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The largest household-income gains were in the east

Change in real adjusted household income per person, 2004–2024

The largest household-income gains were in the east Ranked bar chart showing the change in real adjusted household income per person from 2004 to 2024 for 26 EU countries. Romania rose 134%, followed by Lithuania at 95% and Poland at 91%. Greece fell 5% and Italy fell 4%. 0% +50% +100% Romania +134% Lithuania +95% Poland +91% Malta +90% Italy -4% Greece -5%

Source: Eurostat — adjusted gross disposable income of households in real terms per capita

Economy

Europe's income growth moved east

Real household income per person more than doubled in Romania and nearly doubled in Lithuania and Poland. Italy and Greece ended 2024 below where they began in 2004.

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Geography
26 EU countries with comparable observations
Period
2004–2024
Source
Eurostat

Source and method. Eurostat — adjusted gross disposable income of households in real terms per capita. We calculated the percentage change between the 2004 and 2024 index values for adjusted gross disposable income of households in real terms per capita, with 2010 equal to 100. The measure includes household income after taxes and transfers plus social transfers in kind, such as publicly provided health and education. Bulgaria is omitted because Eurostat does not report a 2004 observation. Country changes are rounded to the nearest percentage point; Eurostat's published EU aggregate change is 22%.

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