The Netherlands is rising sharply in the top 26 EU countries in terms of disposable income

Not all Dutch people make ends meet every month. For example, the average disposable income not only differs per age category, but it also makes a difference whether you are a tenant or a buyer. But how much do we actually have to spend in the Netherlands compared to the rest of Europe? Strangely enough, Slovakia is the only EU country not included, but only a moan who pays attention to it.

This becomes clear in the Wide Welfare Monitor 2023, which was published this week by Statistics Netherlands (CBS). Roughly speaking, this report provides a picture of the state of affairs with regard to the prosperity of the Dutch. One of the eight themes that are leading for the measurement of so-called broad prosperity is material prosperity. This is measured on the basis of two indicators: median disposable income and individual consumption.

Disposable income in the Netherlands versus European countries

And how is the Netherlands actually doing when we look at the disposable income of the Dutch compared to the rest of Europe? To answer that question, we zoom in on the measured median disposable income. The median refers to the ‘average’ income. This means that half of the households have a lower disposable income than the median and the other half have a higher disposable income. Statistics Netherlands’ calculations have been corrected for the different compositions of households.

In any case, we can say that the median disposable income of Dutch households has increased considerably in recent years: in 2013, households still had to make do with a disposable income of 26,025 euros per year. In 2021 this has risen to 29,800 euros per year. An increase of 14 percent. That increase has not been equally fast in Europe, as can be seen from the rising position of the Netherlands in the ranking.

The Netherlands is represented at number three in the European ranking based on median disposable income. Ten years ago we were in a lot less good shape: then we were still number seven in the ranking. Curious who else has more than the average Dutch household? These are Luxembourg and Denmark. Also curious about the rest of the order? Below you will find the ranking of all European countries.

Also check the countries with the best quality of life, and you probably won’t guess the numbers.