This is a list of countries by unemployment rate. Methods of calculation and presentation of unemployment rate vary from country to country. Some countries count insured unemployed only, some count those in receipt of welfare benefit only, some count the disabled and other permanently unemployable people, some countries count those who choose (and are financially able) not to work, supported by their spouses and caring for a family, some count students at college and so on. There may also be differences in the minimum requirements and some consider people employed even if only marginally associated with employment market (for example, working only one hour per week). [1]
There can be differences in the age limit. For example, Eurostat uses 15 to 74 years old when calculating unemployment rate, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics uses anyone 16 years of age or older (in both cases, people who are under education, retired, on maternity/paternity leave, prevented from working due to health, or do not work but have been inactive in seeking employment in the last four weeks are excluded from the workforce, and therefore not counted as unemployed). [2] [3] Unemployment rates are often seasonally adjusted to avoid variations that depend on time of year. [2] [3] Employment rate as a percentage of total population in working age is sometimes used instead of unemployment rate.
For purposes of comparison, harmonized values are published by International Labour Organization (ILO) and by OECD. The ILO harmonized unemployment rate refers to those who are currently not working but are willing and able to work for pay, currently available to work, and have actively searched for work. The OECD harmonized unemployment rate gives the number of unemployed persons as a percentage of the labour force. Most unemployment rates given in the table below are derived from national statistics and therefore not directly comparable.
* indicates "Unemployment in COUNTRY or TERRITORY" or "Economy of COUNTRY or TERRITORY" links.
Country | Unemployment rate (%) | Source/date of information |
---|---|---|
Afghanistan * | 13.30 | [4] 2021 |
Albania * | 11.70 | [5] Q1 2022 |
Algeria * | 12.70 | [4] 2021 |
American Samoa * | 18.00 | [6] 2012 |
Andorra * | 3.70 | [7] 2016 |
Angola * | 8.50 | [4] 2021 |
Anguilla * | 7.80 | [8] July 2013 |
Antigua and Barbuda * | 11.00 | [7] 2014 |
Argentina * | 5.40 | [9] Q3 2023 |
Armenia * | 14.80 | [5] Q1 2022 |
Aruba * | 7.70 | [10] 2016 |
Australia * | 3.40 | [5] July 2022 |
Austria * | 4.30 | [11] June 2022 |
Azerbaijan * | 6.60 | [4] 2021 |
Bahamas * | 13.20 | [4] 2021 |
Bahrain * | 1.90 | [4] 2021 |
Bangladesh * | 5.20 | [4] 2021 |
Barbados * | 10.40 | [4] 2021 |
Belarus * | 4.70 | [4] 2021 |
Belgium * | 5.50 | [11] June 2022 |
Belize * | 8.20 | [4] 2021 |
Benin * | 1.60 | [4] 2021 |
Bermuda * | 7.00 | [7] 2017 |
Bhutan * | 4.30 | [4] 2021 |
Bolivia * | 8.50 | [4] 2021 |
Bosnia and Herzegovina * | 15.22 | [12] 2022 |
Botswana * | 20.68 | [13] 2022 |
Brazil * | 7.50 | [14] November 2023 |
British Virgin Islands * | 2.90 | [7] 2015 |
Brunei * | 7.60 | [4] 2021 |
Bulgaria * | 4.30 | [11] June 2022 |
Burkina Faso * | 4.80 | [4] 2021 |
Burundi * | 1.80 | [4] 2021 |
Cambodia * | 0.60 | [4] 2021 |
Cameroon * | 3.90 | [4] 2021 |
Canada * | 5.80 | [15] November 2023 |
Cape Verde * | 15.40 | [4] 2021 |
Cayman Islands * | 3.50 | [16] 2019 |
Central African Republic * | 6.60 | [4] 2021 |
Chad * | 1.90 | [4] 2021 |
Chile * | 7.80 | [5] June 2022 |
China * | 5.40 | [5] Q2 2022 |
Cocos (Keeling) Islands * | 6.70 | [17] 2011 |
Colombia * | 11.26 | [5] June 2022 |
Comoros * | 9.40 | [4] 2021 |
Congo * | 5.60 | [18] 2022 |
DR Congo * | 5.40 | [4] 2021 |
Cook Islands * | 13.10 | [7] 2005 |
Costa Rica * | 22.00 | [19] Q3 2020 |
Croatia * | 6.10 | [5] June 2022 |
Cuba * | 2.80 | [4] 2021 |
Cyprus * | 5.10 | [11] April 2021 |
Czech Republic * | 2.40 | [11] June 2022 |
Denmark * | 4.50 | [11] June 2022 |
Djibouti * | 27.93 | [20] 2022 |
Dominica * | 5.20 | [21] 2023 |
Dominican Republic * | 8.50 | [4] 2021 |
East Timor * | 4.60 | [4] 2020 |
Ecuador * | 4.90 | [22] Q4 2019 |
Egypt * | 7.20 | [5] Q2 2022 |
El Salvador * | 5.90 | [4] 2021 |
Equatorial Guinea * | 9.20 | [4] 2021 |
Eritrea * | 8.00 | [4] 2021 |
Estonia * | 5.70 | [11] June 2022 |
Eswatini * | 24.39 | [23] 2022 |
Ethiopia * | 3.70 | [4] 2021 |
European Union * | 6.00 | [11] June 2022 |
Faroe Islands * | 0.50 | [24] September 2022 |
Fiji * | 5.20 | [4] 2021 |
Finland * | 6.70 | [11] June 2022 |
France * | 7.20 | [11] June 2022 |
French Polynesia * | 14.40 | [4] 2021 |
Gabon * | 22.30 | [4] 2021 |
Gambia * | 11.20 | [4] 2021 |
Georgia * | 20.40 | [25] Q4 2020 |
Germany * | 5.40 | [26] July 2022 |
Ghana * | 4.70 | [4] 2021 |
Gibraltar * | 1.00 | [27] 2016 |
Greece * | 12.30 | [11] June 2022 |
Greenland * | 6.80 | [28] 2017 |
Grenada * | 16.60 | [29] 2021 |
Guam * | 4.50 | [7] 2017 |
Guatemala * | 3.60 | [4] 2021 |
Guernsey * | 1.00 | [30] Q2 2018 |
Guinea * | 6.30 | [4] 2021 |
Guinea-Bissau * | 6.80 | [4] 2021 |
Guyana * | 16.40 | [4] 2021 |
Haiti * | 15.70 | [4] 2021 |
Honduras * | 8.50 | [4] 2021 |
Hong Kong * | 4.30 | [5] July 2022 |
Hungary * | 3.00 | [11] June 2022 |
Iceland * | 4.00 | [5] June 2022 |
India * | 7.80 | [5] 2022 |
Indonesia * | 5.83 | [5] Q1 2022 |
Iran * | 11.50 | [4] 2021 |
Iraq * | 14.20 | [4] 2021 |
Ireland * | 4.20 | [11] July 2022 |
Isle of Man * | 1.90 | [31] October 2020 |
Israel * | 3.30 | [5] June 2022 |
Italy * | 8.10 | [11] June 2022 |
Ivory Coast * | 3.50 | [4] 2021 |
Jamaica * | 6.00 | [5] Q2 2022 |
Japan * | 2.60 | [32] July 2022 |
Jersey * | 1.60 | [33] March [34] 2020 |
Jordan * | 22.80 | [5] Q1 2022 |
Kazakhstan * | 4.90 | [5] June 2022 |
Kenya * | 5.70 | [4] 2021 |
Kiribati * | 8.60 | 2022 |
Kosovo * | 19.00 | [35] Q4 2021 |
Kuwait * | 3.70 | [4] 2021 |
Kyrgyzstan * | 2.90 | [5] May 2022 |
Laos * | 1.30 | [4] 2021 |
Latvia * | 6.40 | [11] June 2022 |
Lebanon * | 14.50 | [4] 2021 |
Lesotho * | 18.00 | [36] 2022 |
Liberia * | 4.10 | [4] 2021 |
Libya * | 19.60 | [4] 2021 |
Liechtenstein * | 1.50 | [37] 2019 |
Lithuania * | 5.80 | [11] June 2022 |
Luxembourg * | 4.20 | [11] June 2022 |
Macau * | 3.70 | [5] June 2022 |
Madagascar * | 2.60 | [4] 2021 |
Malawi * | 7.00 | [4] 2021 |
Malaysia * | 3.80 | [5] June 2022 |
Maldives * | 6.10 | [4] 2021 |
Mali * | 7.70 | [4] 2021 |
Malta * | 3.00 | [11] June 2022 |
Marshall Islands * | 6.30 | [38] 2019 |
Mauritania * | 11.50 | [4] 2021 |
Mauritius * | 8.70 | [5] Q1 2022 |
Mayotte * | 5.30 | [39] 2023 |
Mexico * | 3.30 | [5] June 2022 |
Micronesia * | 16.20 | [7] 2010 |
Moldova * | 3.00 | [5] Q1 2022 |
Monaco * | 2.00 | [7] 2012 |
Mongolia * | 7.10 | [4] 2021 |
Montenegro * | 19.90 | [5] June 2022 |
Montserrat * | 5.60 | [7] 2017 |
Morocco * | 11.20 | [5] Q2 2022 |
Mozambique * | 4.00 | [4] 2021 |
Myanmar * | 2.20 | [4] 2021 |
Namibia * | 21.70 | [4] 2021 |
Nauru * | 18.00 | [40] 2019 |
Nepal * | 5.10 | [4] 2021 |
Netherlands * | 3.60 | [5] July 2022 |
Netherlands Antilles | 21.20 | [41] April 2019 |
New Caledonia * | 16.60 | [4] 2021 |
New Zealand * | 3.30 | [5] Q2 2022 |
Nicaragua * | 6.00 | [4] 2021 |
Niger * | 0.80 | [4] 2021 |
Nigeria * | 4.10 | [42] 2023 |
Niue * | 10.70 | [43] 2006 |
North Korea * | 2.70 | [4] 2019 |
North Macedonia * | 14.80 | [5] Q1 2022 |
Northern Mariana Islands * | 11.20 | [7] 2010 |
Norway * | 3.30 | [5] June 2022 |
Oman * | 3.10 | [4] 2021 |
Pakistan * | 4.40 | [4] 2021 |
Palau * | 1.70 | [7] 2015 |
Palestine * | 24.00 | [5] Q2 2022 |
Panama * | 12.10 | [4] 2021 |
Papua New Guinea * | 2.80 | [4] 2021 |
Paraguay * | 5.70 | [44] Q4 2019 |
Peru * | 6.80 | [5] July 2022 |
Philippines * | 4.30 | [5] Q4 2022 |
Poland * | 2.70 | [11] June 2022 |
Portugal * | 6.10 | [11] June 2022 |
Puerto Rico * | 5.80 | [5] June 2022 |
Qatar * | 0.30 | [4] 2021 |
Romania * | 5.30 | [11] June 2022 |
Russia * | 3.90 | [5] June 2022 |
Rwanda * | 16.50 | [5] Feb. 2022 |
Saint Helena * | 2.00 | [45] 2010 |
Saint Kitts and Nevis * | 5.10 | [46] 2006 |
Saint Lucia * | 20.15 | [47] 2020 |
Saint Pierre and Miquelon * | 8.70 | [7] 2015 |
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines * | 18.80 | [7] 2008 |
Samoa * | 9.80 | [4] 2021 |
San Marino * | 8.00 | [7] 2017 |
São Tomé and Príncipe * | 15.90 | [4] 2021 |
Saudi Arabia * | 4.80 | [48] Q4 2022 |
Senegal * | 3.70 | [4] 2021 |
Serbia * | 10.60 | [5] Q1 2022 |
Sierra Leone * | 5.30 | [4] 2021 |
Singapore * | 2.10 | [5] Q2 2022 |
Slovakia * | 6.00 | [11] June 2022 |
Slovenia * | 3.80 | [11] June 2022 |
Somalia * | 19.90 | [4] 2021 |
South Africa * | 32.10 | [49] Q4 2023 |
South Korea * | 2.90 | [5] July 2022 |
South Sudan * | 13.90 | [4] 2021 |
Spain * | 11.60 | [50] June 2023 |
Sri Lanka * | 4.30 | [5] Q1 2022 |
Sudan * | 19.80 | [4] 2021 |
Suriname * | 10.10 | [4] 2021 |
Sweden * | 7.70 | [11] June 2022 |
Switzerland * | 4.30 | [11] June 2022 |
Syria * | 10.60 | [4] 2021 |
Taiwan * | 3.73 | [5] June 2022 |
Tajikistan * | 7.80 | [4] 2021 |
Tanzania * | 2.60 | [4] 2021 |
Thailand * | 1.53 | [5] March 2022 |
Togo * | 4.00 | [4] 2021 |
Tonga * | 4.00 | [4] 2021 |
Trinidad and Tobago * | 4.80 | [4] 2021 |
Tunisia * | 16.10 | [5] Q1 2022 |
Turkey * | 10.30 | [5] June 2022 |
Turkmenistan * | 5.10 | [4] 2021 |
Uganda * | 2.90 | [4] 2021 |
Ukraine * [lower-alpha 1] | 9.90 | [51] Q2 2020 |
United Arab Emirates * | 3.40 | [4] 2021 |
United Kingdom * | 3.50 | [52] October 2022 |
United States * | 3.70 | [53] January 2024 |
Uruguay * | 8.40 | [5] June 2022 |
Uzbekistan * | 8.90 | [54] Q3 2019 |
Vanuatu * | 2.20 | [4] 2021 |
Venezuela * | 6.40 | [4] 2021 |
Vietnam * | 2.46 | [5] Q1 2022 |
U.S. Virgin Islands * | 13.30 | [4] 2021 |
Wallis and Futuna * | 8.80 | [7] 2013 |
Yemen * | 13.60 | [4] 2021 |
Zambia * | 13.00 | [4] 2021 |
Zimbabwe * | 5.20 | [4] 2021 |
* indicates "Economy of COUNTRY or TERRITORY" links.
Country | 15-24 year-olds | 25-70 year-olds | Total |
---|---|---|---|
Australia * | 14.5 | 5.6 | 6.9 |
Austria * | 9.4 | 5.0 | 5.5 |
Belgium * | 18.3 | 4.2 | 5.2 |
Canada * | 18.8 | 7.3 | 8.9 |
Chile * | 27.3 | 10.8 | 12.0 |
Colombia * | 25.8 | 14.7 | 16.6 |
Czech Republic * | 8.1 | 2.5 | 2.8 |
Denmark * | 11.9 | 5.1 | 6.1 |
Estonia * | 20.9 | 6.9 | 8.0 |
Euro area (19 countries) | 17.6 | 7.4 | 8.3 |
European Union (27 countries, 2020) | 17.1 | 6.6 | 7.5 |
Finland * | 19.8 | 7.0 | 8.4 |
France * | 19.6 | 6.6 | 7.9 |
G7 | 12.8 | 5.6 | 6.5 |
Germany * | 6.0 | 4.4 | 4.5 |
Greece * | 39.3 | 15.8 | 16.8 |
Hungary * | 12.4 | 3.9 | 4.4 |
Iceland * | 10.7 | 4.7 | 5.6 |
Ireland * | 18.9 | 3.8 | 5.4 |
Israel * | 8.2 | 4.1 | 4.7 |
Italy * | 29.7 | 7.3 | 9.6 |
Japan * | 4.3 | 2.9 | 3.0 |
South Korea * | 10.9 | 3.8 | 4.2 |
Latvia * | 15.5 | 8.0 | 8.4 |
Lithuania * | 27.7 | 8.6 | 9.8 |
Luxembourg * | 23.1 | 5.4 | 6.7 |
Mexico * | 8.0 | 4.0 | 4.7 |
Netherlands * | 7.4 | 2.3 | 3.1 |
Norway * | 12.9 | 4.1 | 5.3 |
OECD - Total | 14.6 | 6.3 | 7.3 |
Poland * | 8.7 | 2.7 | 3.1 |
Portugal * | 24.0 | 6.6 | 7.7 |
Slovakia * | 18.4 | 6.1 | 6.8 |
Slovenia * | 13.7 | 4.2 | 4.7 |
Spain * | 40.4 | 14.9 | 16.5 |
Sweden * | 24.9 | 7.1 | 9.0 |
Turkey * | 25.7 | 11.8 | 13.8 |
United Kingdom * | 13.6 | 3.1 | 4.3 |
United States * | 11.7 | 6.2 | 5.2 |
The economy of Denmark is a modern high-income and highly developed mixed economy. The economy of Denmark is dominated by the service sector with 80% of all jobs, whereas about 11% of all employees work in manufacturing and 2% in agriculture. The nominal gross national income per capita was the ninth-highest in the world at $68,827 in 2023.
The economy of Slovakia is based upon Slovakia becoming an EU member state in 2004, and adopting the euro at the beginning of 2009. Its capital, Bratislava, is the largest financial centre in Slovakia. As of Q1 2018, the unemployment rate was 5.72%.
Unemployment, according to the OECD, is people above a specified age not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work during the reference period.
An economic indicator is a statistic about an economic activity. Economic indicators allow analysis of economic performance and predictions of future performance. One application of economic indicators is the study of business cycles. Economic indicators include various indices, earnings reports, and economic summaries: for example, the unemployment rate, quits rate, housing starts, consumer price index, Inverted yield curve, consumer leverage ratio, industrial production, bankruptcies, gross domestic product, broadband internet penetration, retail sales, price index, and changes in credit conditions.
In economics, a discouraged worker is a person of legal employment age who is not actively seeking employment or who has not found employment after long-term unemployment, but who would prefer to be working. This is usually because an individual has given up looking, hence the term "discouraged".
The economy of the European Union is the joint economy of the member states of the European Union (EU). It is the second largest economy in the world in nominal terms, after the United States and the third one in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms, after China and the United States. The European Union's GDP estimated to be around $19.35 trillion (nominal) in 2024 and $26.64 trillion(PPP) representing around one sixth of the global economy. Germany has the biggest national GDP of all EU countries, followed by France and Italy.
Graduate unemployment, or educated unemployment, is unemployment among people with an academic degree.
Active labour market policies (ALMPs) are government programmes that intervene in the labour market to help the unemployed find work, but also for the underemployed and employees looking for better jobs. In contrast, passive labour market policies involve expenditures on unemployment benefits and early retirement. Historically, labour market policies have developed in response to both market failures and socially/politically unacceptable outcomes within the labor market. Labour market issues include, for instance, the imbalance between labour supply and demand, inadequate income support, shortages of skilled workers, or discrimination against disadvantaged workers.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development defines the employment rate as the employment-to-population ratio. This is a statistical ratio that measures the proportion of a country's working age population that is employed. This includes people that have stopped looking for work. The International Labour Organization states that a person is considered employed if they have worked at least 1 hour in "gainful" employment in the most recent week.
The International Labor Comparisons Program (ILC) of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) adjusts economic statistics to a common conceptual framework in order to make data comparable across countries. Its data can be used to evaluate the economic performance of one country relative to that of other countries and to assess international competitiveness.
Unemployment in the United Kingdom is measured by the Office for National Statistics.
Youth unemployment is a special case of unemployment; youth, here, meaning those between the ages of 15 and 24.
Unemployment rates in Spain vary across different regions of the country, but they tend to be higher when compared to other Western European countries.
Statistics on unemployment in India had traditionally been collected, compiled and disseminated once every ten years by the Ministry of Labour and Employment (MLE), primarily from sample studies conducted by the National Sample Survey Office. Other than these 5-year sample studies, India has – except since 2017 – never routinely collected monthly, quarterly or yearly nationwide employment and unemployment statistics. In 2016, the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy, a non-governmental entity based in Mumbai, started sampling and publishing monthly unemployment in India statistics.
Unemployment in Poland appeared in the 19th century during industrialization, and was particularly severe during the Great Depression. Under communist rule Poland officially had close to full employment, although hidden unemployment existed. After Poland's transition to a market economy the unemployment rate sharply increased, peaking at above 16% in 1993, then dropped afterwards, but remained well above pre-1993 levels. Another period of high unemployment occurred in the early 2000s when the rate reached 20%. As Poland entered the European Union (EU) and its job market in 2004, the high unemployment set off a wave of emigration, and as a result domestic unemployment started a downward trend that continued until the onset of the 2008 Great Recession. Recent years have seen an increase in the unemployment rate from below 8% to above 10% (Eurostat) or from below 10% to 13% (GUS). The rate began dropping again in late 2013. Polish government (GUS) reported 9.6% registered unemployment in November 2015, while European Union's Eurostat gave 7.2%. According to Eurostat data, since 2008, unemployment in Poland has been constantly below the EU average. Significant regional differences in the unemployment rate exist across Poland.
Youth unemployment in Italy discusses the statistics, trends, causes and consequences of unemployment among young Italians. Italy displays one of the highest rates of youth unemployment among the 35 member countries of the Organization of Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD). The Italian youth unemployment rate started raising dramatically since the 2008 financial crisis reaching its peak of 42.67% in 2014. In 2017, among the EU member states, the youth unemployment rate of Italy (35.1%) was exceeded by only Spain and Greece. The Italian youth unemployment rate was more than the double of the total EU average rate of 16.7% in 2017. While youth unemployment is extremely high compared to EU standards, the Italian total unemployment rate (11.1%) is closer to EU average (7.4%).
Unemployment has been a serious social issue in China in recent years, regarding both an increase in quantity and an unequal impact on different social regions. The influence of foreign investment in China has greatly increased since the Open Door Policy was implemented in the early 1980s. The relationship between foreign-funded enterprises and urban labor market development is dual. Opponents influence the shape of labor-market regulation; however, foreign-funded enterprises have also become a major source of demand for urban and rural areas migrant workers. Demographic factors also affect unemployment in China, such as age and sex. The position of women in the labor market has been deteriorating, with a decline in labor force participation rate, rising unemployment, increased work intensity and a widening gender pay gap. China's economy is encountering greater-than-expected obstacles in recovering from three years of "zero covid" lockdowns, as recent data indicates a persistent sluggishness in growth. As a result, joblessness has surged significantly, especially among the younger population.
The unemployment rate in the Republic of Korea as of December 2021 is 3.7 percent. Since its rapid globalization and democratization, the unemployment rate has been comparatively low compared to most OECD countries. This remains the case as of 2021. Being Asia’s fourth-largest economy, the country's booming exports have helped to maintain the unemployment rate very low by the standards of developed countries. There are several measurement differences between the standard of measurement set by the International Labour Organisation and the official measurement of unemployment in the Republic of Korea, set by Statistics Korea, that contribute to an inflated unemployment rate when compared to other countries that abide more strictly by the standard set by the International Labour Organisation.