# Fuel prices vs wages: what a full tank costs as a share of net pay

A 50-litre tank of petrol costs 8.2% of a month’s net pay for an average earner in Romania and 2.0% in Luxembourg; for the EU-27 as a whole it is 4.2%. Prices: EU Weekly Oil Bulletin of 21 Sep 2026. Pay: Eurostat, 2025, a single person without children on the average wage.

URL: https://www.fuel-prices.eu/press/affordability/
Data date: 2026-09-21

## Key numbers
- **8.2%** Romania: highest share in the EU — Petrol, 50 L: €94.55 vs net pay of €1,156.45 a month (2025) · diesel, 50 L: 9.0% of net pay
- **2.0%** Luxembourg: lowest share in the EU — Petrol, 50 L: €92.45 vs net pay of €4,656.38 a month (2025) · diesel, 50 L: 2.3% of net pay
- **4.2%** EU-27: petrol tank vs net pay — Petrol, 50 L: €104.60 vs net pay of €2,496.13 a month (2025) · diesel, 50 L: 4.5% of net pay
- **28.2 L** Litres of petrol a day’s net pay buys in Romania — Luxembourg: 116.2 L · EU-27: 55.1 L · annual net pay (2025) ÷ 260 working days ÷ price per litre (21 Sep 2026)

Prices: EU Weekly Oil Bulletin (European Commission), 21 Sep 2026 · Net pay: Eurostat, 2025, average earner, single, no children · EU-27 = the Commission’s weighted price ÷ Eurostat’s EU-27 pay · Not adjusted for price levels (no PPS)

## The numbers — Petrol
| Country | Price (€ per litre, 21 Sep 2026) | 50-litre tank (€) | Net pay (€ a month, 2025) | Tank vs pay (% of a month’s net pay) | A day’s pay buys (litres) |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| EU-27 (weighted) | €2.092 | €104.60 | €2,496.13 | 4.2% | 55.1 |
| Romania | €1.891 | €94.55 | €1,156.45 | 8.2% | 28.2 |
| Bulgaria | €1.663 | €83.15 | €1,204.16 | 6.9% | 33.4 |
| Hungary | €1.752 | €87.60 | €1,286.00 | 6.8% | 33.9 |
| Croatia | €1.796 | €89.80 | €1,407.66 | 6.4% | 36.2 |
| Latvia | €1.997 | €99.85 | €1,586.29 | 6.3% | 36.7 |
| Slovakia | €1.853 | €92.65 | €1,508.05 | 6.1% | 37.6 |
| Greece | €2.197 | €109.85 | €1,791.52 | 6.1% | 37.6 |
| Lithuania | €1.950 | €97.50 | €1,591.05 | 6.1% | 37.7 |
| Portugal | €2.107 | €105.35 | €1,787.42 | 5.9% | 39.2 |
| Poland | €1.820 | €91.00 | €1,590.53 | 5.7% | 40.3 |
| Czechia | €1.884 | €94.20 | €1,741.74 | 5.4% | 42.7 |
| Estonia | €1.917 | €95.85 | €1,878.12 | 5.1% | 45.2 |
| Italy | €2.141 | €107.05 | €2,315.64 | 4.6% | 49.9 |
| Spain | €1.928 | €96.40 | €2,253.39 | 4.3% | 53.9 |
| Slovenia | €1.706 | €85.30 | €2,022.97 | 4.2% | 54.7 |
| France | €2.219 | €110.95 | €2,695.50 | 4.1% | 56.1 |
| Germany | €2.348 | €117.40 | €3,044.56 | 3.9% | 59.8 |
| Finland | €2.364 | €118.20 | €3,140.80 | 3.8% | 61.3 |
| Netherlands | €2.449 | €122.45 | €3,399.45 | 3.6% | 64.1 |
| Cyprus | €1.677 | €83.85 | €2,361.65 | 3.6% | 65.0 |
| Denmark (petrol: net of discounts) | €2.618 | €130.90 | €3,785.80 | 3.5% | 66.7 |
| Belgium | €1.988 | €99.40 | €3,034.54 | 3.3% | 70.5 |
| Malta (fixed price) | €1.340 | €67.00 | €2,106.07 | 3.2% | 72.5 |
| Austria | €1.925 | €96.25 | €3,528.91 | 2.7% | 84.6 |
| Ireland | €1.945 | €97.25 | €3,918.90 | 2.5% | 93.0 |
| Sweden (tax cuts) | €1.579 | €78.95 | €3,245.80 | 2.4% | 94.9 |
| Luxembourg | €1.849 | €92.45 | €4,656.38 | 2.0% | 116.2 |

> fixed price — Malta: one government-fixed pump price at every station, unchanged since 15 Jun 2020.

> tax cuts — Sweden: temporary fuel-tax cuts in force (energy tax until 30 Sep 2026, CO₂ tax until 30 Nov 2026).

> petrol: net of discounts — Denmark (petrol): the Bulletin figure is current consumer prices minus the previous quarter’s average discounts, not a survey of pump prices.

> Sorted by the petrol share, highest first; the EU-27 row stays on top. EU-27 = the Commission’s consumption-weighted average price ÷ Eurostat’s EU-27 net pay (weighted by employees).

## The numbers — Diesel
| Country | Price (€ per litre, 21 Sep 2026) | 50-litre tank (€) | Net pay (€ a month, 2025) | Tank vs pay (% of a month’s net pay) | A day’s pay buys (litres) |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| EU-27 (weighted) | €2.226 | €111.30 | €2,496.13 | 4.5% | 51.8 |
| Romania | €2.093 | €104.65 | €1,156.45 | 9.0% | 25.5 |
| Bulgaria | €1.916 | €95.80 | €1,204.16 | 8.0% | 29.0 |
| Hungary | €1.957 | €97.85 | €1,286.00 | 7.6% | 30.3 |
| Lithuania | €2.258 | €112.90 | €1,591.05 | 7.1% | 32.5 |
| Croatia | €1.975 | €98.75 | €1,407.66 | 7.0% | 32.9 |
| Latvia | €2.169 | €108.45 | €1,586.29 | 6.8% | 33.8 |
| Slovakia | €1.950 | €97.50 | €1,508.05 | 6.5% | 35.7 |
| Poland | €2.039 | €101.95 | €1,590.53 | 6.4% | 36.0 |
| Greece | €2.224 | €111.20 | €1,791.52 | 6.2% | 37.2 |
| Portugal | €2.210 | €110.50 | €1,787.42 | 6.2% | 37.3 |
| Czechia | €2.071 | €103.55 | €1,741.74 | 5.9% | 38.8 |
| Estonia | €2.113 | €105.65 | €1,878.12 | 5.6% | 41.0 |
| Italy | €2.281 | €114.05 | €2,315.64 | 4.9% | 46.9 |
| Slovenia | €1.975 | €98.75 | €2,022.97 | 4.9% | 47.3 |
| France | €2.383 | €119.15 | €2,695.50 | 4.4% | 52.2 |
| Spain | €1.918 | €95.90 | €2,253.39 | 4.3% | 54.2 |
| Cyprus | €1.948 | €97.40 | €2,361.65 | 4.1% | 56.0 |
| Finland | €2.555 | €127.75 | €3,140.80 | 4.1% | 56.7 |
| Germany | €2.457 | €122.85 | €3,044.56 | 4.0% | 57.2 |
| Belgium | €2.387 | €119.35 | €3,034.54 | 3.9% | 58.7 |
| Netherlands | €2.579 | €128.95 | €3,399.45 | 3.8% | 60.8 |
| Denmark | €2.555 | €127.75 | €3,785.80 | 3.4% | 68.4 |
| Sweden (tax cuts) | €2.090 | €104.50 | €3,245.80 | 3.2% | 71.7 |
| Austria | €2.238 | €111.90 | €3,528.91 | 3.2% | 72.8 |
| Malta (fixed price) | €1.210 | €60.50 | €2,106.07 | 2.9% | 80.3 |
| Ireland | €2.050 | €102.50 | €3,918.90 | 2.6% | 88.2 |
| Luxembourg | €2.114 | €105.70 | €4,656.38 | 2.3% | 101.7 |

> fixed price — Malta: one government-fixed pump price at every station, unchanged since 15 Jun 2020.

> tax cuts — Sweden: temporary fuel-tax cuts in force (energy tax until 30 Sep 2026, CO₂ tax until 30 Nov 2026).

> Sorted by the diesel share, highest first; the EU-27 row stays on top. EU-27 = the Commission’s consumption-weighted average price ÷ Eurostat’s EU-27 net pay (weighted by employees).

## Ready-to-quote sentences
- A 50-litre tank of petrol costs 8.2% of a month’s net pay for an average earner in Romania, the highest share in the EU, and 2.0% in Luxembourg, the lowest (petrol prices: EU Weekly Oil Bulletin, 21 September 2026; net pay: Eurostat, 2025, single person without children on the average wage; via fuel-prices.eu).
- For diesel, a 50-litre tank costs 9.0% of a month’s net pay for an average earner in Romania, the highest share in the EU, and 2.3% in Luxembourg, the lowest (diesel prices: EU Weekly Oil Bulletin, 21 September 2026; net pay: Eurostat, 2025, single person without children on the average wage; via fuel-prices.eu).
- Across the EU, a 50-litre tank costs 4.2% of average net monthly pay for petrol and 4.5% for diesel (European Commission weighted EU-27 average prices, 21 September 2026; Eurostat EU-27 average net earnings, 2025; via fuel-prices.eu).
- A day’s net pay buys 28.2 litres of petrol in Romania and 116.2 litres in Luxembourg (annual net pay divided by 260 working days; petrol prices: EU Weekly Oil Bulletin, 21 September 2026; net pay: Eurostat, 2025, single person without children on the average wage; via fuel-prices.eu).

## Methodology & caveats
- Share of net pay: price per litre × 50 ÷ (annual net pay ÷ 12) × 100. Litres a day’s pay buys: (annual net pay ÷ 260) ÷ price per litre. Shares are shown with one decimal; the CSV also has two.
- Prices: national average pump prices with all taxes, for Euro-super 95 petrol and diesel, from the European Commission’s Weekly Oil Bulletin, prices of 21 Sep 2026. For countries outside the euro area the Commission converts the prices to euros.
- Net pay: Eurostat, earn_nt_net (annual net earnings), 2025, in euros: a single person without children earning 100% of the average wage of workers in industry and services. Net means gross pay minus income tax and the employee’s social contributions. The figures are model calculations from each country’s tax rules (OECD method; compiled since 2024 by the Commission’s Joint Research Centre, which is why Eurostat marks a break in the series in 2024). Eurostat last updated the dataset on 4 September 2026.
- EU-27: the Commission’s EU-27 average price, weighted by each country’s fuel consumption, divided by Eurostat’s EU-27 net pay, a weighted average by number of employees. It is not the simple average of the national shares.
- Two different dates: pay is for 2025, the latest year Eurostat has published; prices are those of 21 Sep 2026. The share compares this week’s price with last year’s pay, so pay rises since 2025 are not in it.
- One household type, not everyone’s pay: “average earner, single, no children” is Eurostat’s standard case. It is not the pay of every worker: people below the average wage, part-time workers, the self-employed and pensioners are not covered, and families with children also receive family benefits.
- Currencies: everything is in euros. For the 6 countries outside the euro area, the price is converted at the Bulletin’s exchange rate and the 2025 pay at Eurostat’s, so exchange-rate moves since 2025 shift the share. If both are taken in national currency instead, the petrol shares are: Czechia 5.3% (5.4% in euros); Denmark 3.5% (3.5% in euros); Hungary 6.2% (6.8% in euros); Poland 5.9% (5.7% in euros); Romania 8.5% (8.2% in euros); Sweden 2.5% (2.4% in euros).
- No PPS: the share compares a price with pay in the same country, so no purchasing-power adjustment is needed and none is applied. It is a different measure from comparisons with GDP per head in purchasing power standards (PPS).
- Malta: one government-fixed pump price at every station, unchanged since 15 June 2020 (Enemed price list), so its share does not follow market prices.
- Sweden: temporary cuts in fuel taxes lower its pump prices while they last: energy tax from 1 May to 30 September 2026 and CO₂ tax from 1 July to 30 November 2026 (Swedish Tax Agency: energy tax, CO₂ tax).
- Denmark (petrol): the Bulletin figure is current consumer prices minus the previous quarter’s average discounts, not a survey of pump prices.
- The tank and the working day: 50 litres is a typical fill for a compact car. 260 working days = 52 weeks × 5 days, with no deduction for holidays.
- Coverage: all 27 EU countries covered by the Weekly Oil Bulletin. The chart shows 26 of them; the table and the CSV have all 27.
- Updates: prices change with each Weekly Oil Bulletin (Monday prices, published by the Commission later in the week), and this page follows within minutes. Pay changes once a year, when Eurostat publishes a new year; the page then switches to it automatically.

## How to cite
Source: fuel-prices.eu, based on the EU Weekly Oil Bulletin (European Commission) and Eurostat net earnings (earn_nt_net) — https://www.fuel-prices.eu/press/affordability/ — CC BY 4.0