Female labor force by age in Japan

Japan: Female labor force by age was 4.00 million people in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
4.00 million people
Change on year
up 3.5%
World rank
5th
of 188 countries
All-time high
4.00 million people
in 2024
All-time low
1.45 million people
in 1990
Years of data
35
1990–2024

Female labor force by age in Japan, 1990–2024

01.0M2.0M3.0M4.0M1990200720241990: 1.5M people1991: 1.6M people1992: 1.6M people1993: 1.6M people1994: 1.7M people1995: 1.7M people1996: 1.7M people1997: 1.8M people1998: 1.8M people1999: 1.9M people2000: 1.9M people2001: 1.8M people2002: 1.8M people2003: 1.8M people2004: 1.9M people2005: 1.9M people2006: 2.0M people2007: 2.1M people2008: 2.1M people2009: 2.2M people2010: 2.2M people2011: 2.3M people2012: 2.4M people2013: 2.5M people2014: 2.7M people2015: 2.9M people2016: 3.1M people2017: 3.3M people2018: 3.5M people2019: 3.7M people2020: 3.7M people2021: 3.8M people2022: 3.8M people2023: 3.9M people2024: 4.0M people

Source: International Labour Organization (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in people.

Analysis

Japan recorded 4.00 million people for female labor force by age in 2024. That is the highest value across all 35 years on record.

The figure is up 3.5% on the previous year and up 46.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, female labor force by age in Japan peaked at 4.00 million people in 2024 and was at its lowest, 1.45 million people, in 1990.

Japan ranks 5th of 188 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 1.69 million people 1.45 million people 1.85 million people 10
2000s 1.94 million people 1.81 million people 2.19 million people 10
2010s 2.86 million people 2.21 million people 3.65 million people 10
2020s 3.83 million people 3.71 million people 4.00 million people 5

Countries ranked near Japan

  1. 2 India 6.22 million people compare
  2. 3 United States 5.45 million people compare
  3. 4 Indonesia 4.26 million people compare
  4. 6 Nigeria 2.22 million people compare
  5. 7 South Korea 1.90 million people compare
  6. 8 Vietnam 1.65 million people compare

See the full ranking of 195 places →

More work & labour data for Japan

All data for Japan →

Frequently asked questions

What is female labor force by age in Japan?
Female labor force by age in Japan was 4.00 million people in 2024, according to International Labour Organization (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest female labor force by age recorded in Japan?
The highest recorded value was 4.00 million people in 2024.
What is the lowest female labor force by age recorded in Japan?
The lowest recorded value was 1.45 million people in 1990.
How does Japan rank for female labor force by age?
Japan ranks 5th out of 188 countries with data for 2024.
Is female labor force by age rising or falling in Japan?
Over the last ten years it is up 46.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Japan data come from?
The figures come from International Labour Organization (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Female labor force by age. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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About this data

Indicator
Female labor force by age
Unit
people
Source
International Labour Organization (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
195 places, 6,816 data points, 1990–2024
Last refreshed

Working-age population who are economically active (employed or unemployed).