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

EU countries by nominal unit labour cost, annual growth

Bulgaria had the highest nominal unit labour cost, annual growth of 26 EU countries in 2017, at 9.5%. Ireland had the lowest, at -3.7%. The median was 1.5% and the figure for the European Union (27) was 1%. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

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Highest9.5Bulgaria
Lowest-3.7Ireland
Median1.526 EU countries
European Union (27)1History

Map of EU countries, 2017

Austria: 1 %Belgium: 1.9 %Bulgaria: 9.5 %Cyprus: 1.2 %Czechia: 3.5 %Germany: 1.3 %Denmark: 0.1 %Estonia: 4.1 %Spain: 0.5 %Finland: -3.1 %France: 1.1 %Greece: -1 %Hungary: 4.5 %Ireland: -3.7 %Italy: 0 %Lithuania: 3.9 %Luxembourg: 5.3 %Latvia: 3.9 %Malta: -3.3 %Netherlands: 0.4 %Poland: 1.7 %Portugal: 2.1 %Romania: 8.7 %Sweden: 2.7 %Slovenia: 0.8 %Slovakia: 4.5 %
  • Under -3.3
  • -3.3 to -3.1
  • -3.1 to 0
  • 0 to 1.2
  • 1.2 to 3.9
  • 3.9 and over
  • No data
%, 2017. 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, 2017

Bulgaria: 9.5 %Bulgaria9.5Romania: 8.7 %Romania8.7Luxembourg: 5.3 %Luxembourg5.3Hungary: 4.5 %Hungary4.5Slovakia: 4.5 %Slovakia4.5Estonia: 4.1 %Estonia4.1Latvia: 3.9 %Latvia3.9Lithuania: 3.9 %Lithuania3.9Czechia: 3.5 %Czechia3.5Sweden: 2.7 %Sweden2.7Portugal: 2.1 %Portugal2.1Belgium: 1.9 %Belgium1.9Poland: 1.7 %Poland1.7Germany: 1.3 %Germany1.3Cyprus: 1.2 %Cyprus1.2France: 1.1 %France1.1Austria: 1 %Austria1Slovenia: 0.8 %Slovenia0.8Spain: 0.5 %Spain0.5Netherlands: 0.4 %Netherlands0.4Denmark: 0.1 %Denmark0.1Italy: 0 %Italy0Greece: -1 %Greece-1Finland: -3.1 %Finland-3.1Malta: -3.3 %Malta-3.3Ireland: -3.7 %Ireland-3.7Bulgaria: 9.5 %Bulgaria9.5Romania: 8.7 %Romania8.7Luxembourg: 5.3 %Luxembourg5.3Hungary: 4.5 %Hungary4.5Slovakia: 4.5 %Slovakia4.5Estonia: 4.1 %Estonia4.1Latvia: 3.9 %Latvia3.9Lithuania: 3.9 %Lithuania3.9Czechia: 3.5 %Czechia3.5Sweden: 2.7 %Sweden2.7Portugal: 2.1 %Portugal2.1Belgium: 1.9 %Belgium1.9Poland: 1.7 %Poland1.7Germany: 1.3 %Germany1.3Cyprus: 1.2 %Cyprus1.2France: 1.1 %France1.1Austria: 1 %Austria1Slovenia: 0.8 %Slovenia0.8Spain: 0.5 %Spain0.5Netherlands: 0.4 %Netherlands0.4Denmark: 0.1 %Denmark0.1Italy: 0 %Italy0Greece: -1 %Greece-1Finland: -3.1 %Finland-3.1Malta: -3.3 %Malta-3.3Ireland: -3.7 %Ireland-3.7
%. 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 countries2017 (%)Change on 2016
1Bulgaria9.5+6.3 pts
2Romania8.7-2.3 pts
3Luxembourg5.3+6.5 pts
4Hungary4.5+0.5 pts
4Slovakia4.5+1.8 pts
6Estonia4.1+0.8 pts
7Latvia3.90 pts
7Lithuania3.9-1.9 pts
9Czechia3.5+0.1 pts
10Sweden2.7+0.5 pts
11Portugal2.1+1.2 pts
12Belgium1.9+1.1 pts
13Poland1.7-0.8 pts
14Germany1.3-0.1 pts
15Cyprus1.2+3.9 pts
16France1.1+0.1 pts
17Austria1-0.5 pts
18Slovenia0.8-1.2 pts
19Spain0.5+1.3 pts
20Netherlands0.4-0.6 pts
21Denmark0.1+0.1 pts
22Italy0-0.2 pts
23Greece-1-0.6 pts
24Finland-3.1-2.1 pts
25Malta-3.3-8.6 pts
26Ireland-3.7-8.7 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, 2017) [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, 2017. 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?period=2017. 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, 2017. 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?period=2017.

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, 2017 [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?period=2017 (Accessed: 18 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{eurostat_eu_countries_by_nominal_2017,
  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, 2017}},
  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?period=2017. 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, 2017
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?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/18
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nominal-unit-labour-cost-growth/eu-countries?period=2017.
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 9.5% in 2017, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

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

Ireland, with -3.7% in 2017.

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.

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