Persons receiving benefits (other than old age benefits) by sex and most frequent activity status by country
Countries reporting
43
Highest
98.7%
Austria
Lowest
19.9%
North Macedonia
Median
75.6%
Years covered
11
2015–2025
Data points
480
What the numbers show
Persons receiving benefits (other than old age benefits) by sex and most frequent activity status is currently reported for 43 countries. The highest value is 98.7% in Austria; the lowest is 19.9% in North Macedonia.
The median across all reporting countries is 75.6%, and the mean is 72.0%.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 5.
Over the past decade 27 countries rose and 16 fell. The largest increase was in Montenegro (up 124.5%), and the largest decrease in Malta (down 20.4%).
Persons receiving benefits (other than old age benefits) by sex and: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Austria | 98.7% | 2025 | up 2.9% | flat |
| 2 | Finland | 97.7% | 2025 | up 0.3% | flat |
| 3 | Belgium | 97.3% | 2025 | up 1.7% | flat |
| 4 | France | 96.1% | 2025 | up 2.8% | flat |
| 5 | Germany | 94.7% | 2025 | down 0.9% | flat |
| 6 | Denmark | 94.6% | 2025 | down 4.9% | flat |
| 7 | Netherlands | 94.3% | 2025 | down 5.5% | falling |
| 7 | Netherlands | 94.3% | 2025 | down 5.5% | falling |
| 9 | Norway | 92.6% | 2025 | down 1.2% | flat |
| 10 | Iceland | 87.4% | 2020 | up 1.3% | falling |
| 11 | Slovakia | 86.2% | 2025 | up 13.6% | rising |
| 11 | Slovakia | 86.2% | 2025 | up 13.6% | rising |
| 13 | Sweden | 83.0% | 2025 | down 5.3% | flat |
| 14 | Slovenia | 82.5% | 2025 | up 0.6% | flat |
| 14 | Slovenia | 82.5% | 2025 | up 0.6% | flat |
| 16 | Estonia | 82.0% | 2025 | up 26.5% | rising |
| 16 | Switzerland | 82.0% | 2024 | down 10.9% | flat |
| 16 | Estonia | 82.0% | 2025 | up 26.5% | rising |
| 19 | Ireland | 80.5% | 2025 | down 14.1% | falling |
| 20 | Lithuania | 79.6% | 2025 | up 15.4% | rising |
| 20 | Lithuania | 79.6% | 2025 | up 15.4% | rising |
| 22 | Italy | 75.6% | 2025 | up 50.6% | rising |
| 23 | Luxembourg | 74.8% | 2025 | down 12.9% | falling |
| 24 | Bulgaria | 72.3% | 2025 | up 21.7% | rising |
| 25 | Romania | 70.8% | 2024 | up 31.8% | rising |
| 26 | Hungary | 68.3% | 2025 | down 9.3% | falling |
| 27 | Malta | 67.7% | 2025 | down 20.4% | falling |
| 28 | Czechia | 66.2% | 2025 | down 0.5% | flat |
| 29 | Greece | 65.7% | 2025 | up 92.7% | rising |
| 30 | Spain | 65.0% | 2025 | up 15.0% | rising |
| 31 | Latvia | 61.1% | 2025 | down 13.6% | flat |
| 31 | Latvia | 61.1% | 2025 | down 13.6% | flat |
| 33 | Montenegro | 56.8% | 2023 | up 124.5% | rising |
| 34 | Portugal | 55.4% | 2025 | down 6.4% | falling |
| 35 | Poland | 52.6% | 2025 | up 15.4% | rising |
| 35 | Poland | 52.6% | 2025 | up 15.4% | rising |
| 37 | Cyprus | 48.1% | 2025 | down 18.8% | falling |
| 38 | Croatia | 47.4% | 2025 | up 6.8% | rising |
| 38 | Croatia | 47.4% | 2025 | up 6.8% | rising |
| 40 | Türkiye | 47.2% | 2025 | up 54.8% | rising |
| 41 | Serbia | 37.1% | 2025 | up 15.6% | volatile |
| 42 | Albania | 27.4% | 2023 | up 17.6% | rising |
| 43 | North Macedonia | 19.9% | 2024 | up 36.3% | rising |
Regions and income groups
Aggregates are excluded from the country ranking above so that a region can never outrank a country.