🇵🇹 Portugal vs 🇪🇪 Estonia
what you actually keep in 2026

Every rate below is sourced and dated. Figures are annual, in EUR, for a single person with one income.

On €100,000 a year as a founder taking dividends, Estonia leaves you with €78,000 against €72,726 — a difference of €5,274 a year.

Where the ranking flips

The income at which the answer changes, derived from the same rules as the tables below. Ranges stop where a regime stops being available, so nothing is claimed beyond it.

As employee: Estonia keeps more than Portugal at every income from €10,000 to €500,000 — there is no crossover in that range.
As freelancer: Below €110,000, Portugal keeps more; from €111,000 to €200,000, Estonia. (Searched to €200,000, where a regime ends.)
As founder (dividends): Below €45,000, Portugal keeps more; from €46,000 up, Estonia.

As employee

Gross	🇵🇹 Portugal Employee (standard IRS)	🇪🇪 Estonia Employee (22% flat)	Difference
€50,000	€33,064 33.9% wedge	€39,444 21.1% wedge	€6,380 Estonia keeps more
€100,000	€57,442 42.6% wedge	€77,040 23.0% wedge	€19,598 Estonia keeps more
€200,000	€101,497 49.3% wedge	€152,232 23.9% wedge	€50,735 Estonia keeps more

As freelancer

Gross	🇵🇹 Portugal Self-employed (simplified regime, services)	🇪🇪 Estonia Sole trader (FIE)	Difference
€50,000	€33,629 32.7% wedge	€30,585 38.8% wedge	€3,044 Portugal keeps more
€100,000	€60,003 40.0% wedge	€59,322 40.7% wedge	€681 Portugal keeps more
€200,000	€114,294 42.9% wedge	€127,348 36.3% wedge	€13,055 Estonia keeps more

⚠ Portugal: this regime only applies up to €200,000 of turnover — above that the figures in the last row do not apply.

As founder (dividends)

Gross	🇵🇹 Portugal Company dividends (IRC 15/19% + IRS on 50% of dividends)	🇪🇪 Estonia OÜ dividends (0% retained · 22/78 distributed)	Difference
€50,000	€38,855 22.3% wedge	€39,000 22.0% wedge	€145 Estonia keeps more
€100,000	€72,726 27.3% wedge	€78,000 22.0% wedge	€5,274 Estonia keeps more
€200,000	€135,820 32.1% wedge	€156,000 22.0% wedge	€20,180 Estonia keeps more

Adjusted for cost of living

Keeping more only matters if it buys more. Against the EU average, prices are 14.7% lower in Portugal and 2.2% lower in Estonia. So that €100,000 founder income is really worth €85,260 in Portugal and €79,755 in Estonia at EU-average prices — Portugal comes out ahead once prices are counted.

Price levels: Eurostat — purchasing power parities, COICOP 2018 (prc_ppp_ind_1), Actual individual consumption (COICOP A01), 2025. Source

Run your own number

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Sources

🇵🇹 Portugal — Autoridade Tributária (via PwC, 2026), as of 2026-01-01
🇪🇪 Estonia — Estonian Tax & Customs Board (EMTA), as of 2026-01-01
Cost of living — Eurostat — purchasing power parities, COICOP 2018 (prc_ppp_ind_1), 2025

🇵🇹 Portugal vs 🇪🇪 Estoniawhat you actually keep in 2026