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More than one in four people in Greece faced poverty or social exclusion risks in 2025, placing the country among the worst performers in the European Union, according to data from Eurostat.
According to this report, 27.5 percent of Greece’s population, or roughly 2.8 million people, lived in households exposed to poverty or social exclusion risks. Among EU member states, Greece had the second-highest poverty or social exclusion risk rate, behind only Bulgaria, which stood at 29.0 percent.
Greece’s figure was well above both the Eurozone and broader EU averages. Across the twenty countries using the euro, the proportion of people at risk of poverty or social exclusion stood at 21.4 percent between 2020 and 2025. The EU average was slightly lower, at 20.9 percent.
Across the European Union, about 93 million people were considered at risk in 2025, representing 20.9 percent of the bloc’s population. According to Eurostat, the figure marked a modest improvement from 2024, when 93.3 million people, or 21.0 percent of the EU population, were in the same category. The total declined by around 600,000 people year over year.
In 2025, 92.7 million people in the EU (20.9% of the population) were at risk of poverty or social exclusion.
Highest shares in:
Bulgaria (29.0%)
Greece (27.5%)
Lowest in:
Czechia (11.5%)
Poland (15.0%)
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— EU_Eurostat (@EU_Eurostat) April 30, 2026
Eurostat’s indicator includes people living in households affected by at least one of three conditions: income poverty, severe material and social deprivation, or very low work intensity.
The lowest poverty or social exclusion rates in the EU were recorded in the Czech Republic, at 11.5 percent, followed by Poland at 15.0 percent and Slovenia at 15.5 percent.
The data also showed clear differences by gender and age. Across the EU, women faced a higher risk than men, at 21.9 percent compared with 19.8 percent.
Young adults aged 18 to 24 recorded the highest exposure among age groups, with 26.3 percent at risk of poverty or social exclusion. Children under 18 also faced an elevated risk, at 24.3 percent. In contrast, people aged 65 and older had the lowest exposure at 18.8 percent.
Education emerged as a significant factor in poverty risk. More than a third of adults with low educational attainment, 34.2 percent, were at risk of poverty or social exclusion.
The rate was much lower among people with higher qualifications. Adults with intermediate education recorded a risk rate of 19.2 percent, while those with higher education degrees had the lowest rate, at 10.3 percent.
