Brussels, Feb. 23, 2026 (Lusa) - Portugal is the second country in the European Union where housing prices have risen the most since 2020 and is among the Member States with the lowest purchasing power, according to data from Pordata.
This information is available on an interactive platform launched by Pordata on Monday, which, based on Eurostat statistical data, provides a comparative overview of the 27 Member States of the European Union across four themes: population, economy, cost of living and income, and energy and environment.
According to this data, although Portugal has a cost of living below the European average, it is the 17th country in the EU where the basket of essential goods is cheapest, and its purchasing power is also the sixth lowest among the 27.
Thus, according to Pordata's calculations, the average annual income in Portugal in 2023 (€1,053.9) would allow the purchase of the equivalent of 11 baskets of essential goods, well below the 24 baskets that a Luxembourgish citizen could afford with their average income.
In addition to having one of the lowest purchasing powers, Portugal is the second EU country with the highest increase in housing prices (24.1%), surpassed only by Greece (29%).
"Finland saw the biggest reduction: in 2024, houses cost 16.3% less than in 2020," says Pordata, adding that the cost of housing increased in 16 of the 27 EU countries.
At the macroeconomic level, Pordata indicates that labour productivity in Portugal is the 19th lowest in Europe: each worker contributed around €47,700 to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2024, well below the €194,400 in Ireland.
However, Portugal is also among the countries with the highest economic growth: between 2020 and 2024, according to Pordata, national GDP per capita grew by 40% in nominal terms and 10% in real terms, ranking sixth-highest in the EU.
In terms of climate statistics, Portugal is the third-lowest European country in terms of greenhouse gas emissions (4.8 tonnes per inhabitant), but it is the seventh-lowest in urban waste recycling.
Portugal has a recycling rate of 30.7%, well below that of countries such as Germany (68.7%) and Austria (62.8%).
The platform launched today by Pordata aims to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Portugal's accession to the then European Economic Community (EEC) in January 1986.
Using Eurostat data, this platform allows users to compare statistics across the 27 EU Member States and analyse Portugal's position on various topics relative to other European countries.
TA/ADB // ADB.
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