Female employment rate, 1980 vs. 2024 in United States of America
United States of America: Female employment rate, 1980 vs. 2024 was 54.9% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Female employment rate, 1980 vs. 2024 in United States of America, 1960–2025
Source: Labour Force Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
United States of America recorded 54.9% for female employment rate, 1980 vs. 2024 in 2025.
That represents a change of down 0.7% on the previous year and up 2.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, female employment rate, 1980 vs. 2024 in United States of America peaked at 57.5% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 35.4%, in 1961.
United States of America ranks 64th of 172 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Female employment rate, 1980 vs. 2024 in United States of America, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 35.5% | — |
| 1961 | 35.4% | -0.3% |
| 1962 | 35.6% | +0.6% |
| 1963 | 35.8% | +0.6% |
| 1964 | 36.3% | +1.4% |
| 1965 | 37.1% | +2.2% |
| 1966 | 38.3% | +3.2% |
| 1967 | 39.0% | +1.8% |
| 1968 | 39.6% | +1.5% |
| 1969 | 40.7% | +2.8% |
| 1970 | 40.8% | +0.2% |
| 1971 | 40.4% | -1.0% |
| 1972 | 41.0% | +1.5% |
| 1973 | 42.0% | +2.4% |
| 1974 | 42.6% | +1.4% |
| 1975 | 42.0% | -1.4% |
| 1976 | 43.2% | +2.9% |
| 1977 | 44.5% | +3.0% |
| 1978 | 46.4% | +4.3% |
| 1979 | 47.5% | +2.4% |
| 1980 | 47.7% | +0.4% |
| 1981 | 48.0% | +0.6% |
| 1982 | 47.7% | -0.6% |
| 1983 | 48.0% | +0.6% |
| 1984 | 49.5% | +3.1% |
| 1985 | 50.4% | +1.8% |
| 1986 | 51.4% | +2.0% |
| 1987 | 52.5% | +2.1% |
| 1988 | 53.4% | +1.7% |
| 1989 | 54.3% | +1.7% |
| 1990 | 54.3% | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 53.7% | -1.1% |
| 1992 | 53.8% | +0.2% |
| 1993 | 54.1% | +0.6% |
| 1994 | 55.3% | +2.2% |
| 1995 | 55.7% | +0.7% |
| 1996 | 56.1% | +0.7% |
| 1997 | 56.9% | +1.4% |
| 1998 | 57.1% | +0.4% |
| 1999 | 57.4% | +0.6% |
| 2000 | 57.5% | +0.1% |
| 2001 | 57.0% | -0.8% |
| 2002 | 56.3% | -1.3% |
| 2003 | 56.1% | -0.3% |
| 2004 | 56.0% | -0.3% |
| 2005 | 56.2% | +0.5% |
| 2006 | 56.6% | +0.7% |
| 2007 | 56.6% | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 56.2% | -0.7% |
| 2009 | 54.4% | -3.3% |
| 2010 | 53.6% | -1.6% |
| 2011 | 53.2% | -0.7% |
| 2012 | 53.1% | -0.1% |
| 2013 | 53.2% | +0.1% |
| 2014 | 53.5% | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 53.7% | +0.4% |
| 2016 | 54.1% | +0.6% |
| 2017 | 54.6% | +0.9% |
| 2018 | 54.9% | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 55.4% | +0.9% |
| 2020 | 51.5% | -6.9% |
| 2021 | 53.2% | +3.2% |
| 2022 | 54.7% | +3.0% |
| 2023 | 55.4% | +1.1% |
| 2024 | 55.2% | -0.2% |
| 2025 | 54.9% | -0.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 37.3% | 35.4% | 40.7% | 10 |
| 1970s | 43.0% | 40.4% | 47.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 50.3% | 47.7% | 54.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 55.4% | 53.7% | 57.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 56.3% | 54.4% | 57.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 53.9% | 53.1% | 55.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 54.1% | 51.5% | 55.4% | 6 |
Countries ranked near United States of America
More work & labour data for United States of America
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 113,208 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 61.24 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 178,849 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 1.05 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 159,991 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 141,322 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 58.55 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 1.27 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate 0.3372 % change on previous year (2027)
- Legislation on sexual harassment in employment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is female employment rate, 1980 vs. 2024 in United States of America?
- Female employment rate, 1980 vs. 2024 in United States of America was 54.9% in 2025, according to Labour Force Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest female employment rate, 1980 vs. 2024 recorded in United States of America?
- The highest recorded value was 57.5% in 2000.
- What is the lowest female employment rate, 1980 vs. 2024 recorded in United States of America?
- The lowest recorded value was 35.4% in 1961.
- How does United States of America rank for female employment rate, 1980 vs. 2024?
- United States of America ranks 64th out of 172 countries with data for 2025.
- Is female employment rate, 1980 vs. 2024 rising or falling in United States of America?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United States of America data come from?
- The figures come from Labour Force Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Female employment rate, 1980 vs. 2024. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Share of the female working-age population who are employed. Figures refer to national estimates and may not be fully comparable across countries.