Minimum wage: Lithuania and Croatia surpass Malta in 2025

Malta’s minimum wage has risen by 3.9% in 2025, from €925 to €961 per month. However, a recent analysis by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions has revealed that Malta is slipping down the rankings.

Having already been overtaken by Poland in 2024, Malta has now been surpassed by both Lithuania and Croatia.

Eurofound data showed that Croatia’s minimum wage increased sharply by 15.5%, rising from €840 in 2024 to €970 in 2025, overtaking Malta. Lithuania also saw a rise, with its minimum wage climbing from €924 to €1,038, surpassing Malta as well. Poland, which had already overtaken Malta in 2024, increased its minimum wage by 11.7%, from €978 to €1,091 in 2025, further widening the gap between the two countries. However, these increases do not account for state-provided benefits aimed at boosting minimum incomes. In Malta, this included significant in-work benefits and an additional annual Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) increase, which amounted to up to €1,500.

Trends across the EU

Romania saw the highest percentage increase among EU member states, with a 22.8% rise, pushing its minimum wage from €663 to €814. Lithuania also posted a double-digit increase of 12.3%, bringing its minimum wage up to €1,038.

In contrast, countries with traditionally higher wages, such as Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Ireland, recorded more modest increases. Luxembourg’s minimum wage increased by 2.6% to reach €2,638, maintaining its position as the highest in the EU. The Netherlands saw a 6.0% rise to €2,193, while Ireland’s wage level increased by 6.3% to €2,282.

Malta’s position in the EU wage landscape

Despite the increase, Malta remains among the lower-ranked countries in the EU in terms of minimum wages.

The country is now closely aligned with Greece (€968) and Portugal (€1,015), while Cyprus has maintained a stable rate of €1,000, unchanged from the previous year. Meanwhile, countries like Slovenia (€1,384) and Spain (€1,381) continue to maintain a significant lead over Malta.

The overall trend across the EU shows that while most countries have increased their minimum wages, the pace of change varies significantly. In some cases, such as in Poland and Croatia, the increases have been substantial enough to shift their position in the rankings. Meanwhile, countries such as Germany, France, and Belgium have recorded more moderate increases in the range of 2% to 4.4%.

Malta’s lower inflation rate

Inflation continues to play a role in wage adjustments, with the annual inflation rate in several EU countries influencing decisions on minimum wage hikes. For example, Estonia and Czechia both implemented increases of 8% or more to keep pace with inflation. In contrast, Malta’s 3.9% increase aligns with its relatively moderate inflation rate of 1.8%, which is lower than that in all EU countries except Luxembourg. One major reason for this is the Maltese government’s decision to subsidise energy costs, which is a major trigger of inflation in other countries.