Mapped: Europe’s Minimum Wages, Adjusted for Living Costs

Mapped: Europe’s Minimum Wages, Adjusted for Living Costs

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Consider the minimum wage, the most controversial but widespread tool governments use to tackle income inequality.

In fact nearly half the world’s countries have some kind of minimum wage, though different levels of government can set different standards.

This is because a rate that works in one area may be too high or low in another—causing labor market distortions.

We illustrate this phenomenon in the map above. The national monthly minimum wage (as of January, 2025) is visualized for several European countries, including 22 EU members.

Data is sourced from Eurostat, both in euros and PPS for easy comparisons.

The PPS unit is an artificial currency created by the EU to compare wages while accounting for living costs. Theoretically, 1 PPS can buy the same goods and services across the continent.

European Countries With Highest & Lowest National Minimum Wage

Luxembourg has the highest national monthly minimum wage in euros (€2,638), while Ukraine has the lowest (€182).

However, when adjusted for living costs, Germany has the highest (1,992 PPS) and Albania is the lowest (564 PPS).

Interestingly, second-ranked Ireland’s living cost-adjusted national minimum (1,664 PPS) is closer to France (1,606 PPS), while in euros, it’s €480 higher.

What does that mean? Countries where wages are lower in PPS than in euros have a higher cost of living and vice-versa.

So even though Ireland’s euro wage is much higher than France, it essentially buys exactly the same things that France’s euro wage does.

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Another good map to compare with this is: Mapped: Europe’s GDP Per Capita to see correlations or inconsistencies with real wages.