European bathing water quality in 2025

This briefing provides information on the quality of Europe’s bathing waters and is complemented by a map viewer to help people make informed decisions about where to bathe. It is based on data reported by EU Member States, Albania and Switzerland, for the 2022-2025 bathing seasons.

Key messages

In 2025, out of the EU’s 22,000 bathing water sites, 85% were classified as excellent and 96% met at least the minimum requirements of the Bathing Water Directive (BWD). However, 1.5% remained of poor quality, indicating that management measures were not sufficient or not effectively implemented.

Bathing water quality in Europe has improved markedly in recent decades, largely due to reduced discharges of untreated or partially treated urban wastewater.

Coastal bathing waters are generally of higher quality than rivers and lakes: 88% were rated as excellent in 2025 compared with 78% of inland bathing waters.

River bathing waters remain particularly challenging: only 47% of around 1,200 designated river bathing sites across Europe (EU-27, Albania and Switzerland) achieved excellent quality in 2025.

Bathers’ health is protected by monitoring faecal indicator bacteria (Escherichia coli and intestinal enterococci), identifying pollution risks through bathing water profiles and issuing timely information and warnings to the public. The BWD does not cover chemical pollutants such as nutrients, pharmaceuticals and pesticides, which are specifically addressed under the Water Framework Directive.