In 2020, a net salary of about EUR 1,000 was 41% above Romania's average net earnings. Five years later, more than 1.5 million employees had crossed that threshold, compared with about 600,000 in September 2020.
The segment gained more than 900,000 employees in five years and grew to roughly 2.5 times its former size. The figures come from calculations by Ziarul Financiar based on Ministry of Labour data, according to ZF.ro.
EUR 1,000 is a psychological threshold. Its value in lei changes with the exchange rate, and the net salary produced by the same gross salary depends on the employee's tax circumstances. The comparison remains useful because it shows how much closer this level has moved to average earnings.
From about 600,000 to more than 1.5 million employees
In September 2020, 595,052 employees earned more than 8,000 lei gross. For a full-time main job with no special tax circumstances, our tax engine calculates a net salary of 4,680 lei. At the time, that amount roughly matched the psychological threshold of EUR 1,000.
For 2025, ZF's analysis places more than 1.5 million employees above a gross salary of 9,000 lei. In the same simple scenario, 9,000 lei gross produces 5,265 lei net.
For a benchmark expressed only in lei, see the calculation for 5,000 lei gross to net.
Employees above the threshold
≈ 2,5×
from 595,052 to more than 1.5 million
September 2020
595,052 employees above the threshold
+41% above average
Indicative gross salary: 8,000 lei. The bars use the same scale, from 0 to 6,000 lei.
September 2025
more than 1.5 million employees above the threshold
3% below average
Indicative gross salary: 9,000 lei. The bars use the same scale, from 0 to 6,000 lei.
Employee counts and gross thresholds come from ZF's analysis. Net salaries use the article's standard scenario, and INS published the average net earnings.
The visualisation combines two types of data. Employee counts and gross thresholds are those published by ZF, while the net salaries are reproduced with the application's tax rules. Average earnings come from National Institute of Statistics releases for September 2020 and September 2025.
The EUR 1,000 threshold moved closer to average earnings
The difference from average earnings explains the change better than the euro figure alone. Average net earnings were 3,321 lei in September 2020. The standard net salary for 8,000 lei gross exceeded that average by 1,359 lei.
By September 2025, average net earnings had reached 5,443 lei. The standard net salary for 9,000 lei gross, 5,265 lei, was 178 lei below the average. A level that clearly signalled above-average pay in 2020 had moved close to the national average five years later.
The average does not show what most employees earn. Very high salaries in some industries can pull it upwards, while differences between counties and sectors remain wide. The 1.5 million figure describes the expansion of the group earning above this threshold more accurately than it describes Romania's complete wage distribution.
Nominal salaries rose, but so did prices
More employees crossing the EUR 1,000 threshold does not mean that their purchasing power rose by the same proportion. In September 2025, average net earnings were 4.1% higher than a year earlier, but INS calculated a real earnings index of 94.7%. After consumer-price adjustment, an employee paid at the average could buy less than in September 2024.
The same gap appears in the latest figures available when this article was checked. In May 2026, average net earnings were 5,684 lei, while the INS release reported a real earnings index of 93.1% compared with May 2025.
Nominal salary tells you how many lei enter your account. Real salary shows what those lei can buy. Both perspectives are needed for a psychological threshold such as EUR 1,000.
What the 1.5 million figure tells us, and what remains unknown
The comparison gives two snapshots of the labour market, not the path followed by the same people over five years. Some employees received raises, others changed jobs, and the composition of the market changed.
The total number of employment contracts increased by about 215,300 over the period, according to the same source. Growth of more than 900,000 in the above-threshold segment cannot be explained by new contracts alone. Nominal pay rises moved a much larger share of existing contracts above the benchmark.
The figure does not show household income, savings or local living costs. Two people with the same net salary may have very different budgets depending on rent, children or loan payments. The benchmark helps track the labour market; it does not automatically define a standard of living.
Finding the gross salary that produces about EUR 1,000 net
For a job offer, start with the month in which you will receive the income and check whether the negotiated amount is gross or net. If the employer gives you a range, the guide to converting a gross salary range to net helps you compare both limits under the same assumptions.
Main-job status, deductions, exemptions and taxes on meal vouchers can change the money that reaches your account.
You can test a 9,000 lei gross salary in the current calculator, then adjust it for your circumstances. If the employer gave you a net figure, the net-to-gross calculator estimates the required gross salary under the same tax assumptions.
Sources and verification date
We checked the data and calculations on 6 August 2026. Employee counts and thresholds in the 2020-2025 comparison come from ZF's analysis based on Ministry of Labour data. Average earnings and real earnings indices come from INS releases for September 2020, September 2025 and May 2026. Gross-to-net calculations assume a full-time main job, with no dependants, eligible children, meal vouchers, exemptions or relief for employees under 26.