Data / Rankings / Real labour productivity per hour worked, annual growth / EU countries

EU countries by real labour productivity per hour worked, annual growth

Malta had the highest real labour productivity per hour worked, annual growth of 26 EU countries in 2017, at 8.6%. Luxembourg had the lowest, at -1.5%. The median was 2.1% and the figure for the European Union (27) was 1.8%. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

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Highest8.6Malta
Lowest-1.5Luxembourg
Median2.126 EU countries
European Union (27)1.8History

Map of EU countries, 2017

Austria: 1.3 %Belgium: -0.2 %Bulgaria: 1 %Cyprus: 1.3 %Czechia: 3.6 %Germany: 2.1 %Denmark: 2.1 %Estonia: 2.8 %Spain: 0.7 %Finland: 3.1 %France: 2 %Greece: 1.8 %Hungary: 3.2 %Ireland: 5.4 %Italy: 0.6 %Lithuania: 7.7 %Luxembourg: -1.5 %Latvia: 4.3 %Malta: 8.6 %Netherlands: 0.4 %Poland: 4.9 %Portugal: 0.6 %Romania: 7 %Sweden: 0.2 %Slovenia: 4.2 %Slovakia: 2.2 %
  • Under -0.8
  • -0.8 to 0
  • 0 to 1.6
  • 1.6 to 3.3
  • 3.3 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, real labour productivity per hour worked, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc). Boundaries: Natural Earth (public domain).

All EU countries, 2017

Malta: 8.6 %Malta8.6Lithuania: 7.7 %Lithuania7.7Romania: 7 %Romania7Ireland: 5.4 %Ireland5.4Poland: 4.9 %Poland4.9Latvia: 4.3 %Latvia4.3Slovenia: 4.2 %Slovenia4.2Czechia: 3.6 %Czechia3.6Hungary: 3.2 %Hungary3.2Finland: 3.1 %Finland3.1Estonia: 2.8 %Estonia2.8Slovakia: 2.2 %Slovakia2.2Denmark: 2.1 %Denmark2.1Germany: 2.1 %Germany2.1France: 2 %France2Greece: 1.8 %Greece1.8Austria: 1.3 %Austria1.3Cyprus: 1.3 %Cyprus1.3Bulgaria: 1 %Bulgaria1Spain: 0.7 %Spain0.7Italy: 0.6 %Italy0.6Portugal: 0.6 %Portugal0.6Netherlands: 0.4 %Netherlands0.4Sweden: 0.2 %Sweden0.2Belgium: -0.2 %Belgium-0.2Luxembourg: -1.5 %Luxembourg-1.5Malta: 8.6 %Malta8.6Lithuania: 7.7 %Lithuania7.7Romania: 7 %Romania7Ireland: 5.4 %Ireland5.4Poland: 4.9 %Poland4.9Latvia: 4.3 %Latvia4.3Slovenia: 4.2 %Slovenia4.2Czechia: 3.6 %Czechia3.6Hungary: 3.2 %Hungary3.2Finland: 3.1 %Finland3.1Estonia: 2.8 %Estonia2.8Slovakia: 2.2 %Slovakia2.2Denmark: 2.1 %Denmark2.1Germany: 2.1 %Germany2.1France: 2 %France2Greece: 1.8 %Greece1.8Austria: 1.3 %Austria1.3Cyprus: 1.3 %Cyprus1.3Bulgaria: 1 %Bulgaria1Spain: 0.7 %Spain0.7Italy: 0.6 %Italy0.6Portugal: 0.6 %Portugal0.6Netherlands: 0.4 %Netherlands0.4Sweden: 0.2 %Sweden0.2Belgium: -0.2 %Belgium-0.2Luxembourg: -1.5 %Luxembourg-1.5
%. Source: Eurostat, Labour productivity and unit labour costs, real labour productivity per hour worked, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc). Retrieved 2026-10-18.

Full ranking

RankEU countries2017 (%)Change on 2016
1Malta8.6+12.8 pts
2Lithuania7.7+8.6 pts
3Romania7+4.3 pts
4Ireland5.4+9.2 pts
5Poland4.9+2.8 pts
6Latvia4.3+1.5 pts
7Slovenia4.2+0.9 pts
8Czechia3.6+3.4 pts
9Hungary3.2+4.9 pts
10Finland3.1+1.1 pts
11Estonia2.8+0.2 pts
12Slovakia2.2+1.8 pts
13Denmark2.1+1.1 pts
13Germany2.1+0.7 pts
15France2+2 pts
16Greece1.8+5.5 pts
17Austria1.3+1.3 pts
17Cyprus1.3+0.3 pts
19Bulgaria1-1.6 pts
20Spain0.7+0.3 pts
21Italy0.6+0.8 pts
21Portugal0.6+0.7 pts
23Netherlands0.4+0.4 pts
24Sweden0.2+0.8 pts
25Belgium-0.2-0.1 pts
26Luxembourg-1.5-3.5 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Percentage change from the previous year in real labour productivity per hour worked: gross domestic product in chain-linked volumes divided by total hours worked by all employed people.

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. 1 EU countries with data in other periods have no value for 2017 and are left out rather than filled from another source. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

Eurostat. Labour productivity and unit labour costs, real labour productivity per hour worked, 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, real labour productivity per hour worked, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc) (EU countries by real labour productivity per hour worked, 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, real labour productivity per hour worked, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc), EU countries by real labour productivity per hour worked, 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/real-labour-productivity-per-hour-growth/eu-countries?period=2017. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

Eurostat, European Commission. 2026. Labour productivity and unit labour costs, real labour productivity per hour worked, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc). EU countries by real labour productivity per hour worked, 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/real-labour-productivity-per-hour-growth/eu-countries?period=2017.

Harvard

Eurostat, European Commission (2026) Labour productivity and unit labour costs, real labour productivity per hour worked, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc), EU countries by real labour productivity per hour worked, 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/real-labour-productivity-per-hour-growth/eu-countries?period=2017 (Accessed: 18 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{eurostat_eu_countries_by_real_2017,
  author = {{Eurostat, European Commission}},
  title = {{Labour productivity and unit labour costs, real labour productivity per hour worked, percentage change on previous period (nama\_10\_lp\_ulc): EU countries by real labour productivity per hour worked, 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/real-labour-productivity-per-hour-growth/eu-countries?period=2017. Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Labour productivity and unit labour costs, real labour productivity per hour worked, 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, real labour productivity per hour worked, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc): EU countries by real labour productivity per hour worked, 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/real-labour-productivity-per-hour-growth/eu-countries?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/18
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/real-labour-productivity-per-hour-growth/eu-countries?period=2017.
N1  - Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Labour productivity and unit labour costs, real labour productivity per hour worked, 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 real labour productivity per hour worked, annual growth?

Malta, with 8.6% in 2017, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

Which EU country has the lowest real labour productivity per hour worked, annual growth?

Luxembourg, with -1.5% 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, real labour productivity per hour worked, percentage change on previous period (nama_10_lp_ulc). Retrieved 2026-10-18. 1 EU countries have no value for 2017 and are not ranked.

EU countries: more rankings