Tax rate on low wage earners - tax wedge on labour costs in Germany
Germany: Tax rate on low wage earners - tax wedge on labour costs was 42.7 Rate in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
42.7 Rate
Change on year
up 1.4%
World rank
4th
of 44 countries
All-time high
47.9 Rate
in 2003
All-time low
42.1 Rate
in 2024
Years of data
26
2000–2025
Tax rate on low wage earners - tax wedge on labour costs in Germany, 2000–2025
Source: Eurostat. Measured in Rate.
Analysis
Germany recorded 42.7 Rate for tax rate on low wage earners - tax wedge on labour costs in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.4% on the previous year and down 5.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, tax rate on low wage earners - tax wedge on labour costs in Germany peaked at 47.9 Rate in 2003 and was at its lowest, 42.1 Rate, in 2024.
That places Germany 4th out of 44 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 26 years of available data.
Tax rate on low wage earners - tax wedge on labour costs in Germany, year by year
| Year | Rate | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 47.6 Rate | — |
| 2001 | 46.7 Rate | -1.9% |
| 2002 | 47.2 Rate | +1.1% |
| 2003 | 47.9 Rate | +1.5% |
| 2004 | 46.9 Rate | -2.1% |
| 2005 | 47.3 Rate | +0.9% |
| 2006 | 47.5 Rate | +0.4% |
| 2007 | 47 Rate | -1.1% |
| 2008 | 46.5 Rate | -1.1% |
| 2009 | 45.9 Rate | -1.3% |
| 2010 | 44.9 Rate | -2.2% |
| 2011 | 45.6 Rate | +1.6% |
| 2012 | 45.5 Rate | -0.2% |
| 2013 | 45.1 Rate | -0.9% |
| 2014 | 45.2 Rate | +0.2% |
| 2015 | 45.3 Rate | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 45.4 Rate | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 45.4 Rate | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 45.3 Rate | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 45.2 Rate | -0.2% |
| 2020 | 44.7 Rate | -1.1% |
| 2021 | 44.3 Rate | -0.9% |
| 2022 | 44.1 Rate | -0.5% |
| 2023 | 43.5 Rate | -1.4% |
| 2024 | 42.1 Rate | -3.2% |
| 2025 | 42.7 Rate | +1.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 47.05 Rate | 45.9 Rate | 47.9 Rate | 10 |
| 2010s | 45.29 Rate | 44.9 Rate | 45.6 Rate | 10 |
| 2020s | 43.57 Rate | 42.1 Rate | 44.7 Rate | 6 |
Countries ranked near Germany
More work & labour data for Germany
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.0436 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.0549 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.0322 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.95 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.0388 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 66,826 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 12,413 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 35,391 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 35,508 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 70,900 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is tax rate on low wage earners - tax wedge on labour costs in Germany?
- Tax rate on low wage earners - tax wedge on labour costs in Germany was 42.7 Rate in 2025, according to Eurostat.
- What is the highest tax rate on low wage earners - tax wedge on labour costs recorded in Germany?
- The highest recorded value was 47.9 Rate in 2003.
- What is the lowest tax rate on low wage earners - tax wedge on labour costs recorded in Germany?
- The lowest recorded value was 42.1 Rate in 2024.
- How does Germany rank for tax rate on low wage earners - tax wedge on labour costs?
- Germany ranks 4th out of 44 countries with data for 2025.
- Is tax rate on low wage earners - tax wedge on labour costs rising or falling in Germany?
- Over the last ten years it is down 5.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Germany data come from?
- The figures come from Eurostat, published as part of Tax rate on low wage earners - tax wedge on labour costs. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Eurostat).