EU countries by nominal unit labour cost, annual growth

Croatia had the highest nominal unit labour cost, annual growth of 27 EU countries in 2020, at 9.2%. Ireland had the lowest, at -6.2%. The median was 5.5% and the figure for the European Union (27) was 4.3%. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

Highest9.2Croatia

Lowest-6.2Ireland

Median5.527 EU countries

European Union (27)4.3History

Map of EU countries, 2020

Under 0
0 to 4.3
4.3 to 7.1
7.1 and over

%, 2020. Red areas are below zero and blue areas above it. 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, 2020

%. 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 2026-10-20.

Full ranking

Rank	EU countries	2020 (%)	Change on 2019
1	Croatia	9.2	n/a
2	Bulgaria	8.7	+7.3 pts
2	Portugal	8.7	+5.4 pts
4	Malta	8.5	+2.8 pts
5	Spain	8.2	+4.1 pts
6	Netherlands	7.8	+4.8 pts
7	Slovenia	7.5	+3.3 pts
8	Czechia	7.3	+3.4 pts
8	Poland	7.3	+3.9 pts
10	Austria	6.8	+4.6 pts
10	Greece	6.8	+7.1 pts
12	Hungary	6.7	+1.6 pts
13	Latvia	5.7	-0.9 pts
14	Romania	5.5	-0.9 pts
15	Estonia	4.6	-0.7 pts
15	Slovakia	4.6	-0.8 pts
17	Lithuania	4.4	-1.6 pts
18	France	4.2	+5.1 pts
19	Germany	3.7	+0.6 pts
20	Belgium	3.6	+2.4 pts
21	Cyprus	3.5	-1 pts
22	Luxembourg	3.4	+0.7 pts
23	Denmark	3.2	+1.7 pts
24	Sweden	3.1	+2.1 pts
25	Italy	3	+1.7 pts
26	Finland	0.8	-1.1 pts
27	Ireland	-6.2	-8.4 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 2026-10-20.

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, 2020) [Data set]. Retrieved October 20, 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, 2020. Eurostat, European Commission, 19 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=2020. Accessed 20 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, 2020. Dataset. Accessed October 20, 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=2020.

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, 2020 [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=2020 (Accessed: 20 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{eurostat_eu_countries_by_nominal_2020,
  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, 2020}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/nama_10_lp_ulc/default/table},
  urldate = {2026-10-20},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nominal-unit-labour-cost-growth/eu-countries?period=2020. 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 2026-10-20.},
}

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, 2020
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/19
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=2020
Y2  - 2026/10/20
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nominal-unit-labour-cost-growth/eu-countries?period=2020.
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 2026-10-20.
ER  -

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Rank EU countries by nominal unit labour cost, annual growth using official data, and cite the source.

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Questions

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

Croatia, with 9.2% in 2020, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

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

Ireland, with -6.2% in 2020.

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 2026-10-20.