Real wages in Czechia to rise almost the fastest in all EU next year

Real wages in Czechia are expected to rise in 2026 at one of the fastest rates in the EU, reflecting a recovery in purchasing power after years of high inflation, according to a recently published international salary outlook.

The Employment Conditions Abroad’s (ECA) 2025–26 Salary Trends report forecasts that Czechia will rank second among EU countries for real wage growth next year. Real wages, which account for the impact of price increases, are projected to rise by 2.7 percent. Czechia shares this position with Bulgaria and Poland.

Within the EU, only Hungary is expected to record stronger growth, with real wages forecast to increase by 3.5 percent. By comparison, real wages in neighboring Slovakia are projected to grow by around 1.9 percent. 

Nominal wages in the Czech Republic, which do not account for inflation, are expected to increase by about 5 percent in 2026, a sharp rise from around 2.5 percent this year. 

The International Monetary Fund’s inflation forecast of 2.3 percent for Czechia, also cited in the ECA report as well as Euronews, underlines how Czechia’s low inflationary environment will help spur salary rises.

Despite the positive outlook, economists caution that higher real salaries next year will not fully offset the losses households experienced during the overall inflation surge seen since the global pandemic.

Referencing real salary levels over time, economist Petr Studnička told Czech media outlet TN.cz this month: “We have not yet reached pre-Covid levels, which means that we are neither at pre-2021 nor pre-2019 [wage] levels.” 

As of the third quarter of 2025, Czech Statistical Office data shows that the average (gross) salary in Czechia stands at CZK 48,295, an increase of CZK 3,194 compared to the same time last year. Prague has the highest average wages overall, at CZK 61,129, whereas the Karlovy Vary region has the lowest, at a little over CZK 41,500.

In the whole ECA report, Turkey has the largest projected real salary rise at 8.1 percent, whereas Romania is the only country forecast to post a contraction in salary growth (-0.7 percent).