Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) was 8.6% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) in Saudi Arabia, 1992–2025
Source: Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
Saudi Arabia recorded 8.6% for unemployment, female (% of female labor force) in 2025.
The figure is down 23.5% on the previous year and down 60.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment, female (% of female labor force) in Saudi Arabia peaked at 22.8% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 4.9%, in 1992.
That places Saudi Arabia 58th out of 181 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.
Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 4.9% | — |
| 1999 | 8.2% | +66.9% |
| 2000 | 9.3% | +14.6% |
| 2001 | 9.1% | -2.1% |
| 2002 | 11.5% | +25.9% |
| 2003 | 12.5% | +8.7% |
| 2004 | 13.4% | +6.8% |
| 2005 | 14.1% | +5.3% |
| 2006 | 14.7% | +4.4% |
| 2007 | 14.2% | -3.2% |
| 2008 | 13.8% | -3.1% |
| 2009 | 15.9% | +15.7% |
| 2010 | 17.4% | +9.0% |
| 2012 | 20.5% | +18.2% |
| 2013 | 20.7% | +0.8% |
| 2014 | 22.0% | +6.1% |
| 2015 | 21.4% | -2.5% |
| 2016 | 21.1% | -1.4% |
| 2017 | 21.3% | +0.9% |
| 2018 | 20.9% | -2.0% |
| 2019 | 21.0% | +0.7% |
| 2020 | 22.8% | +8.3% |
| 2021 | 17.3% | -24.1% |
| 2022 | 15.4% | -11.1% |
| 2023 | 12.8% | -16.8% |
| 2024 | 11.2% | -12.3% |
| 2025 | 8.6% | -23.5% |
Saudi Arabia compared with similar countries
- Saudi Arabia's 8.6% is above the median for high income countries, which is 5.5%, 1.6× the median. (75 countries reporting)
- Saudi Arabia's 8.6% is below the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 10.9%, 78% of the median. (20 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) in Saudi Arabia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | +66.9% | 4.9% | 8.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 6.5% | 4.9% | 8.2% | 2 |
| 2000s | 12.9% | 9.1% | 15.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 20.7% | 17.4% | 22.0% | 9 |
| 2020s | 14.7% | 8.6% | 22.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
More work & labour data for Saudi Arabia
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual 0.6339 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth 0.5946 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth 0.6842 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.31 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.5985 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 40,709 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 4,348 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 31,198 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 39,809 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 71,007 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is unemployment, female (% of female labor force) in Saudi Arabia?
- Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) in Saudi Arabia was 8.6% in 2025, according to Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest unemployment, female (% of female labor force) recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 22.8% in 2020.
- What is the lowest unemployment, female (% of female labor force) recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.9% in 1992.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for unemployment, female (% of female labor force)?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 58th out of 181 countries with data for 2025.
- Is unemployment, female (% of female labor force) rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 60.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (national estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 27 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Unemployment refers to the share of the labor force that is without work but available for and seeking employment. Definitions of labor force and unemployment differ by country.