Romania recorded the EU’s highest household electricity costs on a purchasing-power basis in the first half of 2026, at 46.9 purchasing power standard units per 100 kWh. It also posted the bloc’s largest annual increase in household gas prices, at 9.3%. The figures point to pressure on household energy affordability.
The electricity measure adjusts for differences in national purchasing power rather than comparing nominal tariffs alone. Poland followed Romania at 41.1 units per 100 kWh, with the Czech Republic at 34.3. Malta, Hungary and Luxembourg were among the least expensive markets on this basis.
Romanian household electricity prices, measured in national currency, were 51.6% higher than in the first half of 2023. Across the EU, the average household electricity price fell 2.2% from the second half of 2025, from a level of around €0.28–€0.29 per kWh. Nominal prices ranged from a reported high of €0.39 per kWh in Ireland to €0.11 per kWh in Hungary.
Household gas prices
EU household gas prices averaged about €0.11 per kWh, down 10.2% from the preceding six-month period and 3.5% year on year. Romania recorded the largest annual increase, at 9.3%, followed by Croatia at 8.9% and Slovakia at 6.6%. Nominal prices were €0.06 per kWh in Romania, €0.05 in Croatia and €0.03 in Hungary, compared with €0.22 in Sweden.
Gas prices fell year on year by 14.5% in Bulgaria, 11.3% in Greece and 10% in Spain. The figures show an affordability divide between Southeast Europe and wealthier European markets, as nominal tariffs do not account for costs relative to household incomes. Regional policymakers face pressure to manage exposure to wholesale energy markets and contain the burden of electricity and gas charges on households.
