Only Bulgaria has a lower hourly price than Serbia in Europe. Admittedly, there is no data for BiH, Montenegro, Albania and North Macedonia
Price working hours u Serbia in 2025, it amounted to 12,8 euros and was the second lowest in Europe, among the countries for which Eurostat has data. Only Bulgaria was worse than Serbia, but it should be borne in mind that no data are available for BiH, Montenegro, Albania and North Macedonia.
For the sake of comparison, a working hour in Bulgaria cost 12 euros, in Romania 13,6 and in Hungary 15,2 euros.
In Croatia and Slovenia the price of a working hour was 18,4, or 29,7 euros, the Biznis&Finansije portal reported.
In the first place in Europe, according to Eurostat statistics, is Iceland, where the working hour cost 59,3 euros. They are followed by Luxembourg with 56,8 and Norway with 56,2 euros per working hour. No data is available for Switzerland.
The average price of a working hour in the European Union was 34,9 euros in 2025.
In 2025, hourly labor costs expressed in euros increased by 4,1 percent in the EU and by 3,8 percent in the euro area, compared to 2024.
Within the Eurozone, hourly labor costs rose in all countries except Malta (-0,5 percent). The highest increase was recorded in Bulgaria (+13,1 percent), Croatia (+11,6 percent), Slovenia (+9,3 percent) and Lithuania (+9,2 percent), while the lowest was in France (+2,0 percent) and Italy (+3,2 percent), followed by Spain, Cyprus and Luxembourg (+3,5 percent each).
For EU countries outside the eurozone, hourly labor costs expressed in national currency increased in all countries, with the largest increase recorded in Romania (+10,6 percent), Hungary (+8,9 percent) and Poland (+8,8 percent). The smallest increase was recorded in Denmark (+3,0 percent).
Experts and economic reports cite several key factors that keep the cost of labor in Serbia below the European average.
First, there is the structure of the economy, a large share of which are labor-intensive branches with low added value, such as textile industry and basic processing. Those branches of the economy have a lower average salary compared to high-tech economies.
In addition, there is also a problem with the long working week, because workers in Serbia work an average of 41,3 hours per week, which is among the longest working hours in Europe. Paradoxically, this is not accompanied by a high price per hour, but longer work is used to compensate for low productivity per hour.
Finally, the low price of a working hour in Serbia is significantly influenced by regional disparities, i.e. large differences in wages between Belgrade and the rest of Serbia. There is also a high disparity between the sectors, so incomes in agriculture cannot be compared with incomes in the IT sector, which further obscures the real picture of the purchasing power of most citizens.
Despite the large number of layoffs in the IT sector recorded at the beginning of 2026, employees in that branch of the economy have every reason to be optimistic when it comes to the level of their wages, that is, the price of a working hour.
According to the portal Playroll, a software engineer in Serbia can count on an average salary of 350.000 dinars. In addition to the IT sector, according to the portal, product managers (about 420.000 dinars), human resources managers (about 320.000 dinars) and marketing specialists (about 200.000 dinars) can count on high salaries.
Real journalism costs money, and we will not be bought by tycoons and corporations. Support us with a one-time or monthly donation. The time for it is now!
How did Ivan Boลกnjak and Stojan Vujko from the "Millennium Team" reach the very top of the most powerful business people in Serbia in ten years?
The long-standing saga of the demolition of the Hotel "Yugoslavia" and the construction of luxury towers under the patronage of the "Millennium Team" led to the issuance of an arrest warrant for those responsible. It is suspected that they built without a building permit
The Post of Serbia announced that today, November 11, 66 facilities will be on duty and that there will be enough cash to pay pensions
Idea markets have been operating at a loss for years, and the arrest of the new owner, Davor Matsura, further shook the company. Her survival is uncertain
While government representatives talk about the possible exodus of foreign investors after political changes, companies explain to N1 why they are reducing production or closing certain plants. Among the reasons are the crisis of the European automobile industry and the drop in demand
At the moment when the institutions of the Republic are destroyed, when Vuฤiฤ's octopus is still alive, when people are disgusted by the injustice and the stench left behind by the Essenes regime, we have, as Machiavelli said, only civic virtue as the fuel with which we can return to the beginning
The four independent members of REM are an example of perseverance and civic responsibility. Rodoljub ล abiฤ even, upon leaving the premises of REM, after the sentencing of the Informer, experienced that the Essenes insulted him, hit him with their hands and feet. But that too will soon be over
Vuฤiฤ pardoned the batterers and Dijana Hrkaloviฤ. The election winners should abolish the sultan's power that allows one man to run afoul of the entire judicial system
Time explores: The construction of the St. Sava Temple
Did the money paid by the Government to SPC end up in Moscow through Alta Bank? subscribeThe archive of the weekly Vreme includes all our digital editions, since the very beginning of our work. All issues can be downloaded in PDF format, by purchasing the digital edition, or you can read all available texts from the selected issue.
See all
