How has the EU's economic power changed? - Germany dominates the continent in 20 years
Germany remains the European Union's largest economy, but the weight of the bloc's major economies has changed significantly over the past two decades. According to Eurostat data, the four largest economies - Germany, France, Italy and Spain - together accounted for 61% of EU GDP in 2025, down from 67.9% in 2005.
In 2025, Germany generated 24.1% of EU GDP, or about 4.5 trillion euros out of a total economy of 18.8 trillion euros. It is followed by France with 15.9%, Italy with 12% and Spain with 9%. The Netherlands completes the top five with 6.2%.
Poland is very close to the Netherlands, with 4.9% of EU GDP, while Belgium accounts for 3.4%. Sweden and Ireland each have 3.2%, while Austria, Denmark and Romania account for 2.7%, 2.2% and 2% respectively.
At the other extreme, 15 EU countries each account for less than 2% of the bloc's GDP and together account for just 11.2% of the European economy. The smallest shares are held by Malta at 0.1%, as well as Cyprus, Latvia and Estonia at 0.2% each.
Over the period 2005–2025, Italy recorded the largest decline, going from 15.6% to 12% of EU GDP, a loss of 3.6 percentage points. France fell from 18.4% to 15.9%, while Spain and Greece each lost 0.7 percentage points. Germany's share remained almost unchanged, with a decline of only 0.1 percentage point in 20 years.
Meanwhile, Poland is the biggest winner. Its share of the EU economy increased from 2.6% in 2005 to 4.9% in 2025, or 2.3 percentage points. Ireland and Romania also recorded significant increases, by 1.4 and 1.2 percentage points, respectively. The Czech Republic grew from 1.2% to 1.8%, while Bulgaria doubled its share from 0.3% to 0.6%.
Over the years 2015–2025 alone, France lost 2 percentage points and Italy 1.5 points. Germany also fell from 25.1% to 24.1%. In contrast, Poland added 1.4 percentage points, confirming the gradual increase in the weight of its economy within the EU.
However, GDP share does not directly indicate the economic well-being of citizens. For this reason, comparisons between countries are also made through GDP per capita and purchasing power standards (PPS), which better take into account population size and changes in the cost of living.
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