Unemployment rate by country

What it measures

This indicator is the share of the labour force that is without work, available for work and seeking employment. The selected series is the International Labour Organization modelled estimate, combining national observations with imputed values. It is a percentage of the labour force, not of the total population, and may differ from administrative unemployment registrations or a national estimate.

How to interpret it

A value of 7.4% means that an estimated 7.4 out of every 100 people in the labour force were unemployed. Changes are expressed in percentage points. International ordering requires particular caution.

Key figures

Source

World Bank — World Development Indicators

ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), uri: https://ilostat.ilo.org/data/bulk/, publisher: ILOSTAT, type: external database, date accessed: January 17, 2026

Coverage

1991–2025 · 187 countries/territories

Common year

2025

Last downloaded

2026-09-12

Limitations

• This is an ILO modelled estimate, not a reproduction of administrative records.
• The series includes imputed observations with potentially high uncertainty; official metadata advises against using them for country comparisons or rankings.
• The rate does not measure hardship, underemployment, inactivity or job quality.
• ILO estimates may differ from national estimates.

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