The ranking of the average monthly salary in Europe and Spain

The average gross salary in the 28 countries of the European Union (EU) was 2,000 euros per month in 2017, 3.3% higher than the 1934 euros for the previous year, according to the “VI Monitor Anual Adecco sobre Salarios: España en el contexto europeo “published this week by Grupo Adecco.

In Spain, the average salary was 1,639 euros, only 0.2% higher than the previous year. Thus, the difference between the average Spanish salary and the average EU salary has increased: it has gone from 13.4% to 18% lower. In absolute figures, the difference has gone from 298 to 361 euros per month.

In the ranking of average wages of the European Union, Spain stands at number 13.

The Adecco report classifies the 28 EU countries into three groups. In the group with the highest average gross wages there are nine countries: the first is Denmark, where the average salary was 3,807 euros a month last year. The second place is Luxembourg (3,228 euros) and the third Ireland (2,790 euros).

In an intermediate group there are nine countries where the average gross salary ranges from 1,000 to 2,500 euros per month. Spain is in this group; in the lowest part is Portugal (1,017 euros) and in the highest, France (2,356 euros) and the United Kingdom (2,381 euros).

Finally, in the lower group there are ten countries with an average monthly salary below 1,000 euros. They are all from Eastern Europe. The countries with the lowest average salary are Bulgaria (407 euros), Romania (563 euros) and Lithuania (566 euros).

Average wages per region

In Spain, the autonomous region with a higher average salary in 2017 was Madrid, with 1,933 euros per month, followed very close by the Basque Country with 1,930 euros.

The other three regions that are above the Spanish average, which is 1,639 euros, are Navarra (1,777 euros), Catalonia (1,725 euros) and Asturias (1,662 euros).

The communities where the average monthly salary is lower are the Canary Islands, with 1,420 euros, and Extremadura, which occupies the last position with 1,328 euros.

The following graph allows you to directly compare the average monthly salary of all the countries of the EU and the Spanish regions.