Male labor participation rate in United States
United States: Male labor participation rate was 67.06 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Male labor participation rate in United States, 1990–2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
United States recorded 67.06 for male labor participation rate in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 36 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.4% on the previous year and down 2.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, male labor participation rate in United States peaked at 75.14 in 1990 and was at its lowest, 67.06, in 2025.
United States ranks 121st of 186 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 36 years of available data.
Male labor participation rate in United States, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 75.14 | — |
| 1991 | 74.64 | -0.7% |
| 1992 | 74.69 | +0.1% |
| 1993 | 74.32 | -0.5% |
| 1994 | 74.01 | -0.4% |
| 1995 | 74.01 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 74.04 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 74.09 | +0.1% |
| 1998 | 73.93 | -0.2% |
| 1999 | 73.83 | -0.1% |
| 2000 | 73.85 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 73.42 | -0.6% |
| 2002 | 73.02 | -0.5% |
| 2003 | 72.4 | -0.9% |
| 2004 | 72.24 | -0.2% |
| 2005 | 72.23 | -0.0% |
| 2006 | 72.35 | +0.2% |
| 2007 | 72.05 | -0.4% |
| 2008 | 71.81 | -0.3% |
| 2009 | 70.81 | -1.4% |
| 2010 | 70.06 | -1.0% |
| 2011 | 69.57 | -0.7% |
| 2012 | 69.53 | -0.1% |
| 2013 | 69.18 | -0.5% |
| 2014 | 68.75 | -0.6% |
| 2015 | 68.64 | -0.2% |
| 2016 | 68.79 | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 68.72 | -0.1% |
| 2018 | 68.72 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 68.82 | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 67.4 | -2.1% |
| 2021 | 67.36 | -0.1% |
| 2022 | 67.55 | +0.3% |
| 2023 | 67.55 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 67.35 | -0.3% |
| 2025 | 67.06 | -0.4% |
United States compared with similar countries
- United States's 67.06 is below the median for high income countries, which is 68.77, 98% of the median. (62 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 74.27 | 73.83 | 75.14 | 10 |
| 2000s | 72.42 | 70.81 | 73.85 | 10 |
| 2010s | 69.08 | 68.64 | 70.06 | 10 |
| 2020s | 67.38 | 67.06 | 67.55 | 6 |
Countries ranked near United States
More work & labour data for United States
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 113,208 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 61.24 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 178,849 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 4.4 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 1.05 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 159,991 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 141,322 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 58.55 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 1.27 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate 0.3372 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is male labor participation rate in United States?
- Male labor participation rate in United States was 67.06 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest male labor participation rate recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 75.14 in 1990.
- What is the lowest male labor participation rate recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 67.06 in 2025.
- How does United States rank for male labor participation rate?
- United States ranks 121st out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
- Is male labor participation rate rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United States data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Male labor 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).