A new edition of the European Central Bank’s Household Finance and Consumption Survey, published in mid-2026, reveals where Europe’s wealthiest young people live and how their financial position compares across 22 countries.
The findings place Malta comfortably at the top of the ranking. Residents of the Mediterranean island nation aged 16 to 34 have a median net wealth of €257,500 ($293,600), nearly twice that of second-place Luxembourg, where young adults hold a median net wealth of €135,000 ($153,900). Belgium rounds out the top three with €97,200 ($110,800).
Croatia ranks fourth with a median net wealth of €82,000 ($93,500), a particularly notable result given that the country’s overall net annual earnings for a single person without children stood at €17,256 ($19,672) in 2025, according to Eurostat.
The rest of the top 10 includes Slovakia, Estonia, Czechia, Lithuania, Cyprus, and Italy. According to the survey, young adults in these countries hold median net wealth ranging from €53,500 ($61,000) to €74,600 ($85,000).
Euro area median trails far behind Malta and Luxembourg
Across the euro area, the median net wealth of people aged 16 to 34 is €24,600 ($28,000). That is just 18% of the overall median net wealth across all age groups, which stands at €140,100 ($159,700). Wealth levels among young adults vary widely by country, ranging from €5,700 ($6,500) in Finland to a high of €257,500 ($293,600) in Malta.
Among the European Union’s four largest economies, Italy ranks first, followed by France at €27,700 ($31,600), Spain at €23,700 ($27,000), and Germany at €17,600 ($20,100), the lowest of the four.
Greece, with a median net wealth of €9,900 ($11,300), ranks below Germany, as do Austria and Latvia. The Netherlands, Hungary, Portugal, Ireland, and Slovenia occupy the middle of the rankings.
High rents and rising housing costs have made it increasingly difficult for many people under 35 to save money or buy a home across much of Europe, although wages, housing costs, and family support vary considerably from one country to another.
Why family wealth shapes Europe’s wealthiest young people
According to Fabian Pfeffer, a professor at LMU Munich and founding director of the Munich International Stone Center for Inequality Research, young adults typically have not had enough time to accumulate wealth through work alone. He noted that family support, including gifts, inheritances, and assistance with mortgages, often helps explain why Europe’s wealthiest young people are concentrated in certain countries.
Pfeffer explained that homeownership often marks the point at which young adults transition from having modest savings to becoming genuine wealth holders. However, reaching that milestone typically requires a steady income, access to credit, and, in many cases, financial support from parents.
He added that wealth inequality begins to take shape early in life, well before people typically receive inheritances from their families.
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