Germany vs United States: Potential labour force (current ILO definition - ICLS19)
Potential labour force (current ILO definition - ICLS19) over time
- Germany
- United States
How they compare
United States currently reports 1,732 against 1,181 in Germany, a difference of 551.
That makes United States's figure about 1.5 times Germany's.
Across all 11 years both countries report, United States has been ahead every year.
Germany ranks 7th and United States ranks 5th of 61 countries.
United States has averaged higher in every one of the 2 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Germany | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 880.45 | 1,686 | 805.63 | United States |
| 2020s | 1,199 | 1,609 | 410.32 | United States |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher potential labour force (current ilo definition - icls19), Germany or United States?
- United States, at 1,732 against 1,181 in Germany as of 2025.
- What is the difference in potential labour force (current ilo definition - icls19) between Germany and United States?
- 551, with United States ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Germany and United States?
- 11 years are reported by both, from 2014 to 2024.
- How do Germany and United States rank globally for potential labour force (current ilo definition - icls19)?
- Germany ranks 7th and United States ranks 5th of 61 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- International Labour Organization, published as Potential labour force (current ILO definition - ICLS19) (15+). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
With the aim of promoting international comparability, statistics presented on ILOSTAT are based on standard international definitions wherever feasible and may differ from official national figures. This series includes only countries for which the 19th ICLS definitions are applied. The potential labour force refers to persons not in employment who express an interest in this form of work but for whom existing conditions limit their active job search and/or their availability. This group is used to calculate alternative measures of labour underutilization. For more information, refer to the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database description.