The ratio of the top 20 percents' income to that of the bottom 20 percent of earners is a common way to measure income inequality. In the European Union, this ratio was 9.74 before taxes and 7.76 after taxes in 2023. Many European countries are known for their progressive taxation systems and strong social benefits, meaning that post-taxes and social transfers, their income inequality is much lower than what it is in gross terms. This is particularly the case for countries such as Germany, which has the fourth-highest gross income inequality between its highest earners and lowest earners, but has the ninth-highest inequality ratio when taxes and transfers are factored in. The country with the smallest disparity between high and low earners in Europe was Czechia in 2023, with a gross ratio of 5.09 and a net ratio of 4.45

As of June 2024, ******* recorded the highest average net salary among CEE countries, followed by Slovenia, Czechia, and Poland. ********** earned the least, *** euros net.

As of 2023, the average taxation rate for a single person without children who earned an average salary in the European Union was 29.67 percent of their total earnings. For a two-earner couple without children earning an average salary it was slightly less, at 29.57 percent, while for a single person without children earning 1.67 times the average salary, the rate of taxation in the EU was 35.16%. Having children greatly reduced the average rate of taxation, with a one-earner couple with two children in the EU only paying out 15.97 percent of their gross household earnings in taxes in 2023. Tax rates in Europe are generally quite high, due to the progressive income tax systems set in place during the 20th century in many countries, which require high taxation in order to fund generous social welfare systems. Belgium was the country with the highest average rates of taxation in 2023, with a high earning single person without children subject to pay almost half of their gross household earnings out in taxes. Other countries in North-western Europe such as Germany, Denmark, and Luxembourg also top the list for highest income taxation rates in Europe, while Cyprus was the country in Europe with the lowest average taxation rates in Europe during the same period. In both Czechia and Poland, single-earner families with two children actually saw the lowest average tax rates, due to the strong pronatalist policies in these countries and tax incentives for traditional single-earner households.