LU3: Combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force in Malta
Malta: LU3: Combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force was 3.94 in 2025. ▼ Falling
LU3: Combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force in Malta, 2014–2025
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
In 2025, lu3: combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force in Malta stood at 3.94.
That represents a change of up 0.8% on the previous year and down 39.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, lu3: combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force in Malta peaked at 7.05 in 2014 and was at its lowest, 3.91, in 2024.
That places Malta 59th out of 63 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 12 years of available data.
LU3: Combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force in Malta, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 7.05 | — |
| 2015 | 6.56 | -7.0% |
| 2016 | 5.44 | -17.0% |
| 2017 | 4.73 | -13.1% |
| 2018 | 4.89 | +3.6% |
| 2019 | 5.26 | +7.4% |
| 2020 | 6.33 | +20.5% |
| 2021 | 4.45 | -29.8% |
| 2022 | 4.08 | -8.2% |
| 2023 | 4.14 | +1.4% |
| 2024 | 3.91 | -5.5% |
| 2025 | 3.94 | +0.8% |
Malta compared with similar countries
- Malta's 3.94 is below the median for high income countries, which is 7.94, 50% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Malta's 3.94 is below the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 4.36, 90% of the median. (5 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 5.65 | 4.73 | 7.05 | 6 |
| 2020s | 4.48 | 3.91 | 6.33 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malta
More work & labour data for Malta
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.8118 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.7863 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.8415 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.79 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate -0.2041 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 404.95 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 14.3 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 168.51 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 191.42 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 359.93 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is lu3: combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force in Malta?
- Lu3: combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force in Malta was 3.94 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest lu3: combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force recorded in Malta?
- The highest recorded value was 7.05 in 2014.
- What is the lowest lu3: combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force recorded in Malta?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.91 in 2024.
- How does Malta rank for lu3: combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force?
- Malta ranks 59th out of 63 countries with data for 2025.
- Is lu3: combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force rising or falling in Malta?
- Over the last ten years it is down 39.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malta data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of LU3: Combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force (current ILO definition - ICLS19) (15+). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under ILO Terms of Use (attribution required).
About this data
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 includes only countries for which the 19th ICLS definitions are applied. LU3 represents the share of the extended labour force that are in unemployment or the potential labour force. For more information, refer to the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database description.