The average net wage in Romania increased by only 4.6% y\/y to RON 5,499 (EUR 1,075) in the third quarter of 2025 (Q3), slowing down from +7.6% y\/y in Q2 and +9.7% y\/y in Q1 and a double-digit rate in 2024, according to data published by the statistics office (INS). The rising inflation, at 9.2% y\/y in Q3, turned the positive nominal growth rate of the average net wage into a 4.2% y\/y real contraction.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In euros, the net wages in Romania still increased by 2.1% y\/y in Q3 \u2013 close to the consumer price inflation in the euro area.<\/p>\n
The average net wages in the sectors dominated by the budgetary institutions (public administration, education, and healthcare) contracted by 0%-2% y\/y nominally and by 9%-11% y\/y in real terms in Q3, after the government froze the wages in the budgetary sector at the level of November 2024.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The freezing was prolonged until the end of 2026, which will have a tough impact on the revenues of the public sector’s employees. Even if further advances in prices will moderate over the next quarters, after the shock in July-August, the consumer prices will still advance by at least 5% by the end of 2026, putting the real adjustment of incomes in the budgetary sector at around 15%.<\/p>\n
In the private sector, the wage hikes are also expected to moderate.<\/p>\n
Romania’s average wages in the private sector are expected to rise by only 6% y\/y in 2026, after the 7.5% y\/y advance this year and 10.4% y\/y in 2024, according to the PayWell 2025 report compiled by PwC.<\/p>\n
The average inflation was 5.5% y\/y in 2024 and will be slightly higher in 2025 before easing in 2026. Consequently, it can be broadly estimated that the wages’ wide real gain in 2024 was silenced in 2025 and will not improve in 2026.<\/p>\n
The decrease in the growth rate reflects the slowdown in the economy and the increasing caution of the private sector in the face of market uncertainties.<\/p>\n