European countries ranked by bathing water quality, 2025
The share of each country's bathing waters rated excellent in the 2025 bathing season, highest first, for the 29 European countries reported.
Bathing water quality is a direct test of how clean a country's seas, rivers and lakes are where people swim. Each season countries sample their bathing waters and test for two bacteria, intestinal enterococci and E. coli, which come from sewage and manure, and then classify every site as excellent, good, sufficient or poor.
The table ranks countries by the share of their bathing waters rated excellent in 2025, coastal and inland sites together. Countries report different numbers of sites, so a few poor sites move the share of a small country more than that of a large one.
Key figures
Bathing waters rated excellent, by country, 2025
Rank 1 has the highest share. Percent of each country's reported bathing waters, coastal and inland together. The average for the 27 EU countries is 84.8%.
| Rank | Country | Bathing waters rated excellent (%) | Season |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cyprus | 100.0 | 2025 |
| 2 | Greece | 97.1 | 2025 |
| 3 | Bulgaria | 96.9 | 2025 |
| 4 | Austria | 96.5 | 2025 |
| 5 | Luxembourg | 94.1 | 2025 |
| 6 | Denmark | 92.4 | 2025 |
| 7 | Germany | 90.9 | 2025 |
| 8 | Italy | 89.8 | 2025 |
| 9 | Malta | 88.5 | 2025 |
| 10 | Lithuania | 86.7 | 2025 |
| 11 | Spain | 86.6 | 2025 |
| 12 | Croatia | 86.2 | 2025 |
| 13 | Latvia | 84.7 | 2025 |
| 14 | Finland | 84.5 | 2025 |
| 15 | Switzerland | 84.4 | 2025 |
| 16 | Romania | 84.0 | 2025 |
| 17 | Portugal | 82.0 | 2025 |
| 18 | Czechia | 79.7 | 2025 |
| 19 | Ireland | 78.4 | 2025 |
| 20 | Sweden | 77.7 | 2025 |
| 21 | Slovenia | 75.5 | 2025 |
| 22 | France | 74.4 | 2025 |
| 23 | Netherlands | 70.9 | 2025 |
| 24 | Slovakia | 70.0 | 2025 |
| 25 | Belgium | 67.9 | 2025 |
| 26 | Hungary | 64.0 | 2025 |
| 27 | Poland | 58.7 | 2025 |
| 28 | Estonia | 56.9 | 2025 |
| 29 | Albania | 16.8 | 2025 |
Across Europe
- Of the 22,289 bathing waters reported across Europe in 2025, 84% were rated excellent, and the share reached 85% at the EU level.
- Over 95% of bathing waters in Cyprus, Greece, Bulgaria and Austria were rated excellent, and less than 70% in Belgium, Hungary, Poland, Estonia and Albania.
- 87.4% of the 14,861 coastal bathing waters monitored in 2025 were rated excellent.
The ten countries with the highest share of excellent bathing waters
| Category | Percent of bathing waters rated excellent |
|---|---|
| Cyprus | 100.0 |
| Greece | 97.1 |
| Bulgaria | 96.9 |
| Austria | 96.5 |
| Luxembourg | 94.1 |
| Denmark | 92.4 |
| Germany | 90.9 |
| Italy | 89.8 |
| Malta | 88.5 |
| Lithuania | 86.7 |
What the numbers mean
Coastal waters tend to be cleaner than inland ones, because rivers, small lakes and ponds are more vulnerable to short-term pollution events. Countries with mostly coastal sites and countries with mostly river and lake sites are therefore not measured on equal ground.
Excellent is the top of four grades (excellent, good, sufficient, poor), so a country with many sites rated good ranks lower than a country with many rated excellent, even if both pass. The table shows the share at the top grade, not the share that passes.
Sources
- Bathing waters with excellent water quality in Europe | Indicators | European Environment Agency (EEA)
- European bathing water quality in 2025 | Publications | European Environment Agency (EEA)
- European Environment Agency says 85% of EU bathing waters were excellent in 2025
- Proportion of bathing waters of excellent quality in European countries, 2025 (European Environment Agency)