The average gross salary in Bulgaria marked a significant increase during the second quarter of 2025, reaching 2572 leva, according to the latest data published by the National Statistical Institute (NSI). This represents an increase of 5.3% compared to the previous quarter, which is an indicator of the country's ongoing economic recovery.
NSI experts emphasize that the most significant salary growth is observed in the education sector, where the increase reaches an impressive 21.2%. It is followed by public administration with 17.9% and the mining industry with 8.5%. These data reveal an interesting trend of resource redistribution in key public sectors.
The monthly breakdown shows that the average gross monthly salary for April 2025 was 2588 leva, for May - 2582 leva, and for June - 2547 leva. For comparison, during the same months of the previous year 2024, the salaries were 2303 leva, 2310 leva, and 2276 leva respectively, which clearly illustrates the positive dynamics of the labor market.
On an annual basis, the growth of the average salary is even more impressive - 12% compared to the second quarter of 2024. Again, education leads the ranking with a 19.1% increase, followed by the culture, sports, and entertainment sector with 17.7%, and water supply and sewerage with 16%.
It is interesting to note that in the second quarter of 2024, the average salary was 2296 leva, which shows a sustainable growth trend in recent years. At that time, the largest increase was registered in public administration (13.1%), education (9.7%), and hotels and restaurants (9.2%).
The analysis of the data also reveals significant differences between the public and private sectors. In the second quarter of 2025, the average monthly salary in the public sector increased by 13.8% on an annual basis, while in the private sector, the increase was 11.4%.
The highest-paid sectors during the period under review are information technology and telecommunications with an average salary of 5551 leva, followed by financial and insurance activities with 3763 leva, and energy with 3592 leva. On the other end are hotels and restaurants with 1581 leva, agriculture with 1688 leva, and other activities with 1780 leva.
Regarding employment, NSI reports an increase of 31,200 people or 1.3% for the period March-June 2025, with the total number of employees reaching 2.38 million. Compared to the same period of the previous year, the increase is 36,200 people or 1.5%.
These data indicate a positive trend in the Bulgarian labor market, characterized by rising wages and increasing employment. However, experts warn that there are still significant differences between various sectors of the economy, which could lead to social tensions in the future.