Unemployment rate (current ILO definition - ICLS19) (15+) by country
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. The unemployment rate conveys...
What the numbers show
Unemployment rate (current ILO definition - ICLS19) (15+) is currently reported for 74 countries. The highest value is 28 in Botswana; the lowest is 0.103 in Qatar.
The median across all reporting countries is 5.43, and the mean is 6.57.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 272.
Over the past decade 18 countries rose and 52 fell. The largest increase was in Cambodia (up 196.6%), and the largest decrease in Belize (down 85.7%).
Unemployment rate (current ILO definition - ICLS19): full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Botswana | 28 | 2024 | up 24.9% | rising |
| 2 | Zimbabwe | 24.46 | 2024 | up 45.1% | rising |
| 3 | Jordan | 16.81 | 2024 | down 7.3% | falling |
| 4 | Armenia | 13.4 | 2024 | down 29.4% | falling |
| 5 | Georgia | 12.92 | 2025 | down 30.1% | falling |
| 6 | Zambia | 12.89 | 2024 | up 5.9% | rising |
| 7 | Rwanda | 12.42 | 2025 | down 28.5% | falling |
| 8 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 12.2 | 2025 | — | falling |
| 9 | Angola | 11.33 | 2025 | down 40.3% | falling |
| 10 | Kosovo | 11.28 | 2024 | down 62.8% | falling |
| 11 | Spain | 10.5 | 2025 | down 52.4% | falling |
| 12 | New Caledonia | 10.15 | 2023 | down 30.4% | falling |
| 13 | Finland | 9.61 | 2025 | up 2.5% | falling |
| 14 | Chile | 8.95 | 2025 | up 35.1% | rising |
| 15 | Greece | 8.84 | 2025 | down 64.6% | falling |
| 16 | Sweden | 8.74 | 2025 | up 17.6% | rising |
| 17 | Serbia | 8.31 | 2025 | — | falling |
| 18 | Panama | 8.31 | 2025 | up 88.7% | rising |
| 19 | Bahamas | 8.17 | 2024 | down 40.8% | falling |
| 20 | France | 7.7 | 2025 | down 25.6% | falling |
| 21 | Estonia | 7.44 | 2025 | up 16.0% | rising |
| 22 | Uruguay | 7.38 | 2025 | down 16.9% | falling |
| 23 | Latvia | 6.89 | 2025 | down 30.3% | falling |
| 24 | Lithuania | 6.87 | 2025 | down 24.7% | falling |
| 25 | Canada | 6.82 | 2025 | down 2.4% | falling |
| 26 | Guyana | 6.74 | 2024 | down 52.7% | falling |
| 27 | Luxembourg | 6.48 | 2025 | down 4.7% | falling |
| 28 | Costa Rica | 6.34 | 2025 | down 24.6% | flat |
| 29 | Denmark | 6.32 | 2025 | up 0.6% | falling |
| 30 | Belgium | 6.18 | 2025 | down 27.1% | falling |
| 31 | Italy | 6.13 | 2025 | down 48.4% | falling |
| 32 | Romania | 6.11 | 2025 | down 10.4% | falling |
| 33 | Barbados | 6.03 | 2024 | down 51.0% | falling |
| 34 | Portugal | 5.86 | 2025 | down 52.8% | falling |
| 35 | Brazil | 5.83 | 2025 | down 31.7% | falling |
| 36 | Austria | 5.78 | 2025 | down 0.4% | flat |
| 37 | Mongolia | 5.45 | 2025 | down 44.8% | falling |
| 38 | Slovakia | 5.42 | 2025 | down 52.9% | falling |
| 39 | New Zealand | 5.26 | 2025 | down 2.7% | falling |
| 40 | United Kingdom | 4.9 | 2025 | down 11.8% | falling |
| 41 | Croatia | 4.85 | 2025 | down 70.0% | falling |
| 42 | Switzerland | 4.84 | 2025 | up 0.8% | falling |
| 43 | Ireland | 4.64 | 2025 | down 53.1% | falling |
| 44 | Ghana | 4.47 | 2024 | up 13.3% | rising |
| 45 | Norway | 4.46 | 2025 | up 3.7% | flat |
| 46 | Iceland | 4.43 | 2025 | up 11.4% | rising |
| 47 | Hungary | 4.42 | 2025 | down 35.2% | falling |
| 48 | Cyprus | 4.35 | 2025 | down 71.0% | falling |
| 49 | United States | 4.28 | 2025 | down 18.9% | falling |
| 50 | Australia | 4.17 | 2025 | down 31.1% | falling |
| 51 | Trinidad and Tobago | 4.01 | 2024 | up 61.7% | rising |
| 52 | Moldova | 3.95 | 2025 | down 27.6% | falling |
| 53 | Slovenia | 3.88 | 2025 | down 56.8% | falling |
| 54 | Netherlands | 3.85 | 2025 | down 44.0% | falling |
| 55 | Taiwan | 3.85 | 2020 | down 3.0% | flat |
| 56 | Germany | 3.82 | 2025 | down 17.1% | falling |
| 57 | Hong Kong | 3.65 | 2025 | up 10.2% | rising |
| 58 | Cambodia | 3.63 | 2025 | up 196.6% | volatile |
| 59 | Bulgaria | 3.52 | 2025 | down 61.5% | falling |
| 60 | El Salvador | 3.33 | 2025 | down 43.1% | falling |
| 61 | Singapore | 3.25 | 2025 | down 14.0% | falling |
| 62 | Saudi Arabia | 3.24 | 2025 | down 42.2% | falling |
| 63 | Poland | 3.05 | 2025 | — | falling |
| 64 | Malta | 3.05 | 2025 | down 43.4% | falling |
| 65 | Israel | 3 | 2025 | down 42.0% | falling |
| 66 | South Korea | 2.79 | 2025 | down 21.3% | falling |
| 67 | Czechia | 2.79 | 2025 | down 44.8% | falling |
| 68 | Macao | 2.54 | 2020 | up 49.5% | rising |
| 69 | Japan | 2.5 | 2025 | down 26.1% | falling |
| 70 | Russia | 2.13 | 2025 | down 62.0% | falling |
| 71 | Vietnam | 2.05 | 2024 | — | falling |
| 72 | Belize | 1.98 | 2025 | down 85.7% | volatile |
| 73 | United Arab Emirates | 1.74 | 2025 | up 6.6% | falling |
| 74 | Qatar | 0.103 | 2024 | down 46.6% | falling |
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. The unemployment rate conveys the number of persons who are unemployed as a percent of the labour force (i.e., the employed plus the unemployed). The unemployed comprise all persons of working age who were: a) without work during the reference period, i.e. were not in paid employment or self-employment; b) currently available for work, i.e. were available for paid employment or self-employment during the reference period; and c) seeking work, i.e. had taken specific steps in a specified recent period to seek paid employment or self-employment. For more information, refer to the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database description.