According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), in 2025 the highest average annual pay for primary school teachers in Europe was in Denmark — over 74 000 euro, while the lowest was in Turkey — around 18 669 euro.
Countries with the highest and lowest primary school teachers’ salaries
The OECD reports that teachers earning more than 50 000 euro per year also include those in Norway, Belgium, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales, Finland and England. The lowest figures were recorded in Turkey — 18 669 euro, Greece — 18 746 euro, Latvia — 20 516 euro and Romania — 20 805 euro.
Among the largest European economies, teachers in Germany have the highest salaries. In France educators earn on average 41 968 euro per year, and in Italy — 32 100 euro; data for Spain are unavailable.
Difference between primary and upper secondary teachers’ salaries
Upper secondary teachers’ salaries are generally higher than those of primary teachers, with exceptions in Turkey and Northern Ireland, and in Scotland, Lithuania and Estonia pay is the same at both levels. Annual earnings for upper secondary teachers range from 17 615 euro in Turkey to 93 938 euro in Iceland.
The top three countries for upper secondary teachers’ salaries are Iceland (93 938 euro), Denmark (85 999 euro) and Germany (80 163 euro). The largest gaps between the two levels are observed in Iceland, Finland, Belgium, Denmark, Austria and Germany — in these countries upper secondary teachers earn at least 10 000 euro more per year.
The impact of cost of living on the real purchasing power of salaries
The OECD compared earnings taking account of cost of living in PPS — purchasing power standards (PPS), which show how many goods and services can be bought in different countries. After adjusting for cost of living, primary school teachers’ pay has the highest purchasing power in Germany — 64 143 PPS.
Following Germany by PPS are Austria (58 265 PPS), Denmark (53 036 PPS), Ireland (51 226 PPS) and Belgium (50 846 PPS). Among upper secondary teachers Germany is also first — 74 034 PPS, whereas by this measure Greece ranks last with 23 289 PPS, and among the large economies Italy has the lowest figure — 36 964 PPS.
After adjusting for cost of living Turkey moved up six places in the ranking, Poland five, the French-speaking community of Belgium and Romania four. Conversely, Iceland dropped from second to 12th place.
