The minimum wage in Portugal has been rising in recent years, having been set at 820 euros in 2024. However, it remains in the middle of the table of minimum wages in the European Union (EU) countries, having even been overtaken by Poland this year. And, Portugal is at the bottom of the EU when it comes to purchasing power parity between those who receive the national minimum wage.

The adjustment of the various minimum wages of the EU countries to the differences in consumer prices in each Member State results in purchasing power parities (PPP). “The disparities in minimum wages are considerably smaller after adjusting for differences in price levels”, concludes Eurostat in a statistical note.

Among the EU countries with a national minimum wage, only Bulgaria, Latvia, Estonia, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Malta have a lower purchasing power parity than Portugal.

Portugal is the 8th EU country with the lowest purchasing power parity, despite being in the group of minimum wages between PPP 1,000 and 1,250, which also includes Cyprus, Croatia, Greece, Lithuania and Romania.

With the highest purchasing power parities for workers (above 1,250) are Luxembourg, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Ireland, Poland, Spain and Svoboda.

Considering the countries with a minimum wage in the EU, in July, the highest was recorded in Luxembourg (2,571 euros), being 5.4 times higher than the lowest recorded in Bulgaria (477 euros). But when compared in terms of purchasing power parity, Luxembourg's minimum wage is only 2.4 times higher than Bulgaria's, Eurostat finds.