SDG 8.1 Economy and factors of production

The first part of SDG 8 relates to the aim of more sustainable and efficient economic growth, focusing on innovation, entrepreneurship and the environment. While economic growth leads to an improvement in material well-being in the short term, some economic activities may be harmful to the living environment and people’s well-being in the long term.

• GDP per capita, individual consumption and median disposable income are growing and among the highest in the EU.
• The proportion of earned income from labour is trending downwards, which means that the share from corporate profits is increasing.
• Consumer confidence is negative and decreasing.
   

Dashboard and indicators

Colour codes and notes to the dashboards in the Monitor of Well-being

Gross domestic product (GDP) is a way to measure the size of the economy and can be calculated on the basis of three approaches: production, income and expenditure. The production of goods and services requires factors of production, such as physical capital, labour, knowledge and raw materials. Currency-based indicators have been adjusted to account for inflation.

Resources and capabilities concern the volumes of capital, labour, knowledge and raw materials used in the production of goods and services. In 2025, gross investment in tangible fixed assets amounted to 16.2 percent of GDP. As in the preceding years, this figure was low compared to other countries. The Netherlands ranked 21st in the EU in 2025. Eastern European countries in particular (such as the Baltic States, Romania, Czechia and Croatia) invest a relatively large share of their GDP in tangible fixed assets.

The number of hours worked per capita has steadily increased in recent years. However, in the most recent year, the figure fell by 1.4 percent. This rising trend in the number of hours worked per capita is consistent with the rise in net labour force participation and the decrease in unused labour potential, although these also remained stable in the most recent year (SDG 8.2). Median household disposable income is rising. In 2024, it stood at 36,500 euros per household. The Netherlands has one of the highest levels of median disposable income in the EU (5th out of 27 countries in 2024). The relevant figure has been adjusted for price changes, based on the 2024 price level.

The stocks of physical and knowledge capital per hour worked measure the capital intensity of production. Capital intensity is the value of the available means of production relative to the amount of labour employed. The trend for both is stable. Looking back beyond the trend period, capital intensity is gradually decreasing. The stock of physical capital rose to 177 euros per hour worked from the start of the time series in 1995 up until 2013, but has since gradually fallen back to reach 169 euros in 2024. Between 1995 and 2015, the stock of knowledge capital increased from 7.14 euros to 12.97 euros per hour worked. From 2015, it declined slightly to 11.62 euros in 2024. The total stocks of physical and knowledge capital are steadily increasing (adjusted for inflation), but the number of hours worked is rising faster. The Netherlands is one of the few countries where the stock of knowledge capital per hour worked is falling rather than rising. In 2024, the Netherlands still occupied fifth place in the EU ranking, which includes 13 countries, but it is gradually losing its lead.

Use concerns the productivity and sustainability of how the factors of production are utilised, and the consumption of the goods and services produced. Labour productivity, raw materials productivity and individual consumption are all increasing.

The Netherlands has one of the highest levels of labour productivity in the EU (4th out of 26 countries in 2025). Labour productivity is defined as the value added per hour worked. In 2021 prices, 58 euros of value added were produced per hour worked in 2025. In 2025, labour productivity is no longer stable but trending upwards.

Resource productivity is increasing. Resource productivity measures the value added per kilogram of material consumption. There was an especially sharp increase in the most recent year for which data are available (4.1 percent from 2023 to 2024). At 6.05 euros per kilogram of material in 2015 prices, the Netherlands has the highest level of resource productivity in the EU. More efficient use of raw materials in various sectors and the ever-increasing role of services in the Dutch economy may play a role in this upward trend.

Individual consumption is trending upwards and also grew in the most recent year for which data is available (1.2 percent from 2024 to 2025). As with median disposable income, the Netherlands has one of the highest levels in the EU-27 (4th in 2025).

Outcomes relate to the rate, efficiency and sustainability of economic growth. The Dutch economy is growing. According to the first annual estimate of 2025, GDP per capita (in constant 2021 prices) has risen to almost 53 thousand euros. That is 1.3 percent higher than in 2024 and one of the highest levels in the EU-27 (4th in 2025).

Labour income accounted for 69.9 percent of earned income in 2024, and the share is falling. A falling labour income share (LIS) means that labour income  is declining as a share of total income, while corporate profits are increasing. The labour income share LIS provides an indication of who benefits from an economy’s earnings. In the mid-1990s, the LIS was above 80 percent. The LIS is calculated only for industries where it makes sense to distinguish between income from labour and profit (the market sector). The LIS is not calculated for the public sector, education, health care, the mining and quarrying industry, financial services or real estate activities. Rising profits for the machinery industry and energy companies appear to have caused an enduring reduction in the labour income share relative to previous years (approximately 70 percent since 2021, compared to approximately 74 percent before).

Globally, an average of 28 tonnes of raw materials per capita were extracted to meet the needs of Dutch consumers in 2023 (the raw materials footprint). This was a decrease compared to 2022, when 31.7 tonnes were extracted for every inhabitant. Compared to other EU countries, the Netherlands had a small raw materials footprint in 2023 (7th out of 27 countries).

Subjective assessment refers to the confidence of consumers and producers. Consumer confidence measures consumers’ willingness to buy, as well as their confidence in their own financial situation and the economic climate. Consumer confidence is trending downwards. In 2022, the annual average reached an all-time low of -47. In 2023 and 2024, consumer confidence rebounded, standing at -24 in 2024. In 2025, the balance of positive and negative answers was still low at -30 percent. A negative figure means that more than half of consumers lack confidence.

In 2025, the difference between companies with a positive and negative outlook was -2.5 percent. Business confidence in the non-financial business sector as a whole was negative in 2025 (-5.1 percent). However, producers in the manufacturing sector were more confident about the development of industrial production in 2025 (14.8 percent) than they were in 2024.