Female employment rate in Australia
Australia: Female employment rate was 60.6% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Female employment rate in Australia, 1979–2025
Source: Labour Force Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Australia recorded 60.6% for female employment rate in 2025.
That represents a change of down 0.1% on the previous year and up 9.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, female employment rate in Australia peaked at 60.7% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 40.0%, in 1979.
That places Australia 31st out of 172 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 47 years of available data.
Female employment rate in Australia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | 40.0% | — |
| 1980 | 41.2% | +3.1% |
| 1981 | 41.4% | +0.4% |
| 1982 | 40.8% | -1.4% |
| 1983 | 40.0% | -2.0% |
| 1984 | 41.0% | +2.4% |
| 1985 | 42.2% | +3.0% |
| 1986 | 44.1% | +4.4% |
| 1987 | 44.7% | +1.4% |
| 1988 | 45.9% | +2.7% |
| 1989 | 47.7% | +3.9% |
| 1990 | 48.5% | +1.6% |
| 1991 | 47.2% | -2.6% |
| 1992 | 46.8% | -0.9% |
| 1993 | 46.5% | -0.5% |
| 1994 | 47.7% | +2.4% |
| 1995 | 49.3% | +3.3% |
| 1996 | 49.4% | +0.2% |
| 1997 | 49.3% | -0.2% |
| 1998 | 49.7% | +0.9% |
| 1999 | 50.1% | +0.7% |
| 2000 | 51.2% | +2.3% |
| 2001 | 51.5% | +0.6% |
| 2002 | 51.8% | +0.7% |
| 2003 | 52.6% | +1.4% |
| 2004 | 52.6% | +0.1% |
| 2005 | 54.0% | +2.6% |
| 2006 | 54.7% | +1.3% |
| 2007 | 55.3% | +1.1% |
| 2008 | 55.9% | +1.1% |
| 2009 | 55.6% | -0.5% |
| 2010 | 55.5% | -0.2% |
| 2011 | 55.7% | +0.5% |
| 2012 | 55.6% | -0.2% |
| 2013 | 55.4% | -0.4% |
| 2014 | 55.0% | -0.6% |
| 2015 | 55.5% | +0.9% |
| 2016 | 55.9% | +0.7% |
| 2017 | 56.5% | +1.0% |
| 2018 | 57.3% | +1.5% |
| 2019 | 57.9% | +1.0% |
| 2020 | 56.3% | -2.8% |
| 2021 | 58.5% | +3.8% |
| 2022 | 60.2% | +3.0% |
| 2023 | 60.6% | +0.5% |
| 2024 | 60.7% | +0.2% |
| 2025 | 60.6% | -0.1% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 60.6% is above the median for high income countries, which is 53.4%, 1.1× the median. (72 countries reporting)
- Australia's 60.6% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 51.4%, 1.2× the median. (30 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 40.0% | 40.0% | 40.0% | 1 |
| 1980s | 42.9% | 40.0% | 47.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 48.4% | 46.5% | 50.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 53.5% | 51.2% | 55.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 56.0% | 55.0% | 57.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 59.5% | 56.3% | 60.7% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More work & labour data for Australia
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual 0.5057 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth 0.4907 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth 0.5202 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -0.9895 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.8931 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 30,186 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 3,001 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 21,642 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 21,502 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 43,144 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is female employment rate in Australia?
- Female employment rate in Australia was 60.6% in 2025, according to Labour Force Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest female employment rate recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 60.7% in 2024.
- What is the lowest female employment rate recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 40.0% in 1979.
- How does Australia rank for female employment rate?
- Australia ranks 31st out of 172 countries with data for 2025.
- Is female employment rate rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Australia 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. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 47 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
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.