In July this year, the average net salary of employees in Croatian legal entities amounted to 1,437 euros.

Compared with June 2025, this was a slight decrease of 0.5 percent nominally, or 0.9 percent in real terms, according to data from the Croatian Bureau of Statistics published today. The average gross salary for the same month amounted to 2,000 euros and recorded a decrease of 0.4 percent nominally and 0.8 percent in real terms.

Despite this downward trend compared with the previous month, a comparison of July this year with the same month last year shows significant growth. The average net salary increased by 9.3 percent nominally and by 5 percent in real terms. The gross salary recorded nominal growth of 9.8 percent and real growth of 5.5 percent.

The highest salaries in Croatia in July 2025 were in the air transport sector, where the average net amount was 2,353 euros, while the gross salary reached 3,436 euros. On the other hand, the lowest salaries were in clothing manufacturing, with an average net salary of 937 euros and a gross salary of 1,232 euros.

The median net salary, which shows that half of employees earned less and half earned more, amounted to 1,249 euros. Compared with June 2025, this was an increase of 1.3 percent, and compared with July of the previous year, an increase of 10.5 percent. At the same time, the median gross salary amounted to 1,702 euros, which is an increase of 1.1 percent compared with June and 10.7 percent compared with the previous year.

In the period from January to July 2025, the average net salary in Croatian legal entities amounted to 1,432 euros, which is a nominal increase of 10.2 percent compared with the same period last year. Real growth in that period is estimated at 6.4 percent.

The average gross salary for the same period reached 1,990 euros, with a nominal increase of 11 percent and real growth of 7.1 percent compared with January to July 2024.

The average number of paid working hours in July amounted to 182 hours, which is 10.3 percent more than in June. The highest number of hours was recorded in the water transport sector, a total of 191 hours, while the lowest number of hours was reported in social care activities without accommodation, with 172 hours.

Hourly pay in July averaged 7.72 euros net, representing a decrease of 8.6 percent compared with June. Compared with the same month last year, the hourly wage increased by 9.2 percent. Gross hourly pay recorded the same changes, with an average of 10.74 euros and a decrease of 8.6 percent compared with June, and an increase of 9.7 percent compared with July 2024.

Differences among sectors remain large. In air transport, where salaries are the highest, the net amount is almost twice as high as in clothing manufacturing, which has the lowest averages in Croatia.

Salary trends in 2025 show that, despite monthly fluctuations, salaries are rising on an annual basis. This is good news for employees in the country.

The data refer only to employees in legal entities (they do not include tradespeople, the self-employed, farmers, and other groups), which provides a clearer insight into salaries in the formal sector. The salary calculation includes all forms of payments such as annual leave compensation, paid holidays, and sick leave up to 42 days, which provides a more realistic picture of employees' earnings. This analysis indicates that the Croatian labor market is growing and that workers' purchasing power is strengthening, which in the long term contributes to the stability and economic development of Croatia.