Population by labor force status in Netherlands

Netherlands: Population by labor force status was 2.74 million people in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)
2.74 million people
Change on year
up 0.0%
World rank
88th
of 186 countries
All-time high
3.06 million people
in 2003
All-time low
2.74 million people
in 2024
Years of data
35
1991–2025

Population by labor force status in Netherlands, 1991–2025

01.0M2.0M3.0M1991200820251991: 2.8M people1992: 2.8M people1993: 2.8M people1994: 2.9M people1995: 2.9M people1996: 2.9M people1997: 2.9M people1998: 3.0M people1999: 3.0M people2000: 3.0M people2001: 3.0M people2002: 3.1M people2003: 3.1M people2004: 3.1M people2005: 3.0M people2006: 3.0M people2007: 3.0M people2008: 3.0M people2009: 3.0M people2010: 2.9M people2011: 2.9M people2012: 2.9M people2013: 2.9M people2014: 2.9M people2015: 2.8M people2016: 2.8M people2017: 2.8M people2018: 2.8M people2019: 2.8M people2020: 2.8M people2021: 2.7M people2022: 2.7M people2023: 2.7M people2024: 2.7M people2025: 2.7M people

Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.

Analysis

The most recent figure for population by labor force status in Netherlands is 2.74 million people, measured in 2025.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 3.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, population by labor force status in Netherlands peaked at 3.06 million people in 2003 and was at its lowest, 2.74 million people, in 2024.

Netherlands ranks 88th of 186 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 2.89 million people 2.79 million people 2.98 million people 9
2000s 3.02 million people 2.96 million people 3.06 million people 10
2010s 2.86 million people 2.77 million people 2.95 million people 10
2020s 2.75 million people 2.74 million people 2.75 million people 6

Countries ranked near Netherlands

  1. 85 Dominican Republic 3.02 million people compare
  2. 86 Romania 2.94 million people compare
  3. 87 Tunisia 2.91 million people compare
  4. 89 Central African Republic 2.68 million people compare
  5. 90 Congo 2.59 million people compare
  6. 91 Israel 2.59 million people compare

See the full ranking of 186 places →

More work & labour data for Netherlands

All data for Netherlands →

Frequently asked questions

What is population by labor force status in Netherlands?
Population by labor force status in Netherlands was 2.74 million people in 2025, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest population by labor force status recorded in Netherlands?
The highest recorded value was 3.06 million people in 2003.
What is the lowest population by labor force status recorded in Netherlands?
The lowest recorded value was 2.74 million people in 2024.
How does Netherlands rank for population by labor force status?
Netherlands ranks 88th out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
Is population by labor force status rising or falling in Netherlands?
Over the last ten years it is down 3.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Netherlands data come from?
The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Population by labor force status. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Population by labor force status
Unit
people
Source
UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
186 places, 6,496 data points, 1991–2025
Last refreshed

Population below working age (under 15 years old).