The eastern gateway of the European Union
Iași County
Romania’s most populous county after Bucharest and the economic engine of the North-East Region: one third of the region’s gross domestic product is generated here. A university and medical centre of national rank, the country’s third IT hub and the only county in the region with an airport handling more than two million passengers.
Territory
The county at a glance
Economy
Economic profile
The county has the most diversified economy in the region. Services, information technology, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, textiles, metallurgy and automotive components form a broad profile, supported by strong urban consumption and a labour market of more than 210,000 employees.
Regional comparison
The county within the North-East Region
Infrastructure
Connectivity and access
The case
Why invest here
On the eastern edge of the European Union, with direct access to the Republic of Moldova and the markets of the eastern neighbourhood.
The largest university centre in eastern Romania, with tens of thousands of students in public and private universities.
The country’s third IT hub, with international companies present for more than a decade.
The only airport in the region with more than two million passengers a year and a network of European routes.
Lețcani, Holboca and Pașcani cover different profiles, from light manufacturing to intermodal logistics.
University hospitals and two major hospital investments in preparation.
Opportunities
Where you can invest now
Lețcani Industrial Park
The county’s most advanced park: RON 28 million invested, the concession being finalised, first tenants expected in 2026. Fifteen kilometres west of Iași, on the E583 European road.
Holboca Industrial Park
Land documentation completed, awaiting the industrial park title. Initial investment estimated at about EUR 10 million, with up to 50 halls.
Pașcani Industrial Park
Approximately 65 hectares at the junction of the future A7 and A8 motorways, with the zoning plan approved. Potential for a logistics and intermodal hub.
TransAgropolis Lețcani
An agro-industrial park operational since 2017, with processing facilities, silos and cold storage.
Workforce
Education and the labour market
Iași is the largest university centre in eastern Romania, with public and private universities and tens of thousands of students each academic year. The labour market counts more than 210,000 employees, with an average net wage of RON 5,335 (June 2025) — the highest in the North-East Region — and an unemployment rate of 2.9%.
Heritage
Tourism and culture
More than 1,600 historical monuments, the cultural centre of historical Moldavia, theatres, museums and a religious heritage visited by hundreds of thousands of pilgrims every year. The Palas lifestyle centre, the universities and the hospitals sustain steady urban demand.
Quality of life
Why live here
Iași offers the most complete urban infrastructure in eastern Romania: university hospitals, schools and universities covering the whole educational path, theatres and museums with a permanent programme, and a cost of living clearly below Bucharest or Cluj.
Moldavia’s foremost medical hub: university emergency hospitals, maternity, oncology, paediatrics and cardiology, staffed by graduates of the „Grigore T. Popa” University of Medicine and Pharmacy. Two major hospital investments are in preparation — the Regional Institute of Cardiovascular Medicine and the Integrated Respiratory Diseases Hospital.
From nursery to doctorate in a single city: long-established national colleges, high schools teaching in foreign languages, public and private universities with tens of thousands of students, plus international schools for expatriate families.
The „Vasile Alecsandri” National Theatre — Romania’s oldest national theatre, the „Moldova” Philharmonic, the Romanian Opera, the Palace of Culture with four museums, and the „Luceafărul” children’s theatre, currently being modernised. More than 1,600 historical monuments and a religious heritage visited every year by hundreds of thousands of pilgrims.
The Palas lifestyle centre, the botanical garden — the country’s oldest and largest, the Copou and Ciric parks, sports facilities, and a bar and restaurant scene sustained by the student population.
An international airport with more than 25 direct destinations, trams and electric buses in the city, a rail link to Chișinău and, from 2026, a motorway as far as Pașcani.
Public investment
Major County Council projects
Regional Institute of Cardiovascular Medicine
on the national medical priority shortlist (PNIIUS), structured as a public-private partnership with technical assistance from the EBRD
Integrated Respiratory Diseases Hospital
the same national prioritisation procedure and the same mixed financing structure
Modernisation of the „Luceafărul” Theatre
more than RON 121 million; the revised technical and economic indicators were approved in February 2026; works duration about 48 months
Looking for details on investing in this county?
The County Council is the first point of contact for investors. EURONEST can facilitate the connection and support the preparation of projects of common interest across the six counties.
OPEN THE COUNTY COUNCIL WEBSITE →Profile prepared by the EURONEST Intercommunity Development Association. Figures state the year and the source wherever these are published. Economic data come mainly from the county profiles of the National Commission for Strategy and Prognosis, and demographic data from the 2021 population and housing census.