Since January 1, 2026, the minimum wage in Cyprus has been €979 gross for employees who have not yet completed 6 months with the same employer. After six months of continuous employment, the minimum wage rises to €1,088 gross per month. The new rates apply to full-time employees.
According to the government, the increase in the minimum wage in 2026 affected around 50,000 workers. At the same time, the national minimum wage does not apply, among others, to domestic workers, employees in agriculture and livestock farming, seafarers and hotel industry workers, for whom separate rules apply.
However, comparing wages across countries solely by the amount in euros is not entirely accurate. Housing, food, services and other goods vary significantly in price. For this reason, Eurostat uses the Purchasing Power Standard (PPS), an artificial unit that takes differences in price levels into account and allows for a better comparison of the real purchasing power of incomes.
How Cyprus compares with other EU countries
According to Eurostat data as of July 1, 2026, after adjusting for the cost of living, Cyprus’s minimum wage falls into the category of €1,000 to less than €1,500 PPS. The same group includes Lithuania, Croatia, Romania, Portugal, Greece, Malta, Slovakia, Hungary and Czechia. Values within this category range from 1,015 PPS in Czechia to 1,393 PPS in Lithuania.
Nine countries rank higher, with minimum wages of at least 1,500 PPS: Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Belgium, Ireland, France, Slovenia, Spain and Poland. In this group, the figure ranges from 1,547 PPS in Poland to 2,164 PPS in Germany. Below the 1,000 PPS threshold are Bulgaria, Latvia and Estonia — from 935 PPS in Estonia to 993 PPS in Bulgaria.
As a result, differences in the cost of living significantly reduce the gap between countries. If only nominal amounts are compared, the differences appear much greater. Eurostat notes that as of July 1, 2026, the highest minimum wage in euros — in Luxembourg — was 4.5 times higher than the lowest, recorded in Bulgaria. In PPS terms, Germany’s highest figure was only 2.3 times higher than Estonia’s lowest.
Who moved up and who lost ground
Adjusting for purchasing power significantly changes the position of some countries in the ranking. When nominal and PPS figures are compared, Romania moved from 20th to 12th place, while North Macedonia rose from 24th to 16th, meaning both countries gained 8 positions. The largest decline was recorded in Estonia, which fell from 16th to 26th place. Cyprus, Latvia and Czechia each lost 4 positions.
Inflation also affects changes in real incomes. In the source period from January to July 2026, according to the cited Eurostat data, inflation in the euro area was estimated at 3.2%. In some countries, the figure was significantly higher: 8.2% in Malta, 5.4% in Cyprus and 4.7% in the Netherlands.
From January to July 2026, the nominal minimum wage in national currency increased in only 8 of the 29 countries included in the comparison. These included Romania (6.8%), Estonia (6.8%), Belgium (5.8%), Greece (4.5%), Luxembourg (2.5%), France (2.4%) and the Netherlands (1.9%).
What the ranking means for workers in Cyprus
The PPS ranking reflects not simply the amount of the minimum wage, but how many goods and services can generally be purchased with that income after taking the country’s price level into account. Therefore, Cyprus’s middle position in the ranking does not mean that €1,088 in Cyprus has the same real value as €1,088 in another EU country. It is also important to note that Eurostat presents the minimum wage as monthly income before the deduction of income tax and employee social insurance contributions.
The size of such deductions varies from country to country. In addition, not all EU countries have a single national minimum wage. As of July 1, 2026, there was no statutory national minimum wage in Denmark, Italy, Austria, Finland and Sweden, where minimum pay levels are mainly regulated through collective agreements.
For Cyprus, the figure is particularly significant following the latest increase in the minimum wage to €1,088 after the first six months of employment. At the same time, the government continues to work on mechanisms to further improve the minimum wage system and bring it into line with European requirements.