2France: 1.6 %France1.6Denmark: 0.8 %Denmark0.8Sweden: -0.3 %Sweden-0.3Ireland: -3 %Ireland-3
%. Source: Eurostat, Labour productivity and unit labour costs, nominal unit labour cost based on persons, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc). Retrieved 2026-10-18.

Full ranking

RankEU countries2025 (%)Change on 2024
1Bulgaria Provisional9.4-2.1 pts
2Hungary Provisional8.1-4 pts
3Lithuania6-0.4 pts
4Slovenia5.6+1.1 pts
5Slovakia5.3-0.2 pts
6Portugal Provisional5.2-1.1 pts
7Germany Provisional4.4-0.9 pts
7Spain Provisional4.4+1.4 pts
9Luxembourg Provisional4.3+3.5 pts
10Czechia4.2-0.7 pts
11Netherlands Provisional4.1-2.4 pts
12Poland Provisional4-4.7 pts
13Romania Provisional3.8-5.2 pts
14Italy3.5-0.4 pts
14Malta3.5-4.1 pts
16Greece Provisional3.4-1.6 pts
17Estonia3.3-3.4 pts
17Latvia3.3-2.1 pts
19Austria3.2-4.5 pts
20Belgium Provisional2.9+0.3 pts
21Cyprus Provisional2.1+0.5 pts
22Finland2+2.1 pts
23France Provisional1.6-0.7 pts
24Denmark0.8-0.4 pts
25Sweden-0.3-2.8 pts
26Ireland-3-8.7 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Percentage change from the previous year in the nominal unit labour cost based on persons: compensation per employee divided by real labour productivity per person employed (GDP in chain-linked volumes per person employed).

Rises when pay grows faster than productivity. From the national accounts (ESA 2010). Ireland's GDP, and with it its productivity, is inflated and made volatile by the activities of multinational companies, notably the move of intellectual property to Ireland in 2015.

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. Labour productivity and unit labour costs, nominal unit labour cost based on persons, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/nama_10_lp_ulc/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-18.

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). Labour productivity and unit labour costs, nominal unit labour cost based on persons, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc) (EU countries by nominal unit labour cost, annual growth, 2025) [Data set]. Retrieved October 18, 2026, from https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/nama_10_lp_ulc/default/table

MLA 9

Labour productivity and unit labour costs, nominal unit labour cost based on persons, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc), EU countries by nominal unit labour cost, annual growth, 2025. Eurostat, European Commission, 16 Oct. 2026, https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/nama_10_lp_ulc/default/table. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nominal-unit-labour-cost-growth/eu-countries. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

Eurostat, European Commission. 2026. Labour productivity and unit labour costs, nominal unit labour cost based on persons, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc). EU countries by nominal unit labour cost, annual growth, 2025. Dataset. Accessed October 18, 2026. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/nama_10_lp_ulc/default/table. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nominal-unit-labour-cost-growth/eu-countries.

Harvard

Eurostat, European Commission (2026) Labour productivity and unit labour costs, nominal unit labour cost based on persons, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc), EU countries by nominal unit labour cost, annual growth, 2025 [Dataset]. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/nama_10_lp_ulc/default/table, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/nominal-unit-labour-cost-growth/eu-countries (Accessed: 18 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{eurostat_eu_countries_by_nominal_2025,
  author = {{Eurostat, European Commission}},
  title = {{Labour productivity and unit labour costs, nominal unit labour cost based on persons, percentage change on previous period (nama\_10\_lp\_ulc): EU countries by nominal unit labour cost, annual growth, 2025}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/nama_10_lp_ulc/default/table},
  urldate = {2026-10-18},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nominal-unit-labour-cost-growth/eu-countries. Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Labour productivity and unit labour costs, nominal unit labour cost based on persons, percentage change on previous period (nama\_10\_lp\_ulc). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/nama\_10\_lp\_ulc/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-18.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - Eurostat, European Commission
TI  - Labour productivity and unit labour costs, nominal unit labour cost based on persons, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc): EU countries by nominal unit labour cost, annual growth, 2025
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/16
PB  - Eurostat, European Commission
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/nama_10_lp_ulc/default/table
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/nominal-unit-labour-cost-growth/eu-countries
Y2  - 2026/10/18
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nominal-unit-labour-cost-growth/eu-countries.
N1  - Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Labour productivity and unit labour costs, nominal unit labour cost based on persons, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/nama_10_lp_ulc/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-18.
ER  -
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Questions

Which EU country has the highest nominal unit labour cost, annual growth?

Bulgaria, with 9.4% in 2025, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

Which EU country has the lowest nominal unit labour cost, annual growth?

Ireland, with -3% in 2025.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Eurostat, European Commission, Labour productivity and unit labour costs, nominal unit labour cost based on persons, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc). Retrieved 2026-10-18.

EU countries: more rankings