Of the 22 European countries that have introduced a statutory minimum wage (Italy, Sweden, Austria, Finland and Denmark have not done so), 21 raised this pay level for 2026, with only Slovenia leaving it unchanged. Minimum wage hikes were 5.9% on average, more than one percentage point lower than in 2025 and half that of 2023. However, this is still higher than inflation, which averaged 2.74% last year, continuing its downward trend. The largest increases were in Croatia, Bulgaria and Slovakia, while the rises in Belgium, Luxembourg, Estonia (although the 7% increase scheduled for April 2026 is expected to offset the loss of purchasing power). It is also the case in Slovenia were below inflation, while the rates are comparable in Spain and France. In Romania, meanwhile, the change appears to be negative due to an unfavourable exchange rate between the Romanian leu and the euro.
Datajournalisme, économie et numérique. J’enseigne aussi le journalisme de données à l’EDJ de Sciences Po Paris.
