The purchasing power of the average Dutch person is almost the highest in the European Union. Last year we only had to tolerate Luxembourg, Ireland and Denmark for us, according to figures from Statistics Netherlands. Bulgaria dangles at the bottom of the list.
Statistics Netherlands looked at how much was produced per capita in all 27 EU countries, the so-called gross domestic product (GDP). The resulting amount is compared to what you can buy in a country with that amount. This gives an idea of the level of prosperity.
The Netherlands then comes in fourth place, with an amount of 45,000 euros. The purchasing power of many Dutch people took a hit last year, partly due to high energy prices, but we still rose one place compared to a year earlier.
At the top of the list is Luxembourg. The fact that that country scores so high is partly due to the fact that many people work there who do not live there. These foreign employees therefore contribute to production, but are not added to the population.
The Irish also have a high GDP. This is probably because some large tech companies are located there because of the favorable tax rules.
Although the Netherlands loses out to the Luxembourgers, the Irish and the Danes, we are still well above the European average of approximately 35,000 euros. Our country is also doing better than neighboring countries such as Belgium, Germany and France. Bulgaria is at the very bottom, just behind Romania and Croatia.
