Wealth distribution is one of the significant indicators of equality in society. Although it is uneven in most countries, the level of inequality matters.
In the first quarter of 2025, the top 10% of households in the euro area held 57.4% of total net wealth, while the top 5% alone accounted for 44.5% according to the European Central Bank (ECB). In contrast, the bottom 50% of households only held around 5% of wealth. These figures show the remarkable inequality in wealth distribution across Europe.
But how is the wealth distributed in Europe? Which countries have the highest and lowest wealth inequality scores across Europe? And what are the main reasons driving wealth inequality differences?
Wealth distribution in Europe
UBS’s 2025 Global Wealth Report reveals the Gini index of wealth inequality across Europe as of 2024. The Gini coefficient measures wealth inequality in a country with a number between 0 and 1: A higher value indicates greater inequality, while a value of 0 represents complete equality.
According to the report, Sweden records the highest wealth inequality with a Gini score of 0.75, while Slovakia reports the lowest at 0.38.
In addition to Sweden, wealth inequality is also high in Turkey (0.73), Cyprus (0.72), Czechia (0.72) and Latvia (0.7), all with scores above 0.7.
At the bottom, Belgium (0.47) and Malta (0.48) follow Slovakia with Gini coefficient’s below 0.5.
Inequality among top five economies: Largest in Germany, smallest in Spain
Among Europe’s top five economies, Germany has the highest level of wealth inequality at 0.68, while the scores are much closer in the other countries: Spain (0.56) is the lowest, followed by Italy (0.57), the UK (0.58), and France (0.59).
Why does Sweden rank highest in wealth inequality?
Sweden is often described as a model of social equality in many areas but its wealth distribution is among the most uneven in Europe.
Dr Lisa Pelling, the head of Stockholm-based think tank Arena Idé, offered several reasons for this. These include the abolishment of a number of wealth taxes over the past decades. Sweden also has no tax on inheritance, gifts, or property.
Pointing to the very low taxes on companies, Pelling explained that this creates many “possibilities for rich people to get even richer”.
The wealthiest 5%: How much do they own?
The wealth shares of the richest 5% of the population are another good indicator of wealth distribution. Among 20 countries, this share ranges from 30.8% in Malta to 54% in Latvia in the first quarter of 2025, according to the ECB.
Apart from Malta, Cyprus (31.4%), the Netherlands (32.8%), Greece (33%), and Slovakia (34.4%) report the lowest wealth inequality.
In contrast, after Latvia, Austria (53.1%) and Lithuania (51.7%) have the highest shares, with the top 5% holding more than half of total household net wealth.
Top 10% hold over 60% in Germany and Italy
The rankings are broadly similar for the wealthiest 10% of societies, with only slight changes, ranging from 42.7% in Malta to 64% in Latvia and Austria.
The share held by the top 10% is below 50% in Slovakia (44.1%), Cyprus (44.8%), Greece (45.4%), the Netherlands (46.2%), and Ireland (48.6%).
Besides Latvia and Austria, Germany (60.5%) and Italy (60.3%) are the other two countries where the wealthiest 10% of the population also hold over 60% of net wealth.
This figure amounts to 54.8% in France and 53.4% in Spain.
Home ownership matters
Dr. Carlos Vacas-Soriano and Eszter Sándor, research managers at Eurofound, emphasised that home ownership rates are one of the main factors contributing to differences in wealth distribution. Countries with higher levels of home ownership tend to have lower wealth inequality, whereas countries where access to other financial assets is more widespread tend to show higher inequality.
UBS’s 2022 figures cover more countries in terms of wealth shares by top percentiles, including the share of the top 1% in Europe, although the results may differ from those of the ECB.
Wealth inequality also changes over time—this Euronews piece also shows how it evolved between 2008 and 2023, along with possible reasons.
