Activities related to Accommodation and Food Services sectors employed 356,300 people in the second quarter of 2026, an increase of 18,500 compared with the same period in 2025 (+5.5%). The workforce in these sectors accounted for 6.6% of the total economy (+0.2 percentage points compared to 2025). Following the recovery observed in 2025, employment in the sector continued to trend upward, growing at a faster rate than the economy as a whole (+2.9%).
In the second quarter of 2026, 61% of the workforce in Accommodation and Food Services sectors held a high school or higher education degree, compared with 70% in the economy as a whole. Although it remained below the national average, this proportion increased by 4 percentage points compared to 2025 and reached the highest level recorded in a second quarter since the series began, reflecting an improvement in the sector’s qualification profile.
In the second quarter, the accommodation and food services sector in Portugal recorded an average monthly gross wage of 1,185 euros per job, a figure approximately 30% lower than the national economic average (1,717 euros). Compared to the same period last year, wages in the sector increased by 3.5%, exceeding the 1.8% growth observed in the economy as a whole, and continuing the trend of wage growth above the national average.
