Cyprus ranks 15th among the 22 European Union countries with minimum wages when measured by purchasing power standards, recording 1,078 units in July 2025, according to data published by Eurostat.
The statistics reveal the EU is divided into three distinct tiers. The first tier comprises developed northern European countries with significantly higher wages, the middle category includes Cyprus, and the third encompasses countries with the lowest wages.
A significant finding from the Eurostat report shows wage inequalities are considerably smaller after adjustment for purchasing power standards.
Purchasing power parity is a measurement used to compare economic productivity and living standards across different countries by evaluating prices and quantities for the same basket of goods and services. The purchasing power units for each country are calculated annually considering various parameters beyond basic private sector wages, including inflation and economic growth rates.
The first group, with minimum wages exceeding 1,500 purchasing power units, includes Luxembourg at 2,035 units, Germany 1,989, Netherlands 1,937, Belgium 1,812, Ireland 1,653, France 1,620, Spain 1,519, and Poland 1,500.
The second group, ranging between 1,000 and 1,500 purchasing power units, comprises Slovenia at 1,417 units, Romania 1,279, Croatia 1,272, Lithuania 1,272, Greece 1,194, Portugal 1,167, Cyprus 1,078, Malta 1,049, and Hungary 1,001.
European laggards in minimum wage purchasing power include Slovakia at 963 units, Czech Republic 936, Bulgaria 922, Latvia 905, and Estonia 886.
Outside Europe, minimum wage purchasing power stands at 1,062 units in Turkey, 917 in Serbia, and 566 in Albania.
Eurostat explains that on 1st July 2025, the highest minimum wage in euros in Luxembourg was 4.9 times greater than the lowest in Bulgaria. When expressed in purchasing power standards, Luxembourg’s highest wage was 2.3 times greater than Estonia’s lowest. This demonstrates that rankings change when comparing nominal minimum wages with wages expressed in purchasing power units.
Cyprus’s gross minimum wage stands at €1,000 and has remained stable since the first quarter of 2024. Luxembourg records the highest gross minimum wage at €2,704, whilst Bulgaria has the lowest at €551. Greece’s minimum wage is €1,027.
Countries with minimum wages between €1,000-€1,500 monthly include Spain, Slovenia, Poland, Lithuania, Greece, Portugal and Cyprus. Below €1,000 are Croatia, Malta, Estonia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania, Latvia, Hungary and Bulgaria.
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