What does a working student earn? There's no statutory “working-student salary”. There is a legal floor, and a handful of things that determine where your rate above it should land.
Is there a minimum amount a working student has to earn?
Yes: the statutory minimum wage. As of 1 July 2026 that's € 14.99 gross per hour from age 21; for ages 15 to 20 lower youth minimum wages apply by age [1]. The Dutch government sets the amounts per 1 January and per 1 July, so always check the current table rather than an outdated number from an old article. Our article on the minimum wage for working students lists all amounts.
Why does the hourly rate vary between working-student roles?
The rate should mostly follow the level of the work, not the age or study stage of the working student: someone independently running part of a process naturally earns more than someone mainly doing supporting tasks. Sector and region play a part too.
Does more hours per week also mean a higher hourly rate?
Not necessarily. The hourly rate should track the work, not how many hours you happen to be available. But the rate should move with it as your hours grow toward full-time and your responsibilities grow alongside them.
How do you check whether an offered rate is fair?
- Compare it to the statutory minimum wage: is it just above it, or clearly above it?
- Ask what a comparable junior colleague on a full-time contract earns per hour
- Look at the nature of the work: independent responsibility warrants a higher rate than purely supporting tasks
- Be wary of a rate that stays at or just above minimum wage however the work grows in practice
Why a “national average” isn't a useful benchmark
A nationwide average tells you little about your own situation, because it blends every sector, region and type of work. An average across every working-student role in the Netherlands tells you about as much about your own offer as the average income in the Netherlands tells you about your own salary: almost nothing, unless you know exactly what's baked into it.
How does VOIDS look at this?
For each role we look at what's fair given the actual work, not at a national average. A fair rate follows the work, not the status of “student”. The statutory minimum wage remains the floor [1].
Sources
- Rijksoverheid (2026): Bedragen minimumloon 2026, accessed 11 October 2026.
Transparency: VOIDS connects working students with organisations and therefore has an interest in this topic. We back up facts with sources and connect research and trends to our own experience from practice.
