Albania is ranked as the country with the most expensive fuel in Europe, considering the price of oil in relation to the country's income.

Local business news provider Monitor has processed per capita income data in dollars for 2026, according to the International Monetary Fund's publication, and the current oil price, as reported by Global Petrol Price.

The average per capita income in dollars in Albania for 2026 is Dollar 12,000, or Dollar 33 per day, according to the IMF's Global Economic Outlook. A liter of oil was trading in Albania on Tuesday (March 10) for about Lek 200, or Dollar 2.4, at the current exchange rate.

As a result, an Albanian citizen would currently need 7.2% of their daily income to buy a liter of diesel.

According to data processed by Monitor, based on IMF figures and Global Petrol Price, this is the highest weight among the European countries included in the analysis.

Compared to other countries in the region, the weight is at least twice as high. In Serbia, a liter of fuel represents about 3.7% of daily income, in Montenegro about 3.6%, while in Romania about 2.8%. Even in Greece, one of the most expensive fuel markets in Europe in nominal terms, the weight of a liter of oil in relation to income is about 2.5%.

The oil prices in the region, in nominal terms, are on average 15-30% lower than Albania, especially Kosovo and North Macedonia. Meanwhile, the country's per capita income remains among the lowest in the region, recently surpassing North Macedonia, with Kosovo having the lowest.

In more developed European economies, the difference is even greater due to higher incomes, with fuel in Albania being three to six times more expensive in relative terms, according to purchasing power.

In countries like Italy, France, Germany, or Belgium, a liter of fuel usually represents less than 2% of the average daily income, while in some Northern European countries the weight drops even further. The Netherlands has the most expensive oil in Europe in absolute terms, but a citizen there needs only 1.1% of their daily income to buy a liter, or 7 times less than in Albania.

Albania already has one of the lowest per capita incomes in Europe, while fuel prices are often similar to or only slightly lower than those in European Union countries. This makes the real weight of fuel on household budgets and on transportation costs for businesses much higher.

According to Global Petrol Price data, even in nominal terms, Albania ranks fifth in Europe for oil prices, after the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, and Switzerland, with the latter having fuel only 10 to 30 cents more than in our country.

The high burden of taxes remains one of the main reasons for high prices in the country, where about 60% of the price is made up of taxes. The very rapid reactions to price increases when they increase on the stock exchanges and the slight decreases when they fall on international markets remain another important reason.