Data extracted on 27 March 2026

Planned article update: 26 March 2027

Productivity trends using key national accounts indicators

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Data extracted on 27 March 2026

Planned article update: 26 March 2027

Highlights

Labour productivity per hour worked in the EU rose by 1.4% in 2025, after an increase of 0.2% in 2024.

Hours worked per employed person decreased by 0.3% in 2025, after an increase of 0.1% in 2024.

[[File:Productivity trends using key national accounts indicators 27-03-2026 v3.xlsx]]

Evolution of key input indicators of labour productivity and real GDP per capita in the EU

  • Note: y-axis does not start at 0
  • (¹) these indicators are calculated on GDP in chain linked volumes
  • Source: Eurostat (online data codes: nama_10_lp_ulc, nama_10_pc)

This article uses selected indicators to analyse productivity trends since 1999 for the European Union (EU) its EU countries, and member countries of the European Free Trade Area (EFTA) and provides insights into main trends and driving factors. It starts with an analysis of key labour productivity indicators at total-economy level and then deepens the analysis at country and industry level.

The second part of the article is dedicated to capital productivity indicators. The article closes with a look at labour productivity at regional level.

Evolution of key labour productivity indicators at total economy level in the EU

In 2025, labour productivity per hour worked in the EU increased by 1.4%, after +0.2% in 2024 (Table 1). Labour productivity per person increased by 1.0% in 2025, compared to +0.3% in 2024, while total employment per capita increased by 0.3% in 2025, after +0.5% in 2024. Only hours worked per employed person decreased by 0.3% in 2025, after +0.1% in 2025. In comparison, real GDP per capita increased by 1.3% in 2025, after +0.8% in 2024.

a table showing the evolution of key input indicators of labour productivity and real GDP per capita in the EU from 1999 to 2025, different periods and the last two years. For more details please use the link to the source dataset code below the image.
Table 1: Key labour productivity indicators and GDP per capita in the EU
Source: Eurostat (nama_10_lp_ulc) and (nama_10_pc)

Looking at the evolution of labour productivity per hour worked, per person and real GDP per capita for the European Union (EU) since 1999 (Figure 1), it is apparent that these indicators were significantly impacted by the financial crisis in 2009 and the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 but overall upward trends remained intact. Thanks to government support schemes (short-time work and similar measures) implemented in most countries in 2020, the decline in employment in persons was less pronounced than the reduction of hours worked, so that labour productivity per hour worked continued to increase during the pandemic.

line chart with five lines showing the evolution of key input indicators of labour productivity and real GDP per capita in the EU from 1999 to 2025 where 2020 equals 100. The lines show real labour productivity per person, real labour productivity per hour worked, total employment of employed person per capita hours worked per employed person and real GDP per capita. For more details please use the link to the source dataset code below the image.
Figure 1: Evolution of key input indicators of labour productivity and real GDP per capita in the EU
Source: Eurostat (nama_10_lp_ulc) and (nama_10_pc)


Breaking down overall productivity growth by periods (calculating geometric average growth rates from indices) allows a more detailed analysis of underlying trends even though it is important to note that that their length differ (Figure 3). From 1999 to 2008, productivity growth based on hours worked and persons were relatively highest, as many EU countries experienced accelerated GDP per capita growth, driven by the introduction of the euro in 1999 and the enlargement of the EU with the accession of 12 Eastern and Central European countries in 2004 and 2007. Then, the global financial and economic crisis led to significant GDP contractions and employment declines in 2009 and the subsequent gradual economic recovery was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, which impacted EU economies more severely than the financial crisis. Overall, there was a decline in (average) labour productivity growth for both hours worked and employed persons for the 2008 to 2019 period, that continued for the 2019 to 2025 period, while growth in GDP per capita were about similar. However, growth in total employment per capita was higher in 2019-2025 than in 2008-2019 and the decline in hours worked per employed person smaller than in previous periods.

a vertical bar chart showing Key labour productivity indicators in the EU of the Annual average growth rate for the period 1999 to 2008, 2008-2019 and 2019-2025. The bars show real labour productivity per person, real labour productivity per hour worked total employment of employed person per capita hours worked per employed person.
Figure 2: Key labour productivity indicators and GDP per capita in the EU
Source: Eurostat (nama_10_lp_ulc)

Diverging trends for the total employment rate and hours worked per employed person remain noteworthy (figure 3). Hours worked per employed person continued a long-term downward trend for the EU and their level is below the pre-pandemic level. Total employment per capita has increased over the past 25 years, from 43.2% in 1999 to 48.8% in 2025. This can be related to increased labour market participation of women and older individuals, especially in periods of overall good economic conditions. Following a COVID-19 related dip, total employment per capita increased over the last years, but with a declining growth rate to 0.3% in 2025.

a vertical bar chart with a single line showing hours worked per employed person and percentage of total employment per capita in the EU from 1999 to 2025. The bar shows hours worked per employed person and the line shows total employment i.e. share of employed persons per capita. For more details please use the link to the source dataset code below the image.
Figure 3: Hours worked per employed person and share of total employment (employed persons) per capita in the EU
Source: Eurostat (nama_10_lp_ulc) and (nama_10_pc)

Labour productivity developments at country level

In 2025 (Figure 4), EU labour productivity per hour worked grew by 1.4%. Highest increases were observed for Ireland (+10.5%), related to multinational enterprise activities, followed by Latvia (+4.2%), Poland (+4.1%) and Romania (+3.9%), while only Malta (-0.8%) and Italy (-0.6%) recorded negative growth. In 2024 and previous years, productivity declines were observed for more countries (Table 2).

bar chart showing the percentage change of real labour productivity in 2025 per hour worked in the EU, member states and EFTA countries. For more details please use the link to the source dataset code below the image.
Figure 4: Real labour productivity per hour worked by country
Source: Eurostat (nama_10_lp_ulc)

The average number of hours worked per employed person in 2025 declined by 0.3% (Figure 5) at the EU level, but changes at country level varied significantly. Czechia, Malta and Lithuania saw the highest increases in working hours, with growth rates of 1.0%, 0.9%, and 0.8%, respectively. On the other hand, the largest decreases were observed for Latvia and Greece (both -1.4%) and for Slovenia (-1.2%).

bar chart showing the percentage change of hours worked per employed person by country. For more details please use the link to the source dataset code below the image.
Figure 5: Hours worked per employed person by country
Source: Eurostat (nama_10_lp_ulc)


Finally, country specific changes in average labour productivity per hour worked for different periods are presented in Table 2.

line chart with nine lines showing the evolution of real labour productivity per hour worked by countries by economic activity from 1999 to 2025 where 2020 equals 100. For more details please use the link to the source dataset code below the image.
Table 2: Real labour productivity per hour worked by country
Source: Eurostat (nama_10_lp_ulc)


Labour productivity trends at industry level

Labour productivity indicators at total economy level have been complemented with breakdowns by economic activity to make it possible to analyse trends in specific industries (limited to industries where the vast proportion of activities are in the market sectors). Focusing on the year 2025, labour productivity per hour worked by industry, calculated on the basis of real gross value added, showed different changes across industries (Table 3). The largest increases were recorded for 'Agriculture' (+6.8%), 'Information and Communication', (+3.7%) and 'Manufacturing' (+3.5%) while the decrease was most pronounced for 'Financial and insurance activities' (-1.1%) and 'Arts, entertainment and recreation; other service activities' (-0.7%).

Detailed data on labour productivity per hour worked for the year 2025 by country and by industry are presented in Table 3.

table showing the evolution of real labour productivity per hour worked in 2025 for the EU and countries. For more details please use the link to the source dataset code below the image.
Table 3: Real labour productivity per hour worked by country and industry
Source: Eurostat (nama_10_lp_a21)

Figure 6 shows the trends of labour productivity per hour worked in the EU since 1999 in different industries. When analysing the evolution of labour productivity at the industry level, all sectors have surpassed their pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels, with the exception of the 'Construction' industry, which remains below 2019 levels. Notably, the industries that have experienced the strongest average growth in labour productivity per hour worked over the entire period are 'Agriculture', 'Information and Communication', and 'Manufacturing'.

bar chart showing the percentage change of real labour productivity in 2025 per hour worked in the EU, member states. For more deails please use the link to the source dataset code below the image.
Figure 6: Evolution of labour productivity per hours worked by industry in the EU
Source: Eurostat (nama_10_lp_a21)


Examining the average growth rates of labour productivity per hours worked by industry for 1999-2025 and by sub-periods (Table 4) in the EU it can be noted that labour productivity growth slowed for most industries, with 'Professional, scientific and technical activities' being the main exception. An overall decline for 1999-2025, and also the first (1999-2008) and last (2019-2025) periods, was only observed for 'Construction'.

a table showing real labour productivity per hour worked by country and industry for different periods. The columns show the NACE A*10 industries categories in the EU. For more details please use the link to the source dataset code below the image.
Table 4: Labour producivity per hours worked by industry, EU
Source: Eurostat (nama_10_lp_a21)

Capital related productivity indicators

Together with labour, capital is the other key input factor for the production process. Looking at capital productivity indicators for the EU aggregates and countries based on the evolution of net capital stocks up to the year 2023 (in real terms), some interesting aspects can be pointed out.

The evolution of net capital stocks based productivity indicators for the EU between 2001 and 2023 (Figure 7) shows the evolution of key net capital stock based productivity - net fixed assets per employed person, net fixed assets per hour worked, gross value added per unit of net fixed assets, net fixed assets to gross value added - and real GDP per capita in the EU from 2000 to 2023.

It can be observed that net fixed assets per hour worked increased significantly increased between 2001 and 2013, but remained on a broadly stable level after that. A similar trend is observed for net fixed assets per employed person. For real gross value added per unit of net fixed assets, the evolution varied over time. A substantial drop observed with the financial crisis was only progressively recovered until 2019, when COVID led to a further drop but faster recovery. Analogous to the labour productivity indicator, this indicator shows the relation between the units of output (real gross value added) produced and one unit of capital stock (input). The inverse indicator of net fixed assets to gross value added followed a mirrored pattern.

a graph showing gross value added per unit of net fixed assets, Net fixed assets per employed person , Gross value added , Net fixed assets and Employed persons and GDP per capital for the EU for 2001 to 2023. For more details please use the link to the source dataset code below the image.
Figure 7: Evolution of net capital stocks based productivity indicators in the EU
Source: Eurostat (nama_10_cp_a21), (nama_10_a10), (nama_10_nfa_st) and (nama_10_pe)

As for labour productivity indicators, differences in the changes of different indicators become clearer if (average geometric) growth rates are compared for different periods (Table 5 and Figure 8). Net fixed assets per hour worked and per employed person both show declining growth rates over the different periods, while changes for gross value added per unit of net fixed assets or net fixed assets to gross value added are quite small.

a table showing gross value added per unit of net fixed assets, Net fixed assets per employed person , Gross value added , Net fixed assets and Employed persons and GDP per capital for the EU for different periods. For more details please use the link to the source dataset code below the image.
Table 5: Change in net capital stock based indicators and real GDP per capita in the EU for different periods
Source: Eurostat (nama_10_cp_a21), (nama_10_a10), (nama_10_nfa_st) and (nama_10_pe)


a graph showing gross value added per unit of net fixed assets, Net fixed assets per employed person, Gross value added, Net fixed assets and Employed persons and GDP per capital for the EU for different periods. For more details please use the link to the source dataset code below the image.
Figure 8: Key labour productivity indicators and GDP per capita in the EU
Source: Eurostat (nama_10_cp_a21), (nama_10_a10), (nama_10_nfa_st) and (nama_10_pe)

Finally, 2023 figures for real gross value added per unit of net fixed assets, net fixed assets per employed person and the growth rates of gross value added, net fixed assets and employed persons for the EU and at country level are presented in Table 6. For the EU, a decline of 0.3% was observed for gross value added per unit of net fixed assets, while developments at country level varied widely, ranging from +15.3% for Slovakia (reflecting a decline in net fixed assets related to military equipment) to -5.8% for Estonia.

The change in the capital-to-labour ratio, which indicates the intensity of the use of fixed assets in relation to the use of labour input, declined by 0.2% in the EU and ranged from -9.7% for Slovakia to +3.9% for Romania. Differences across countries are also related to different types of industry structure and technologies, which both imply different degrees of capital intensity compared with labour intensity.

line table with five columns showing the change of real gross value added per unit of net fixed assets, net fixed assets per employed persons and the growth rates of gross value added, net fixed assets and employed persons for the EU and at country level for the year 2023. For more details please use the link to the source dataset code below the image.
Table 6: Gross value added per unit of net fixed assets, Net fixed assets per employed person, Gross value added, Net fixed assets and Employed persons
Source: Eurostat (nama_10_cp_a21) and (nama_10_pc)



Labour productivity per hour worked at regional level

Labour productivity at regional level can be analysed using regional accounts data available for the European Union’s (EU) NUTS level 2 regions. Several EU countries (Cyprus, Estonia, Luxembourg, Latvia and Malta) only have a single level 2 region, in these cases the regional labour productivity indicator corresponds to the one at national level.

Regional labour productivity per hour worked is computed as an index (2020=100) based on gross domestic product in chain linked volumes. In order to smooth out the volatility typically observed in regional growth year on year, the annual average growth rate was calculated over the period 2003-2023. The following map illustrates regional growth in labour productivity for the EU regions.

Map 1: Labour productivity
Source: Eurostat (nama_10r_2rlp)


At regional level, productivity growth was higher for central and eastern European countries, which benefited from a catching-up and convergence process over the period, recording annual average growth rates above the EU average of 1.0% in all regions of Croatia, Hungary, Ireland, Lithuania, Poland, Slovenia and Slovakia. Some regions in Austria, Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark and Germany also had annual growth rates above the EU average. The growth rate for the Romanian region of the București-Ilfov (7.9%) was the highest among European regions while productivity growth was rather low in all Greek regions and in some Italian regions, as well as in 1 Portuguese and 2 Swedish regions. Due to confidentiality the indicator is not calculated for the Dutch regions.

Source data for tables and graphs

Data sources

The available set of productivity indicators is based on national accounts data which must be sent by EU Member States and EFTA countries according to the deadlines specified in the European system of national and regional accounts (ESA), which also provides the methodological framework for national accounts in the EU. The current version, ESA 10, was adopted in May 2013 and has been implemented since September 2014. It is fully consistent with worldwide guidelines for national accounts, the 2008 SNA.

Please note that national accounts data are regularly revised, and this also impacts derived productivity indicators. In particular, significant revisions can be expected for benchmark revisions, which nearly all EU Member States carried out in 2024. For further details, please consult the Eurostat website on data quality and website on data revision.

Regular updates vary depending on the breakdown and national release calendars. Deadlines for delivery of data range mainly from t+2 months for main aggregates to t+24 months for capital assets and regional data. Additional information on the dissemination of ESA 2010 data is available under National accounts based productivity indicators at total economy, industry and regional level (nama_10_prod) and for regional accounts Regional economic account (reg_eco10) - Section 9. Frequency of dissemination.

Indicator definitions

Real labour productivity per person employed for the total economy is calculated by dividing GDP in chain-linked volumes by the number of employed persons. At industry and regional levels, GDP in the numerator is replaced by GVA.

Real labour productivity per hour worked for the total economy is calculated by dividing GDP in chain-linked volumes by hours worked. At industry and regional level, GDP in the numerator is replaced by GVA. The recommended measure for labour input is the total number of hours worked, as it takes into account changes in part-time work, the effect of variations in overtime, the effect of absence from work, or the effect of shifts in normal hours.

Total employment per capita is calculated by dividing total employment (in terms of persons, in domestic concept) by the total population.

Hours worked per person employed is the result of dividing total hours worked by persons employed (in domestic concept).

Gross value added per unit of net fixed assets is obtained by dividing gross value added (in chain-linked volumes) by net capital stock (in chain-linked volumes).

Net fixed assets to gross value added is the inverse of the previous indicator. It is obtained by dividing net capital stock (in chain-linked volumes) by gross value added (in chain-linked volumes).

Net fixed assets per employed person is obtained by dividing net capital stock (in chain-linked volumes) by persons employed; net fixed assets per hour worked is obtained by dividing net capital stock (in chain-linked volumes) by hours worked.

Context

Labour and capital are key input factors affecting productivity growth. They are widely used for economic analysis and forecasting, policy design and policy making. The aim of this data collection based on national accounts data is to provide indicators that allow deeper analysis of productivity trends.

Footnotes

Explore further

Other articles


Database
Labour and capital productivity (nama_10_prod)

Methodology

The documentation on availability and comparability aspects related to labour-productivity indicators and capital-productivity indicators is available on the Eurostat website.

Other methodological information

External links
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