A Third of Spanish Children Are at Risk of Poverty
Silver Data Lab Research Desk · Statistical analysis · Published on 11 June 2026
- Data source
- Eurostat
- Reference period
- 2025
- Last updated
- 11 June 2026
Key estimates
- 24.3% of children in the EU were at risk of poverty or social exclusion in 2025, against 20.9% for the population as a whole.
- Spain records 33.8%, the highest in the Union — above Bulgaria at 33.1% and Romania at 32.4%.
- Slovenia records 12.5%, the Netherlands 12.7% and Cyprus 14.0%.
- Children face a higher risk than the general population in the large majority of Member States.
- France at 27.5% and Italy at 27.1% are both above the EU figure.
A rate higher than the adult one, almost everywhere
The at-risk-of-poverty-or-social-exclusion measure applied to the under-eighteens gives 24.3% across the EU in 2025. The same measure applied to the whole population gives 20.9%.
Children in Europe are more likely to be poor than Europeans in general, by 3.4 percentage points. That relationship holds in most Member States and is the first thing the indicator establishes.
Spain at the top
Spain records 33.8%, the highest child poverty risk in the Union.
That position is the finding, because Spain is not the poorest Member State. Bulgaria at 33.1% and Romania at 32.4% follow it, and both have substantially lower national incomes: Bulgaria's GDP per capita is 68 on the EU index against Spain's 92.
A country with a third more output per head than Bulgaria records a marginally higher share of children at risk. Whatever produces that outcome, it is not the general level of Spanish prosperity.
Greece follows at 29.6%, France at 27.5% and Italy at 27.1% — placing three of the Union's four largest economies above the EU figure.
Where children do best
Slovenia records 12.5%, the Netherlands 12.7%, Cyprus 14.0% and Denmark 14.8%.
Slovenia is the strongest performer in the Union on this measure and it also records the lowest overcrowding among eastern Member States and one of the lowest NEET rates. On indicators concerning young people specifically, Slovenia performs consistently better than its income would predict.
What the composite conceals
This is the same three-part composite used for the general population: low income relative to the national median, severe material deprivation, or very low household work intensity. A child is counted if any one applies.
Because children do not have incomes of their own, all three conditions are properties of the household they live in. Child poverty in this framework is household poverty observed through the children in it, and a country can reduce it either by raising household incomes or by changing which households have children.
Children at risk of poverty or social exclusion, 2025
| Country | % of population under 18 | Gap to EU averagepercentage points, derived |
|---|---|---|
| Spain | 33.8 | +9.5 |
| Bulgaria | 33.1 | +8.8 |
| Romania | 32.4 | +8.1 |
| European Unionaggregate | 24.3 | — |
| Cyprus | 14.0 | −10.3 |
| Netherlands | 12.7 | −11.6 |
| Slovenia | 12.5 | −11.8 |
What these figures cannot tell you
- The income threshold is national
- Like the general measure, the income component uses 60% of each country's own median. A Spanish child and a Bulgarian child counted here live in households at very different absolute income levels.
- Children are counted through their households
- Under-eighteens have no independent income, so every component of this measure describes the household. The indicator identifies children living in poor households rather than a separate condition of childhood.
- A composite
- A child is counted once whether one, two or three conditions apply, and the headline rate cannot show which of the three is driving a country's result.
- Survey data
- Figures come from EU-SILC, a sample survey, and are estimates rather than counts.
Frequently asked questions
- How many children in the EU are at risk of poverty?
- 24.3% of those aged under 18 in 2025, against 20.9% for the population as a whole. Children face a higher risk than the general population in most Member States.
- Which EU country has the worst child poverty?
- Spain, at 33.8% in 2025, ahead of Bulgaria at 33.1% and Romania at 32.4%. Spain's position is notable because its GDP per capita is well above both.
- Which EU country has the least child poverty?
- Slovenia, at 12.5% in 2025, followed by the Netherlands at 12.7% and Cyprus at 14.0%.
- Why is child poverty higher than adult poverty?
- Because households with children are more likely to meet one of the three conditions in the composite — low relative income, material deprivation or low work intensity. Children have no income of their own, so the measure describes the households they live in.
Methodological note
The indicator is Eurostat's at-risk-of-poverty-or-social-exclusion rate restricted to the population aged under 18, using the same three-part definition as the general measure: income below 60% of the national median, severe material and social deprivation, or very low work intensity in the household.
Values are for 2025, the most recent year with complete coverage of the 27 Member States at the extraction date, and match the reference year of the general poverty study published alongside it.
The 3.4 point gap between the child and general rates is derived by Silver Data Lab from the two published series; the GDP per capita comparisons come from the economy and finance category.
Source data
The underlying series can be inspected and re-downloaded from the Eurostat data browser. The filters below are the ones applied.
Persons at risk of poverty or social exclusion by age and sex
ilc_peps01n
- Filters applied:
- freq=A · age=Y_LT18 · sex=T · unit=PC · time=2025
- Extracted:
- 2026-08-11
- Source last updated:
- 2026-06-08
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