The real average salary in Ukraine exceeds UAH 20,000: Hetmancev
The average salary in Ukraine for the results of 2025 amounted to UAH 20,787. This is 8.3% higher than the previous year, but the figure remains approximately 23% lower than data from the State Statistics Service. This was reported by the head of the parliamentary finance committee, Danilo Hetmancev, referring to tax reports. Hetmancev states this.
According to him, tax data provide a more realistic picture of the labor market situation, as they reflect the actually declared incomes of workers. At the same time, a significant portion of salaries continues to remain in the shadow.
Real average salary in Ukraine: payment structure
On average, in 2025, the structure of salaries looked like this:
964,000 people received less than the minimum wage set at UAH 8,000
323,000 people received exactly the minimum wage
6.1 million people had salaries above the minimum wage.
Positives and risks
Among the positive changes, Hetmancev noted the reduction in the number of workers with wages below the minimum wage. In 2025, this figure decreased by 4% compared to 2024 and by 18% over the last two years. Additionally, in October-November 2025, the number of such workers was 15.1% lower than in January-September.
At the same time, a negative trend was observed in the 36.8% increase in the number of workers earning the minimum wage. According to the committee head, this indicates a significant share of shadow payments. The situation is partially explained by the effect of the law on minimum wage in retail trade for excise goods.
Hetmancev emphasized that the labor market in 2025 demonstrated only minor steps towards de-shadowing. In his opinion, in 2026, tax and law enforcement agencies should focus on legalizing salaries, as this directly affects budget replenishment, pension levels, and remuneration in education, healthcare, and the social sphere.
Previously, we wrote how the average salary changed in Ukraine and in which regions they pay the most.
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