Economy - FUAs — Employment at place of work in Belfast

Belfast: Economy - FUAs — Employment at place of work was 433,357 Persons in 2020. ▬ Flat

Latest (2020)
433,357 Persons
Change on year
up 1.7%
Rank
139th
of 487 regions
All-time high
433,357 Persons
in 2020
All-time low
388,588 Persons
in 2012
Years of data
17
2004–2020

Economy - FUAs — Employment at place of work in Belfast, 2004–2020

0100.0k200.0k300.0k400.0k2004201220202004: 398.5k Persons2005: 403.6k Persons2006: 407.8k Persons2007: 404.0k Persons2008: 409.0k Persons2009: 405.6k Persons2010: 415.9k Persons2011: 400.0k Persons2012: 388.6k Persons2013: 393.4k Persons2014: 397.5k Persons2015: 405.2k Persons2016: 412.6k Persons2017: 413.9k Persons2018: 414.8k Persons2019: 425.9k Persons2020: 433.4k Persons

Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Persons.

Analysis

In 2020, economy - fuas — employment at place of work in Belfast stood at 433,357 Persons. That is the highest value across all 17 years on record.

That represents a change of up 1.7% on the previous year and up 4.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, economy - fuas — employment at place of work in Belfast peaked at 433,357 Persons in 2020 and was at its lowest, 388,588 Persons, in 2012.

That places Belfast 139th out of 487 regions with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.

Economy - FUAs — Employment at place of work in Belfast, year by year

Annual values for Economy - FUAs — Employment at place of work in Belfast, 2004 to 2020.
Year Persons Change
2004 398,459 Persons
2005 403,647 Persons +1.3%
2006 407,817 Persons +1.0%
2007 404,005 Persons -0.9%
2008 408,953 Persons +1.2%
2009 405,600 Persons -0.8%
2010 415,859 Persons +2.5%
2011 400,006 Persons -3.8%
2012 388,588 Persons -2.9%
2013 393,446 Persons +1.3%
2014 397,467 Persons +1.0%
2015 405,170 Persons +1.9%
2016 412,576 Persons +1.8%
2017 413,876 Persons +0.3%
2018 414,808 Persons +0.2%
2019 425,940 Persons +2.7%
2020 433,357 Persons +1.7%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 404,747 Persons 398,459 Persons 408,953 Persons 6
2010s 406,774 Persons 388,588 Persons 425,940 Persons 10
2020s 433,357 Persons 433,357 Persons 433,357 Persons 1

Frequently asked questions

What is economy - fuas — employment at place of work in Belfast?
Economy - fuas — employment at place of work in Belfast was 433,357 Persons in 2020, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
What is the highest economy - fuas — employment at place of work recorded in Belfast?
The highest recorded value was 433,357 Persons in 2020.
What is the lowest economy - fuas — employment at place of work recorded in Belfast?
The lowest recorded value was 388,588 Persons in 2012.
How does Belfast rank for economy - fuas — employment at place of work?
Belfast ranks 139th out of 487 regions with data for 2020.
Is economy - fuas — employment at place of work rising or falling in Belfast?
Over the last ten years it is up 4.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this Belfast data come from?
The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Economy - FUAs — Employment at place of work. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Economy - FUAs — Employment at place of work in Belfast. Statizoid, drawing on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 01 September 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/economy-fuas-employment-at-place-of-work/belfast/

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About this data

Indicator
Economy - FUAs — Employment at place of work
Unit
Persons
Source
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Licence
OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage
493 places, 10,805 data points, 2000–2023
Last refreshed

This dataset provides economic indicators for FUAs of more than 250 000 inhabitants, including GDP, GDP per capita, jobs and labour productivity. Data sources and methodology When economic statistics are unavailable at a more granular level than the FUA (e.g. municipal level), indicators are estimated by adjusting regional (OECD TL2 and TL3 regions) values to FUA boundaries, based on the population distribution in each region. Regional values (GDP and jobs) in TL3 regions are used as data inputs and combined with gridded population data (European Commission, GHSL Data Package 2023). FUA boundaries are intersected with TL3 borders to compute the share of the regional population that lives within FUAs in each region. This share is then applied to the variable of interest (e.g. GDP) and allocated to the FUA. In case several regions intersect the FUA, the adjusted values of intersecting regions are summed. For countries where TL3-level data is not available, data for TL2 regions is used. This approach assumes that the variable of interest has the same spatial distribution as population. Therefore, the modelled indicators should be interpreted with caution. When a more granular level is available, data is aggregated for each FUA. For example in the United States, GDP estimates are available at the county-level (US Bureau of Economic Analysis), and then aggregated by FUA. Defining FUAs and cities The OECD, in cooperation with the EU, has developed a harmonised definition of functional urban areas (FUAs) to capture the economic and functional reach of cities based on daily commuting patterns (OECD, 2012). FUAs consist of: A city – defined by urban centres in the degree of urbanisation, adapted to the closest local administrative units to define a city. A commuting zone – including all local areas where at least 15% of employed residents work in the city. The delineation process includes: Assigning municipalities surrounded by a single FUA to that FUA. Excluding non-contiguous municipalities. The definition identifies 1 285 FUAs and 1 402 cities in all OECD member countries except Costa Rica and three accession countries. Cite this dataset OECD Regions, cities and local areas database (Economy - FUAs), http://oe.cd/geostats Further information OECD Local Data Portal OECD Regions and Cities at a Glance For questions and/or comments, please email CitiesStat@oecd.org