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Study: Estonian Adults Among the Best in the World in Skills, Especially in Younger Generations

Date 11.12.2024

Article

Minister of Education and Research Kristina Kallas stated that the survey results suggest we are moving in the right direction with our education reforms. “People with lower education levels tend to have weaker skills and lower life satisfaction. Extending compulsory education, as we recently initiated, is clearly the right direction in light of these results. The survey also shows that Russian-speaking residents face challenges in the labor market due to lower skills, often caused by insufficient proficiency in Estonian. Transitioning to Estonian-language education is crucial, and we need to

Publication of statistics according to EMTAK 2025

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EMTAK 2025 is the new version of the Estonian Classification of Economic Activities which is in force since 1 January 2025 and has been updated to reflect today’s economic environment and activities. Publication of data based on the new classification begins in 2026. The use of common classifications in the compilation and publication of statistics ensures the comparability of statistical information. Economic activities are classified according to the Estonian Classification of Economic Activities (EMTAK) which has a hierarchical structure with five levels. The first four levels correspond to

The unemployment rate was 7.5% last year

Date 16.02.2026

Article

Tea Vassiljeva, analyst at Statistics Estonia, explained that the unemployment rate, i.e. the share of the unemployed in the labour force, was 7.5% last year, which is just 0.1 percentage points lower than in 2024. In 2025, the average number of the unemployed was 56,200 – this is down by 900 from the year before. Unemployment grew the most among young men “Unemployment decreased among women but increased among men. Women’s unemployment rate, which was 7.5% in 2024, dropped to 6.6% in 2025. As for men, their unemployment rate grew by 0.7 percentage points compared with 2024 and reached 8.3% as

Government budgetary position improved last year, government debt increased

Date 25.03.2026

Article

In Estonia, the general government sector comprises three sub-sectors: central government, local governments, and social security funds. The central government sub-sector includes state budget units, foundations, and legal entities governed by public law. The local government sub-sector includes city and rural municipality governments with their subsidiary units, and foundations. Social security funds include the Estonian Health Insurance Fund and the Estonian Unemployment Insurance Fund. Pauline Kommer, the Government Finance Service Manager at Statistics Estonia, said that all three sub

Average wages increased by 5.6% last year

Date 05.03.2026

Article

Krista Vaikmets, leading analyst at Statistics Estonia, said that wage growth slowed down in 2025. “Last year, wages and salaries did not grow as fast as in previous years, but monthly gross wages still increased in all counties. The biggest increase was registered in Valga, Põlva and Rapla counties where gross wages were up by more than 6.5% last year,” she said. Vaikmets added that, in 2025, the average monthly gross wages and salaries were the highest in Harju county (2,336 euros), rising by 5.3% year on year, and in Tartu county (2,112 euros), growing by 5.9% year on year. “Looking at

The consumer price index was up by 3.1% in February year on year

Date 06.03.2026

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Lauri Veski, the Consumer Price Statistics Service Manager at Statistics Estonia, explained that inflation – i.e. the year-on-year increase in the consumer price index – has shown gradual decline in recent months. “With the exception of November 2025, inflation has been in decline since September last year,” he noted. The rise in the consumer price index in February year on year was primarily influenced by the increases in the prices of food products (5.5%), health products and services (12%), alcoholic beverages and tobacco (7.9%) and housing (1.5%). Electricity prices remained high in

Life expectancy and disability-free life expectancy have decreased

Date 25.08.2022

Article

According to Statistics Estonia, in 2021, life expectancy at birth was 77.2 years in Estonia. Male life expectancy was 72.8 years and female life expectancy was 81.4 years. Life expectancy has decreased for both men and women. Men can expect to live disability-free for 54.9 years and women for 58 years.

Revised data: average wages and salaries were €2126 in the second quarter

Date 01.09.2025

Article

In the second quarter of 2025, the average monthly gross wages and salaries were the highest in Tallinn (€2,479), in Harju county (€2,365), and in Tartu county (€2,175). “Compared with the second quarter of last year, the biggest increase in wages and salaries was seen in Põlva county (7.7%) and Rapla county (7%). The smallest wage increase was registered in Ida-Viru county (3.8%),” said Sigrid Saagpakk, analyst at Statistics Estonia. In this year's second quarter, the average monthly gross wages and salaries were the highest in information and communication (€3,704), financial and insurance

In June, the consumer price index rose by 0.9% compared with May

Date 07.07.2025

Article

Lauri Veski, team lead of consumer price statistics at Statistics Estonia, said that the consumer price index in June was up by 0.9% compared with May and by 5% year on year. “Compared with June 2024, the index was affected the most by the 8.4% higher prices of food products. In transport, prices increased by 7.5%, mainly due to the motor vehicle tax introduced in January and price changes in passenger transport. New price lists for health services are in force from May, including an increased appointment fee for specialist medical care, which also affected the index year on year (10.1%). A

According to revised data, economic growth is yet to be seen

Date 30.05.2025

Article

Robert Müürsepp, the national accounts team lead at Statistics Estonia, said that the GDP, which had shown growth in the fourth quarter last year, was again down a little in the first quarter this year. “A month ago, we published a model-based flash estimate which suggested that the economy might be slightly improving. However, the flash estimate underestimated some irregular factors in the fourth quarter. Vehicle sales were exceptionally high in the fourth quarter in anticipation of the introduction of the motor vehicle tax from 2025. But the model could not fully foresee the significant