LU3: Combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force in Sweden
Sweden: LU3: Combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force was 14.76 in 2025. ▲ Rising
LU3: Combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force in Sweden, 2014–2025
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
Sweden recorded 14.76 for lu3: combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force in 2025. That is the highest value across all 12 years on record.
The figure is up 8.4% on the previous year and up 39.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, lu3: combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force in Sweden peaked at 14.76 in 2025 and was at its lowest, 9.07, in 2018.
Sweden ranks 12th of 63 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 12 years of available data.
LU3: Combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force in Sweden, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 11.35 | — |
| 2015 | 10.62 | -6.4% |
| 2016 | 9.87 | -7.0% |
| 2017 | 9.34 | -5.4% |
| 2018 | 9.07 | -2.8% |
| 2019 | 10.02 | +10.4% |
| 2020 | 11.99 | +19.7% |
| 2021 | 14.17 | +18.1% |
| 2022 | 12.51 | -11.7% |
| 2023 | 12.53 | +0.1% |
| 2024 | 13.62 | +8.7% |
| 2025 | 14.76 | +8.4% |
Sweden compared with similar countries
- Sweden's 14.76 is above the median for high income countries, which is 7.94, 1.9× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Sweden's 14.76 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 8.47, 1.7× the median. (36 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 10.04 | 9.07 | 11.35 | 6 |
| 2020s | 13.27 | 11.99 | 14.76 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sweden
More work & labour data for Sweden
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.0422 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.0602 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.0243 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.29 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.5427 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 10,837 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 788.88 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 5,587 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 5,780 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 11,367 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is lu3: combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force in Sweden?
- Lu3: combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force in Sweden was 14.76 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest lu3: combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force recorded in Sweden?
- The highest recorded value was 14.76 in 2025.
- What is the lowest lu3: combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force recorded in Sweden?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.07 in 2018.
- How does Sweden rank for lu3: combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force?
- Sweden ranks 12th out of 63 countries with data for 2025.
- Is lu3: combined rate of unemployment and potential labour force rising or falling in Sweden?
- Over the last ten years it is up 39.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sweden 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.