Eurostat estimates that expenditure rose 4.9% from 2024 before adjusting for inflation, reaching €5.18 trillion (about $5.8 trillion). The early figures cover national benefit schemes and are subject to revision.
In estimates published on 6 November 2026, Eurostat put EU social-protection benefit expenditure in 2025 at €5.18 trillion, or €5.18 trillion (about $5.8 trillion), up 4.9% from 2024. The measure covers cash benefits and services provided or reimbursed through collectively organized national public or private schemes, rather than spending from the EU budget. The increase is nominal, meaning it is not adjusted for inflation.
Eurostat’s 7 November 2025 release had initially estimated 2024 expenditure at €4.93 trillion, up 6.9% from 2023 and equivalent to 27.3% of EU GDP, in preliminary figures subject to revision rather than a fixed final baseline for later comparisons.
A higher total does not by itself mean more people became eligible, each recipient received more, or benefits bought more: recipient numbers, rules, service costs and inflation also matter.
Old-age benefits were the largest category, followed by sickness and health-care benefits. The figures also cover disability, survivors, family and children, unemployment, housing and social exclusion not classified elsewhere.
| Category | Expenditure | Share of total |
|---|---|---|
| Old age | €2,152 billion (about $2,408,300,000,000) | 41.5% |
| Sickness and health care | €1,556 billion (about $1,741,300,000,000) | 30.0% |
Eurostat put spending at 27.5% of EU gross domestic product (GDP), a measure of economic output, and described that as a decrease of 0.2 percentage points from 2024. But
The ratio depends on both benefit spending and economic output; it does not directly rank the support received by each beneficiary.
| Country | Share of GDP |
|---|---|
| Austria | 32.4% |
| Finland | 32.2% |
| France | 32.1% |
| Hungary | 16.7% |
| Malta | 13.8% |
| Ireland | 11.7% |
Expenditure measured in euros rose in every EU country. The largest increases were in Croatia, Bulgaria and Lithuania; the smallest were in Greece, Romania and Finland.
| Country | Increase from 2024 |
|---|---|
| Croatia | 15.4% |
| Bulgaria | 12.1% |
| Lithuania | 11.6% |
| Finland | 1.3% |
| Romania | 0.7% |
| Greece | 0.6% |
Reporting countries supplied the early estimates voluntarily for the European System of Integrated Social Protection Statistics, a common framework for comparing national administrative data, jointly developed by Eurostat and EU members. Complete data will follow, and the preliminary figures can be revised.
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