Jobs gap in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland: Jobs gap was 3,936 in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)
3,936
Change on year
up 12.5%
World rank
10th
of 70 countries
All-time high
5,203
in 2012
All-time low
3,119
in 2022
Years of data
28
1998–2025

Jobs gap in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 1998–2025

02.0k4.0k6.0k1998201120251998: 4.4k1999: 4.2k2000: 4.1k2001: 3.7k2002: 3.8k2003: 3.7k2004: 3.5k2005: 3.6k2006: 3.8k2007: 3.8k2008: 4.1k2009: 4.8k2010: 5.0k2011: 5.1k2012: 5.2k2013: 5.0k2014: 4.6k2015: 4.3k2016: 3.9k2017: 3.7k2018: 3.4k2019: 3.2k2020: 3.6k2021: 3.7k2022: 3.1k2023: 3.3k2024: 3.5k2025: 3.9k

Source: International Labour Organization.

Analysis

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland recorded 3,936 for jobs gap in 2025.

The figure is up 12.5% on the previous year and down 7.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, jobs gap in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland peaked at 5,203 in 2012 and was at its lowest, 3,119, in 2022.

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ranks 10th of 70 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 28 years of available data.

Jobs gap in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, year by year

Annual values for Jobs gap in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, 1998 to 2025.
Year Value Change
1998 4,356
1999 4,169 -4.3%
2000 4,052 -2.8%
2001 3,674 -9.3%
2002 3,839 +4.5%
2003 3,662 -4.6%
2004 3,479 -5.0%
2005 3,555 +2.2%
2006 3,789 +6.6%
2007 3,823 +0.9%
2008 4,087 +6.9%
2009 4,819 +17.9%
2010 5,043 +4.7%
2011 5,078 +0.7%
2012 5,203 +2.5%
2013 4,976 -4.4%
2014 4,552 -8.5%
2015 4,265 -6.3%
2016 3,942 -7.6%
2017 3,685 -6.5%
2018 3,413 -7.4%
2019 3,150 -7.7%
2020 3,641 +15.6%
2021 3,650 +0.2%
2022 3,119 -14.6%
2023 3,269 +4.8%
2024 3,500 +7.1%
2025 3,936 +12.5%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 4,262 4,169 4,356 2
2000s 3,878 3,479 4,819 10
2010s 4,331 3,150 5,203 10
2020s 3,519 3,119 3,936 6

Countries ranked near United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

  1. 7 Italy 4,329 compare
  2. 8 France 4,193 compare
  3. 9 Spain 4,002 compare
  4. 11 Colombia 3,860 compare
  5. 12 Senegal 3,444 compare
  6. 13 Chile 2,592 compare

See the full ranking of 157 places →

More work & labour data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

All data for United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland →

Frequently asked questions

What is jobs gap in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
Jobs gap in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland was 3,936 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
What is the highest jobs gap recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
The highest recorded value was 5,203 in 2012.
What is the lowest jobs gap recorded in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
The lowest recorded value was 3,119 in 2022.
How does United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland rank for jobs gap?
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland ranks 10th out of 70 countries with data for 2025.
Is jobs gap rising or falling in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland?
Over the last ten years it is down 7.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland data come from?
The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Jobs gap. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Jobs gap in United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Statizoid, drawing on International Labour Organization. Retrieved 07 September 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/jobs-gap/united-kingdom/

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About this data

Indicator
Jobs gap
Source
International Labour Organization
Licence
ILO Terms of Use (attribution required)
Coverage
157 places, 3,301 data points, 1991–2027
Last refreshed

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 is based on the 13th ICLS definitions. For time series comparability, it includes countries that have implemented the 19th ICLS standards, for which data are also available in the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database. The jobs gap is defined as the sum of the unemployed, the potential labour force and willing non-jobseekers. For more information, refer to the Labour Force Statistics (LFS and STLFS) database description.