France Has The Most Paid Vacation Days In Europe

Europe is widely known for its generous work-life balance policies, and paid time off is a major part of that reputation.

Across the continent, employees are legally entitled to a combination of paid vacation days and public holidays, with totals varying widely by country.

This map, via Visual Capitalist’s Niccolo Conte, shows the minimum total number of paid leave days in Europe in 2025.

The data for this visualization comes from World Population Review.

Europe’s Most Generous Leave Policies

Several countries stand out for offering more than 40 days of paid leave annually. Andorra tops the ranking with 45 days, including 31 paid vacation days and 14 paid public holidays.

Countries such as France, Luxembourg, Malta, and Russia also provide more than 40 days of total paid leave.

CountryMinimum Paid Leave
🇦🇩 Andorra45
🇷🇺 Russia42.5
🇫🇷 France42
🇱🇺 Luxembourg42
🇲🇹 Malta41
🇦🇱 Albania40
🇬🇪 Georgia39
🇪🇪 Estonia39
🇦🇹 Austria38
🇮🇸 Iceland38
🇩🇰 Denmark37.5
🇺🇦 Ukraine37
🇷🇴 Romania37
🇪🇸 Spain36
🇵🇱 Poland36
🇫🇮 Finland36
🇦🇲 Armenia36
🇳🇴 Norway35
🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina35
🇸🇪 Sweden34
🇸🇰 Slovakia34
🇱🇹 Lithuania34
🇨🇾 Cyprus34
🇨🇿 Czechia33
🇭🇺 Hungary33
🇧🇾 Belarus33
🇭🇷 Croatia33
🇸🇮 Slovenia33
🇮🇹 Italy32
🇧🇬 Bulgaria32
🇱🇻 Latvia32
🇲🇰 North Macedonia32
🇵🇹 Portugal31
🇷🇸 Serbia31
🇩🇪 Germany30
🇧🇪 Belgium30
🇮🇪 Ireland30
🇬🇧 UK29
🇬🇷 Greece29
🇳🇱 Netherlands28
🇨🇭 Switzerland27
🇹🇷 Turkey26.5
🇲🇪 Montenegro21
🇲🇩 Moldova20
🇯🇪 Jersey19
🇸🇲 San Marino10

The regional average sits at 33 days, and many countries fall close to this level. Nations such as Czechia, Hungary, Croatia, Slovenia, and Belarus offer between 32 and 34 days of paid leave per year.

Lower Leave Totals at Europe’s Edges

At the lower end of the spectrum, San Marino offers the fewest paid leave days at just 10, followed by Jersey, Moldova, and Montenegro, all of which fall well below the European average.

Meanwhile, countries like Germany, Belgium, and Ireland sit near the middle, offering around 30 days of total paid leave—still higher than many non-European economies.

If you enjoyed today’s post, check out The Rise of Senior Populations by Region on Voronoi, the new app from Visual Capitalist.