Labor force participation rate in New Zealand
New Zealand: Labor force participation rate was 70.35 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
70.35
Change on year
down 0.3%
World rank
27th
of 186 countries
All-time high
71.5
in 2023
All-time low
62.87
in 1993
Years of data
36
1990–2025
Labor force participation rate in New Zealand, 1990–2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
New Zealand recorded 70.35 for labor force participation rate in 2025.
That represents a change of down 0.3% on the previous year and up 2.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, labor force participation rate in New Zealand peaked at 71.5 in 2023 and was at its lowest, 62.87, in 1993.
New Zealand ranks 27th of 186 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 36 years of available data.
Labor force participation rate in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 63.49 | — |
| 1991 | 63.42 | -0.1% |
| 1992 | 62.94 | -0.8% |
| 1993 | 62.87 | -0.1% |
| 1994 | 63.68 | +1.3% |
| 1995 | 64.31 | +1.0% |
| 1996 | 65.15 | +1.3% |
| 1997 | 65 | -0.2% |
| 1998 | 64.58 | -0.7% |
| 1999 | 64.66 | +0.1% |
| 2000 | 64.77 | +0.2% |
| 2001 | 65.34 | +0.9% |
| 2002 | 66.04 | +1.1% |
| 2003 | 65.83 | -0.3% |
| 2004 | 66.43 | +0.9% |
| 2005 | 67.19 | +1.2% |
| 2006 | 67.74 | +0.8% |
| 2007 | 68.01 | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 67.97 | -0.1% |
| 2009 | 67.75 | -0.3% |
| 2010 | 67.54 | -0.3% |
| 2011 | 67.9 | +0.5% |
| 2012 | 67.64 | -0.4% |
| 2013 | 67.41 | -0.3% |
| 2014 | 68.31 | +1.3% |
| 2015 | 68.4 | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 69.55 | +1.7% |
| 2017 | 70.48 | +1.3% |
| 2018 | 70.51 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 70.17 | -0.5% |
| 2020 | 69.86 | -0.4% |
| 2021 | 70.4 | +0.8% |
| 2022 | 70.93 | +0.8% |
| 2023 | 71.5 | +0.8% |
| 2024 | 70.55 | -1.3% |
| 2025 | 70.35 | -0.3% |
New Zealand compared with similar countries
- New Zealand's 70.35 is above the median for high income countries, which is 62.28, 1.1× the median. (62 countries reporting)
- New Zealand's 70.35 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 64.35, 1.1× the median. (29 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 64.01 | 62.87 | 65.15 | 10 |
| 2000s | 66.71 | 64.77 | 68.01 | 10 |
| 2010s | 68.79 | 67.41 | 70.51 | 10 |
| 2020s | 70.6 | 69.86 | 71.5 | 6 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
More work & labour data for New Zealand
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.0748 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.0721 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.0776 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.39 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.4877 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 5,200 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 511.04 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 2,819 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 2,994 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 5,812 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is labor force participation rate in New Zealand?
- Labor force participation rate in New Zealand was 70.35 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest labor force participation rate recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 71.5 in 2023.
- What is the lowest labor force participation rate recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 62.87 in 1993.
- How does New Zealand rank for labor force participation rate?
- New Zealand ranks 27th out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
- Is labor force participation rate rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this New Zealand data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Labor force participation rate. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 36 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).