Moving to Denmark
Denmark country facts, largest cities, hub labels and reports.
Across 198 passports, 93 passports enter visa-free and 105 passports need a visa for Denmark. Check your passport below.
- Visa-free
- 93
- Visa required
- 105
Visa and entry rules
Sources checked through 3 Sept 2026.
Work and income
What is the unemployment rate in Denmark?
The national unemployment rate was 6.4 % in 2025. Source: Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a)12
This is the Eurostat labour-force survey series used as the canonical national answer. Other published definitions exist and are shown in the table below.
What is the median gross salary in Denmark?
The median gross salary was about 6,161 EUR/month in 2024.
Half of employees earn less than this. Mean gross and national-accounts averages use different definitions and are shown in the table below. national-accounts average — shown in the table below.
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median gross salary, monthly | 6,161 EUR/month | 31 Dec 2024 | Statistics Denmark LONS30 — Denmark median standardized earnings, 202433Official · national figure |
| National unemployment rate | 6.4 % | 31 Dec 2025 | Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a)12Official · national figure |
Typical city (median): about 2.5%
Unemployment rate (%)
Typical city (median): about 5,720 incidents per 100,000 residents
Recorded incidents per 100,000 residents
Public employment service in Denmark
Official job-search, registration, counselling and training routes. Private recruitment agencies are not included.
Jobnet Denmark — Public employment service
A national service does not prove that an office exists in every city. City pages show an office only after an exact address is linked to that city. Sources checked through 10 Aug 2026.
Taxes in Denmark
National rates and comparable published scenarios. Personal tax depends on income, household and residence circumstances.
Benefits newcomers may qualify for in Denmark
Public schemes where an official source defines an eligible migration or residence status. Amounts and conditions are kept in their native terms.
| Programme | Published amount | Source and application |
|---|---|---|
Benefits for asylum seekers / temporary protection — Arrival and reception support | 50.06 DKK / Daily | |
Eligibility and amount detailsDKK 50.06 per adult per day when the adult lives at an asylum centre with a spouse or partner; the page states that the amounts are from 2026. The Danish Immigration Service page states that an asylum seeker whose application is being processed in Denmark normally has living expenses covered by the Immigration Service and can receive the listed cash and in-kind support while the application is processed. | ||
Child and youth benefits (børne- og ungeydelse) — Family and child support | 1,114–5,370 DKK | |
Eligibility and amount details2026 whole benefit amounts: DKK 5,370 per quarter for ages 0–2, DKK 4,248 per quarter for ages 3–6, DKK 3,342 per quarter for ages 7–14, and DKK 1,114 per month for ages 15–17. Amount may be reduced by income and may be shared equally between parents. The Danish official page says entitlement requires the child to be under 18 and living in Denmark and the parent to live in Denmark; it also provides a foreign-worker route for an EU/EEA or Swiss citizen who works in Denmark, subject to the listed custody and relationship conditions. | ||
Housing benefit (boligstøtte) — Housing support | 1,194–5,251 DKK / Monthly | |
Eligibility and amount detailsFor tenants who are not pensioners: maximum DKK 1,194/month with 0 children, DKK 4,201/month with 1–3 children, and DKK 5,251/month with 4 or more children. The amount is household-specific and depends on income, assets, children/adults, rent and dwelling size. The Danish page states: ‘If you are renting a home with your own kitchen or kitchenette, you might qualify for housing benefits’; it also says: ‘you have to live at the residence you are applying for on a permanent basis to get housing benefit’. The page covers foreign income in the household and the residence condition for the benefit. | ||
Social assistance (kontanthjælp) — Minimum-income support | 3,057–13,060 DKK / Monthly | |
Eligibility and amount detailsThe official 2026 table lists several statutory monthly social-assistance rates, including minimum DKK 3,057, basic DKK 7,529 and enhanced DKK 13,060; the applicable rate depends on age, residence, work history, children and other conditions. The Danish page states that the applicable social-assistance rate depends on residence and employment requirements; a person who moved to Denmark generally needs lawful residence in the Kingdom for 9 of the last 10 years and the listed employment history, subject to Community-rules exceptions. | ||
Unemployment benefits (dagpenge) — Unemployment support | 14,694–22,041 DKK / Monthly | |
Eligibility and amount detailsStatutory 2026 unemployment-insurance maximum rates: DKK 22,041 per month for full-time insured members and DKK 14,694 per month for part-time insured members. The Danish page includes EU/EEA aggregation rules for a person who takes up residence and employment in Denmark; entitlement also requires Danish unemployment-insurance membership and the published work conditions. | ||
ImmigrationDB shows published rules; it does not decide personal eligibility. Confirm your status, contribution record and household circumstances with the responsible authority before applying. Sources checked through 12 Aug 2026.
Can migrants receive medical care in Denmark?
Yes — migrants can receive medical care in Denmark under the published coverage rules.
Language courses and integration in Denmark
Government programmes, public integration services and exact provider records. The section expands only from fields present in the source; missing prices, refunds or contacts are not replaced with estimates.
Danish language training for adult foreign nationals — State Language Course
Danish municipalities and language centres
For adult foreign nationals, newly arrived residents.
Copenhagen Danish language education programme — Municipal language course
City of Copenhagen
For adult residents with CPR registration, newly arrived residents.
Danish education at Sprogcenter Aalborg — State Language Course
Aalborg Kommune / Sprogcenter Aalborg
For adult foreign nationals, newly arrived residents.
Danish education through Odense Job- og integrationshuset — State Language Course
Odense Kommune / Job- og integrationshuset
For newly arrived residents, migrants.
Official Danish education in Aarhus — Municipal language course
City of Aarhus
For newly arrived international residents.
Living and moving context for Denmark
Denmark had GDP per capita of US$76,970 in 2025 and life expectancy of 82.3 years in 2024. Average gross salary was €4,855 per month and national median net income was €2,290 per month in 2024. There were 4.498 doctors per 1,000 people in 2021, while unemployment was 6.4% in 2025. In 2024, the groceries price level index was 124 on an EU27=100 basis. Monthly estimates were €397 for groceries and €116 for utilities; household electricity was €0.420/kWh and gas was €0.0965/kWh. Estimated monthly net income was €3,327 for one person, €3,768 for a couple and €4,307 for a family in 2024. The national crime rate was 8,844 offences per 100,000 people in 2025. For 2024, estimated employee amounts were €11,516 a year in income tax and €9,422 in social contributions.
Denmark cities by population
The largest published cities appear first. Population is taken from the reusable official city layer; hub labels come from the existing city taxonomy.
All published cities in Denmark
Reports with this country
Accepted report pages with a row for this country.
Denmark facts
Current source-backed observations, grouped the way the city pages are, with geographic scope and observation periods.
Population and profile
How many people live in Denmark?
The published population was 5,976,992 people in 2024. Source: World Bank37
National, resident population scope. Foreign-resident and migration-background figures are separate metrics in the table below.
How many foreign residents live in Denmark?
The foreign-resident population was 677,509 people in 2025. Source: Eurostat4
Residents without Denmark citizenship. The migration-background population is a broader measure and appears in the table below.
Legal, tax and other context
| Metric | Value | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Public healthcare access for foreign residents | Yes | 3 Aug 2026 | lifeindenmark.dk (official Danish government portal for newcomers)19Official · national figure |
| Area | 42,920 km² | 31 Dec 2023 | World Bank38Official · national figure |
| Cost level against the capital | 124 index (EU27=100) | 31 Dec 2024 | Eurostat — Comparative price levels and HICP (prc_ppp_ind, prc_hicp_midx)8Official · national |
| Gross-to-net pay for a sample household | single person no children — 537,071 gross → 347,337 net a year (2025, national currency) | 31 Dec 2025 | Taxing Wages 2026 — labour taxation decomposition34Official · country household scenario |
| Population by year | 5,806,081 people (2019) | 1 Jan 2019 | Population on 1 January by age and sex (DEMO_PJAN)31Official · country annual series |
| Salary by profession | Clerical support workers — 4,392 EUR/month (2022) | 31 Dec 2022 | Mean monthly earnings by sex, occupation and size class of the enterprise (2022)20Official · country occupation |
| Doctors per 1,000 residents | 4.5 per 1,000 | 31 Dec 2021 | World Bank indicator SH.MED.PHYS.ZS41Official · national figure |
| Household electricity price | 0.42 EUR/kWh | 31 Dec 2024 | Eurostat — Household energy prices (nrg_pc_204 electricity, nrg_pc_202 gas)10Official · national |
| People employed in agriculture, forestry and fishing | 61,910 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure |
| People employed in mining and quarrying | 3,780 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure |
| People employed in manufacturing | 321,000 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure |
| People employed in electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning | 15,170 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure |
| People employed in water supply, sewerage and waste management | 14,430 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure |
| People employed in construction | 212,690 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure |
| People employed in wholesale and retail trade; motor vehicle and motorcycle repair | 521,100 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure |
| People employed in transportation and storage | 151,210 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure |
| People employed in accommodation and food services | 160,000 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure |
| People employed in information and communication | 114,750 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure |
| People employed in finance and insurance | 78,380 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure |
| People employed in real estate | 52,720 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure |
| People employed in professional, scientific and technical services | 214,740 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure |
| People employed in administrative and support services | 165,400 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure |
| People employed in public administration, defence and compulsory social security | 170,350 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure |
| People employed in education | 243,350 people | 2025 | ec.europa.eu1Official · national figure |
Common questions
Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.
What is the unemployment rate in Denmark?
The national unemployment rate was 6.4 % in 2025. Source: Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a).
How many people live in Denmark?
The published population was 5,976,992 people in 2024. Source: World Bank.
What is the median gross salary in Denmark?
The median gross salary was about 6,161 EUR/month in 2024. Source: Statistics Denmark LONS30 — Denmark median standardized earnings, 2024.
Cite this page
Open a format to select or copy this ImmigrationDB compilation citation. The native disclosure and text fallback work without JavaScript.
APA citation
ImmigrationDB. (2026, September 12). Moving to Denmark: salary, cost of living [ImmigrationDB compilation; snapshot approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; version approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/countries/denmark/ Retrieved 2026-09-12. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/BibTeX citation
@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_moving-to-denmark-salary-cost-of-living_e82bfc7fd1ce,
author = {ImmigrationDB},
title = {Moving to Denmark: salary, cost of living},
publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
year = {2026},
date = {2026-09-12},
version = {approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0},
snapshot = {approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0},
url = {https://immigrationdb.com/countries/denmark/},
note = {Retrieved 2026-09-12. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}Markdown citation
[Moving to Denmark: salary, cost of living](https://immigrationdb.com/countries/denmark/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; snapshot approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; version approved-static-d7ed373c115d60d0; retrieved 2026-09-12; built 2026-09-12.This citation identifies the ImmigrationDB compilation/page. Underlying source publishers and datasets retain their own terms; inspect the Sources section and cite those records separately. View the underlying source records.
Sources
Every number above comes from one of these records. Open the original source for its geographic scope and publication date.
- ec.europa.eu ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-12
- EF EPI ef.com · checked 2026-08-03
- European Medicines Agency ema.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-03
- Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-20
- Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-07
- Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-05
- Eurostat ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-08-05
- Eurostat — Comparative price levels and HICP (prc_ppp_ind, prc_hicp_midx) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-14
- Eurostat — Distribution of income by household composition (ilc_di04) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-26
- Eurostat — Household energy prices (nrg_pc_204 electricity, nrg_pc_202 gas) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-14
Show 36 more sources
- Eurostat — National accounts aggregates (nama_10_a10) and employment (nama_10_a10_e) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-26
- Eurostat — Unemployment by sex and age — annual data (une_rt_a) Eurostat · ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-26
- Eurostat crim_off_cat (ICCS0101, NR) ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-05
- Eurostat demo_pjan ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-05
- Eurostat hbs_exp_t121 ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-06
- Eurostat ilc_di03 ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-09-06
- Globalization and World Cities (GaWC), Loughborough University gawc.lboro.ac.uk · checked 2026-08-03
- Hospital beds (per 1,000 people) data.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-13
- lifeindenmark.dk (official Danish government portal for newcomers) lifeindenmark.borger.dk · checked 2026-08-03
- Mean monthly earnings by sex, occupation and size class of the enterprise (2022) ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-30
- MIPEX mirovni-institut.si · checked 2026-08-03
- OECD oecd.org · checked 2026-08-03
- OECD sdmx-pp.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-03
- OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-03
- OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
- OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
- OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
- OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-07
- OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-08-05
- Physicians (per 1,000 people) data.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-13
- Population on 1 January by age and sex (DEMO_PJAN) ec.europa.eu · checked 2026-07-29
- StatBank Denmark STRAF24 — reported criminal offences per 100,000 inhabitants StatBank Denmark STRAF24 · api.statbank.dk · checked 2026-07-29
- Statistics Denmark LONS30 — Denmark median standardized earnings, 2024 Statistics Denmark LONS30 · api.statbank.dk · checked 2026-07-29
- Taxing Wages 2026 — labour taxation decomposition Taxing Wages 2026 · sdmx.oecd.org · checked 2026-07-29
- WHO GHO RS_196/RS_198 ghoapi.azureedge.net · checked 2026-09-05
- WHO GHO RS_196/RS_198 ghoapi.azureedge.net · checked 2026-09-05
- World Bank api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-02
- World Bank api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-02
- World Bank api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-02
- World Bank indicator NY.GDP.PCAP.CD api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-07-14
- World Bank indicator SH.MED.PHYS.ZS api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-07-14
- World Bank indicator SP.DYN.LE00.IN api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-07-14
- World Bank Open Data api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-07
- World Bank Open Data api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-08-07
- World Bank SP.POP.TOTL api.worldbank.org · checked 2026-09-05
- OECD — Taxing Wages (DF_TAXINGWAGES) tax wedge and net income OECD · oecd.org · checked 2026-07-14