NEET rate: Share of youth not in employment, education or training in Bulgaria

Bulgaria: NEET rate: Share of youth not in employment, education or training was 13.1 in 2024. ▼ Falling

Latest (2024)
13.1
Change on year
up 1.1%
World rank
83rd
of 113 countries
All-time high
31.79
in 2001
All-time low
12.96
in 2023
Years of data
24
2001–2024

NEET rate: Share of youth not in employment, education or training in Bulgaria, 2001–2024

01020302001201220242001: 31.82002: 29.92003: 30.52004: 26.92005: 26.82006: 23.92007: 20.32008: 17.92009: 21.32010: 23.42011: 252012: 24.52013: 24.72014: 24.52015: 21.22016: 22.22017: 18.52018: 17.52019: 15.92020: 18.12021: 17.12022: 15.22023: 132024: 13.1

Source: International Labour Organization.

Analysis

In 2024, neet rate: share of youth not in employment, education or training in Bulgaria stood at 13.1.

The figure is up 1.1% on the previous year and down 46.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, neet rate: share of youth not in employment, education or training in Bulgaria peaked at 31.79 in 2001 and was at its lowest, 12.96, in 2023.

That places Bulgaria 83rd out of 113 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.

NEET rate: Share of youth not in employment, education or training in Bulgaria, year by year

Annual values for NEET rate: Share of youth not in employment, education or training (previous ILO definition - ICLS13) (15-29) in Bulgaria, 2001 to 2024.
Year Value Change
2001 31.79
2002 29.89 -6.0%
2003 30.47 +2.0%
2004 26.86 -11.9%
2005 26.81 -0.2%
2006 23.88 -10.9%
2007 20.29 -15.1%
2008 17.92 -11.7%
2009 21.26 +18.6%
2010 23.36 +9.9%
2011 24.98 +7.0%
2012 24.47 -2.1%
2013 24.68 +0.9%
2014 24.49 -0.8%
2015 21.25 -13.2%
2016 22.19 +4.4%
2017 18.48 -16.7%
2018 17.49 -5.4%
2019 15.95 -8.8%
2020 18.05 +13.2%
2021 17.12 -5.1%
2022 15.17 -11.4%
2023 12.96 -14.6%
2024 13.1 +1.1%

Bulgaria compared with similar countries

  • Bulgaria's 13.1 is above the median for high income countries, which is 11.85, 1.1× the median. (45 countries reporting)
  • Bulgaria's 13.1 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 12.09, 1.1× the median. (40 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 25.46 17.92 31.79 9
2010s 21.73 15.95 24.98 10
2020s 15.28 12.96 18.05 5

Countries ranked near Bulgaria

  1. 80 Uruguay 13.38 compare
  2. 81 United States of America 13.37 compare
  3. 82 Mongolia 13.34 compare
  4. 84 Thailand 12.61 compare
  5. 85 Nigeria 12.39 compare
  6. 86 Tanzania, United Republic of 12.35 compare

See the full ranking of 113 places →

More work & labour data for Bulgaria

All data for Bulgaria →

Frequently asked questions

What is neet rate: share of youth not in employment, education or training in Bulgaria?
Neet rate: share of youth not in employment, education or training in Bulgaria was 13.1 in 2024, according to International Labour Organization.
What is the highest neet rate: share of youth not in employment, education or training recorded in Bulgaria?
The highest recorded value was 31.79 in 2001.
What is the lowest neet rate: share of youth not in employment, education or training recorded in Bulgaria?
The lowest recorded value was 12.96 in 2023.
How does Bulgaria rank for neet rate: share of youth not in employment, education or training?
Bulgaria ranks 83rd out of 113 countries with data for 2024.
Is neet rate: share of youth not in employment, education or training rising or falling in Bulgaria?
Over the last ten years it is down 46.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Bulgaria data come from?
The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of NEET rate: Share of youth not in employment, education or training (previous ILO definition - ICLS13) (15-29). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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NEET rate: Share of youth not in employment, education or training in Bulgaria. Statizoid, drawing on International Labour Organization. Retrieved 14 September 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/neet-rate-share-of-youth-not-in-employment-education-or-training-previous-ilo-definition/bulgaria/

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About this data

Indicator
NEET rate: Share of youth not in employment, education or training (previous ILO definition - ICLS13) (15-29)
Source
International Labour Organization
Licence
ILO Terms of Use (attribution required)
Coverage
113 places, 2,222 data points, 1976–2026
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. This indicator refers to the proportion of youth who are not in employment and not in education or training. Youth not in education are those who were neither enrolled in school nor in a formal training program (e.g. vocational training). For statistical purposes, youth are defined as persons between the ages of 15 and 24 years. For more information, refer to the Labour Force Statistics (LFS and STLFS) database description.