Simulator: your study path and your money
CESS (age 18)
First job at about 18Over your whole career, up to age 67, if you work full time
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net, on average
On average, with your real chance of having a job
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net over your career
Net per month, if you work full time
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gross –
Your net salary per month, by age
Your pathThe other paths
The risk of unemployment
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What this money becomes
Rent, flat, car: worked out with your full-time net salary. The bonus: with your real chance of having a job. Always real Belgian prices.
Your rent
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A flat of your own
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A used car
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After 67
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Estimated pension, gross, per month: 60% of your average gross salary (capped) if you live alone, in proportion to your years of work out of 45. Only a rough idea.
Your bonus
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one-week trip(s) abroad per year, with ¼ of the bonus
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restaurant meals per month, with ¼ of the bonus
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saved by age 67 with ½ of the bonus (no interest)
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to save the 20% deposit for a median flat, with ½ of the bonus
How we calculate (in plain words)
- Salaries: Statbel average for full-time employees in October 2022, by diploma and region. These are the latest figures published by diploma. Since then, salaries have been indexed: the real amounts today are a little higher, for every path.
- “Trade / work-study”: there is no official figure for work-study graduates. We take the average of skilled trades (building, electrical work, mechanics, baking, woodwork…) in Belgium. Self-employed tradespeople are not counted.
- The shape of the curve (lower salary at the start, higher with experience) comes from Statbel salaries by age. It is an estimate.
- Net = 60.5% of gross. This is the OECD average for a single person in Belgium (2025). Low salaries keep a little more, high salaries a little less.
- We count 12 salaries a year. Many employees also get a 13th month and holiday pay: we stay on the careful side.
- “With your real chance of having a job”: we multiply the full-time total by the share of adults (age 25-64, Belgium, 2025) with this diploma who have a job. This share also counts people who no longer look for work, not only the unemployed. Benefits (unemployment benefit, CPAS social aid…) are not counted. The bonus and the “+ vs stop at 16” on this card use the same measure for both paths.
- How the paths match the Eurostat categories: “Stop at 16” = at most lower secondary (ISCED 0-2); “CESS” = general upper secondary (ISCED 34/44); “Trade / work-study” = vocational or technical upper secondary (ISCED 35/45); “Bachelor” and “Master” = higher education (ISCED 5-8, no separate figure).
- The split of the bonus (¼ travel, ¼ restaurants, ½ savings) and the 20% deposit are our examples. Not a rule.
- School is compulsory until 18 (at least part time). So for “Stop at 16”, full-time work starts at 18.
See all paths in a table
| Path | First job | Full-time career | With the real chance of a job | Have a job |
|---|
A trade is a solid choice
Electrician, mechanic, baker, joiner… A technical or vocational diploma protects you from unemployment. Even better than general secondary school alone.
75% have a job (compared with 69% for general secondary). An employed electrician earns on average 3 496 € gross per month. And many tradespeople become self-employed: their income is not even in these figures.
Belgium, age 25-64, 2025 (Eurostat). Salary: Statbel, 2022.
What makes people happy in Belgium
Money is not everything. But when it is missing, it takes choices away.
People come first
68% of Belgians are very satisfied with their relationships. Only 37% are very satisfied with their money. And 38% find it hard to pay for everything they need each month.
Statbel, 2024
The key? Having a purpose
Researchers at Ghent University (UGent) sum up happiness in 4 letters, ABCD: autonomy, good bonds with people, feeling competent, and a doel (Dutch for “goal”). A job or studies you like tick several of these boxes.
Unemployed people rate their happiness 5.3 out of 10, compared with 6.5 on average.
NN-UGent happiness study, 2026 (partly funded by an insurance company)
Life satisfaction, out of 10, by diploma
A small gap. A diploma does not buy happiness. Everyone can be happy.
Eurostat, Belgium, 2025
And by income
Having enough money helps a little. Mostly so you do not have to worry.
Eurostat, Belgium, 2025
What money makes possible (or not)
One week of holiday a year. Below the poverty line, 52% cannot afford it. Above it, 16%.
A large unexpected expense (a repair, a fridge that breaks down). Below the poverty line, 60% cannot cover it. Above it, 18%.
Eurostat, Belgium, 2025
These are averages, not a promise
Your own path can be different. Some people without a diploma earn a very good living, and some graduates struggle. But on average, in Belgium, each extra step gives you more choices.
Nothing is fixed. You can go back to training later: work-study, adult education courses (promotion sociale), training for adults.
Want to talk about it? Your PMS centre (the guidance centre linked to your school) or Infor Jeunes can help you, free of charge.
Sources
Figures collected on 8 October 2026. Their limits are explained above, in “How we calculate”.
- Statbel, Structure of Earnings Survey, ref. Oct. 2022 (published Sept. 2024): salaries by diploma, region, age and occupation. Statbel page · tables (xls, French)
- OECD, Taxing Wages 2026, Belgium country note, year 2025: net = 60.5% of gross. OECD PDF
- Eurostat, Labour Force Survey (collected by Statbel), 2025: unemployment by diploma lfsa_urgaed, share of people aged 25-64 who have a job, by diploma lfsa_ergaed (48.1% / 68.5% / 75.3% / 87.7%), by region lfst_r_lfu3rt. Matching: stop at 16 = ISCED 0-2; CESS = general upper secondary (ISCED 34/44); trade / work-study = vocational or technical upper secondary (ISCED 35/45); bachelor and master = higher education (ISCED 5-8).
- Statbel, real estate prices, 1st half of 2026 (published 22 Sept. 2026): median flat 195 000 € (Wallonia), 275 000 € (Brussels). Statbel page
- Federia, Rental Barometer 2025: average rent on new leases, 888 € (Wallonia), 1 376 € (Brussels). Federia PDF (French)
- Eurostat, average spending per trip by Belgian residents, personal reasons, abroad, 4 nights or more, 2025: 994 €. tour_dem_extot
- Edenred Belgium (Numbeo figures, crowd-sourced), 2026: simple restaurant meal ≈ 20 €. A rough guide only. Article (French)
- Car-Pass study, end of 2024, reported by La DH: average price of a used car 12 600 €. Article (French)
- CLEISS, Belgian pension scheme for employees: legal age 67 in 2030, calculation 60% (single person) over 45 years. CLEISS page (French)
- Eurostat, EU-SILC, Belgium 2025: life satisfaction by diploma ilc_pw01 and by income ilc_pw02; holidays ilc_mdes02; unexpected expense ilc_mdes04.
- Statbel, well-being 2024 (published 21 May 2025). Statbel article
- NN-UGent, National Happiness Study, press release of 9 March 2026. PDF (Dutch)
- Enseignement.be, compulsory schooling (age 5 to 18). Page (French)