The median monthly salary in March 2025 was €5,115 for doctors, €2,688 for nurses and midwives and €1,701 for caregivers, TAI reports.
The average salary for healthcare workers increased across all major occupational groups in 2025, according to a wage survey conducted by the National Institute for Health Development (TAI).
The average gross hourly wage, including regular bonuses, was €31.01 for doctors, €15.66 for nurses and midwives and €9.79 for caregivers. Over the year, doctors' hourly wages rose by 8 percent, nurses' and midwives' by 5 percent and caregivers' by 3 percent. However, the annual growth rate for gross hourly wages has slowed compared to the previous year.
Base hourly wages made up 82 percent of doctors' total hourly earnings, 86 percent for nurses and midwives and 81 percent for caregivers. Year-on-year, base hourly pay increased by 7 percent for doctors and by 8 percent for both nurses, midwives and caregivers.
As of March 2025, the median monthly salary, including all bonuses, was €5,115 for doctors, €2,688 for nurses and midwives and €1,701 for caregivers. Annual increases were 12 percent for doctors, 12 percent for nurses and midwives and 6 percent for caregivers. Still, the pace of median wage growth has also slowed.
The median monthly salary in Estonia during the first quarter of 2025 was €1,649, up 6 percent year-over-year. Median salaries for doctors, nurses and midwives thus outpaced the national average. Doctors' median salary was three times the national median, while nurses and midwives earned nearly double.
While the share of bonuses in the total monthly pay has declined over the past year for nurses, midwives and caregivers, it has grown for doctors over the past two years. This suggests a rise in the share of performance-based pay for doctors, partly due to an increased workload. Bonuses accounted for 24 percent of doctors' monthly pay in 2025, up from 20 percent a few years ago.
As of March 2025, the minimum hourly wage under the healthcare workers' collective agreement was €19.67 for doctors and €21.40 for specialists. The minimum was €12 for nurses and allied health professionals, €12.45 for specialized nurses and midwives and €7.60 for caregivers. These base rates rose by an average of about 10 percent over the year.
Although most healthcare workers earn more than the minimums set in the collective agreement, some still fall below the threshold. Among doctors, around one in ten earns less than the established minimum.