According to INSTAT’s 2025 Survey of Income and Living Conditions, average monthly disposable income rose from 51,122 leks in 2024, reflecting an improvement in this measure of living standards.

The risk-of-poverty rate fell to 19% from 19.2% in 2024, while the rate of severe material and social deprivation declined to 31.2% from 32.8%.

The share of the population at risk of poverty or social exclusion also decreased, to 39.4% from 40.5% a year earlier, a decline of 1.1 percentage points.

Children aged 0-17 recorded the largest improvement in the risk-of-poverty indicator, which fell by 0.4 percentage points from the previous year. Among people aged 18-64, the rate declined to 18.5%.

Social transfers, particularly old-age and survivors’ pensions, continued to play an important role in supporting household welfare. According to INSTAT, including pensions in household income reduced the risk-of-poverty rate from 35.9% to 21.9%.

The annual poverty threshold for a single person rose to 349,565 leks, from 324,336 leks in 2024.

Income inequality, however, edged higher, with the Gini coefficient increasing to 30.37% from 29.83% a year earlier, indicating that disparities in income remain a challenge to further improvements in living standards.

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