Economy, jobs and prices in Arr. Ath (Wallonia, Belgium): official figures

GDP per person was 26,000 purchasing power standards (PPS) in 2024, 65% of the EU average (117% for Belgium); 38th highest of 44 arrondissements in Belgium.

GDP per person (PPS)

26,000

2024

People in work

39,700

2024

Net taxable income per resident

€23,169

2023

How big is the economy of Arr. Ath?

The local economy produced €3.8 billion of output (GDP) in 2024.

Source: Eurostat · saved copy

How many people work in Arr. Ath?

About 39,700 people worked in Arr. Ath in 2024 (employment by place of work).

Source: Eurostat · saved copy

What is the average income in the Ath arrondissement?

Net taxable income averaged €23,169 per resident in the Ath arrondissement in income year 2023, 1% below the Belgian average of €23,352; that was the 19th lowest of the 44 Belgian arrondissements.

Source: Statbel (Belgian statistical office) · saved copy

What is the average income per tax return in the Ath arrondissement?

83,353 income tax returns were filed by residents of the Ath arrondissement for income year 2023, with an average net taxable income of €36,260 per return (the 15th lowest among the 44 Belgian arrondissements; Belgian average €37,275).

Source: Statbel (Belgian statistical office) · saved copy

What is the main industry in Arr. Ath?

The largest part of the economy of Arr. Ath in 2024 was public administration, education, health and other services, at 27.7% of gross value added, followed by finance, property and business services (26.8%).

Source: Eurostat · saved copy

How industrial is Arr. Ath?

Industry (manufacturing, mining and energy) made up 16.5% of output in 2024, against 15.3% for Belgium.

Source: Eurostat · saved copy

How fast is the economy of Arr. Ath growing?

Gross value added rose from €2.4 billion in 2015 to €3.5 billion in 2024 in current prices, an increase of 45% before inflation.

Source: Eurostat · saved copy

What jobs do people do in Arr. Ath?

Of the 39,700 jobs located in Arr. Ath in 2024, 35% in public services, education, health and other services, 13% in industry and 2.5% in farming, forestry and fishing.

Source: Eurostat · saved copy

Are jobs growing in Arr. Ath?

The number of people working in Arr. Ath rose by 8.5% between 2015 and 2024, to 39,700.

Source: Eurostat · saved copy

More figures

Average net taxable income per resident in the Ath arrondissement rose by 38.5% between income years 2013 and 2023, from €16,732 to €23,169 (Belgium: +37.2%), the 21st fastest growth of the 44 Belgian arrondissements. Source: Statbel (Belgian statistical office) · saved copy
Residents of the Ath arrondissement declared 3.02 billion euros of net taxable income in 2023, 1.1% of the Belgian total, while they made up 1.1% of the population counted in the tax statistics. Source: Statbel (Belgian statistical office) · saved copy
Earnings from work, pensions and benefits (professional income) made up 98.7% of net taxable income in the Ath arrondissement in 2023, and taxable real estate income 1.2% (Belgium: 98.0% and 1.5%). Source: Statbel (Belgian statistical office) · saved copy

How Arr. Ath compares with other arrondissements in Belgium

Net taxable income per resident (2023)

Arr. Ath ranks 26 of 44, highest first.

Rank	Area	Net taxable income per resident
23	Arr. Namur	€23,508
24	Arr. Tongeren	€23,487
25	Arr. Roeselare	€23,365
26	Arr. Ath	€23,169
27	Arr. Maaseik	€22,858
28	Arr. Diksmuide	€22,645
29	Arr. Ieper	€22,538

Source: Statbel (Belgian statistical office) · saved copy

Growth in net taxable income per resident, 2013-2023 (2023)

Arr. Ath ranks 21 of 44, highest first.

Rank	Area	Growth in net taxable income per resident, 2013-2023
18	Arr. Brugge	38.6%
19	Arr. Philippeville	38.6%
20	Bezirk Verviers — Deutschsprachige Gemeinschaft	38.5%
21	Arr. Ath	38.5%
22	Arr. Virton	38.4%
23	Arr. Eeklo	38.3%
24	Arr. Sint-Niklaas	38.3%

Source: Statbel (Belgian statistical office) · saved copy

Net taxable income per tax return (2023)

Arr. Ath ranks 30 of 44, highest first.

Rank	Area	Net taxable income per tax return
27	Arr. Ieper	€36,753
28	Arr. Namur	€36,581
29	Arr. Oostende	€36,317
30	Arr. Ath	€36,260
31	Arr. Bastogne	€35,537
32	Arr. Neufchâteau	€35,496
33	Arr. Soignies	€35,438

Source: Statbel (Belgian statistical office) · saved copy

Share of output from industry (manufacturing, mining and energy) (2024)

Arr. Ath ranks 19 of 44, highest first.

Rank	Area	Share of output from industry (manufacturing, mining and energy)
16	Arr. Maaseik	18.6%
17	Arr. Mechelen	17.5%
18	Arr. Antwerpen	16.7%
19	Arr. Ath	16.5%
20	Arr. Gent	16.5%
21	Arr. Verviers — communes francophones	15.9%
22	Arr. Liège	15.5%

Source: Eurostat · saved copy

Share of output from finance, property and business services (2024)

Arr. Ath ranks 28 of 44, highest first.

Rank	Area	Share of output from finance, property and business services
25	Arr. Philippeville	27.0%
26	Arr. Diksmuide	26.9%
27	Arr. Hasselt	26.8%
28	Arr. Ath	26.8%
29	Arr. Dinant	26.7%
30	Arr. Bastogne	26.6%
31	Arr. Virton	26.3%

Source: Eurostat · saved copy

Share of output from public administration, education, health and other services (2024)

Arr. Ath ranks 19 of 44, highest first.

Rank	Area	Share of output from public administration, education, health and other services
16	Arr. Leuven	28.5%
17	Arr. Brugge	27.9%
18	Bezirk Verviers — Deutschsprachige Gemeinschaft	27.8%
19	Arr. Ath	27.7%
20	Arr. Bastogne	27.2%
21	Arr. Hasselt	26.9%
22	Arr. Waremme	26.2%

Source: Eurostat · saved copy

More on Arr. Ath: overview · poverty and living standards · government budget · government and politics · Wallonia · Belgium

Sources

Eurostat: Eurostat dataset nama_10r_3gdp: GDP per person, PPS (NUTS 3), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 3bf0fc662f56…)
Eurostat: Eurostat dataset nama_10r_3gdp: GDP, million euros (NUTS 3), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 096e15e5fdb3…)
Eurostat: Eurostat dataset nama_10r_3empers: Employment, thousand people (NUTS 3), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 664e4e3a6dc0…)
Eurostat: Eurostat dataset nama_10r_3empers: Employment (thousand persons) by NUTS 3 region and industry, read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 222a97c302d3…)
Eurostat: Eurostat dataset nama_10r_3gva: Gross value added at basic prices by NUTS 3 region and industry, read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 c656e8563bdf…)
Statbel (Belgian statistical office): Fiscal statistics on income subject to personal income tax, by municipality of residence, income years 2005-2023 (TF_PSNL_INC_TAX_MUNTY), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 5ff459c06f5f…)

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