"In 2025, average gross hourly wages were €13 for men and €11.40 for women, meaning that women's wages were 12.2 percent lower," said Krista Vaikmets, a leading analyst at the agency.

After narrowing by one percentage point since 2024 and more than 10 percentage points over the past 15 years, she added that this marked the pay gap's lowest level on record.

Despite the overall improvement, differences remain pronounced across sectors. While gross hourly earnings have risen steadily for both men and women over the past 15 years, Estonia's pronounced gender pay gap persists.

The gap was widest in financial and insurance activities at 23.6 percent, followed by wholesale and retail trade (22.2%), manufacturing (21.4%) and human health and social work (20.8%).

By contrast, women out-earned men in a few areas, including transportation and storage (–15.4 percent), real estate (–12.4 percent) and other service activities (–2.3 percent).

The gap was also below 5% in fields such as professional and technical services and construction.

General pay levels also varied by sector

Pay levels also varied significantly by sector. The highest hourly wages were recorded in information and communication (€21.60 for men and €18.40 for women) and in finance (€21.60 for men and €16.90 for women), while the lowest were in accommodation and food services (€8.60 for men and €7.50 for women).

Vaikmets said the narrowing gap in technology-related fields may reflect increased access to training and retraining programs for women. She noted, however, that as more women reach senior positions in higher-paying tech fields, this could have a diminishing effect on the overall gender pay gap.

The gender pay gap measures the difference between average gross hourly earnings of men and women, excluding irregular bonuses, as a share of men's pay.

Click here for more detailed info and figures from Statistics Estonia.

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