Unemployment rate in Syria
Syria: Unemployment rate was 13.57 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Unemployment rate in Syria, 1991–2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
Syria recorded 13.57 for unemployment rate in 2025.
That represents a change of up 1.6% on the previous year and down 4.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment rate in Syria peaked at 15.18 in 2020 and was at its lowest, 6.75, in 1991.
That places Syria 20th out of 186 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.
Unemployment rate in Syria, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 6.75 | — |
| 1992 | 6.95 | +2.9% |
| 1993 | 7.4 | +6.5% |
| 1994 | 7.5 | +1.4% |
| 1995 | 7.2 | -4.0% |
| 1996 | 7.22 | +0.3% |
| 1997 | 7.31 | +1.2% |
| 1998 | 7.38 | +0.9% |
| 1999 | 7.6 | +3.0% |
| 2000 | 9.59 | +26.1% |
| 2001 | 11.63 | +21.3% |
| 2002 | 10.94 | -5.9% |
| 2003 | 10.28 | -6.0% |
| 2004 | 9.51 | -7.5% |
| 2005 | 8.81 | -7.4% |
| 2006 | 8.17 | -7.3% |
| 2007 | 8.42 | +3.1% |
| 2008 | 10.94 | +29.9% |
| 2009 | 8.14 | -25.6% |
| 2010 | 8.61 | +5.8% |
| 2011 | 8.63 | +0.2% |
| 2012 | 13.8 | +60.0% |
| 2013 | 14.5 | +5.1% |
| 2014 | 14.78 | +1.9% |
| 2015 | 14.24 | -3.6% |
| 2016 | 13.8 | -3.1% |
| 2017 | 13.6 | -1.4% |
| 2018 | 13.51 | -0.7% |
| 2019 | 13.37 | -1.0% |
| 2020 | 15.18 | +13.5% |
| 2021 | 14.89 | -1.9% |
| 2022 | 13.24 | -11.0% |
| 2023 | 13.27 | +0.2% |
| 2024 | 13.36 | +0.7% |
| 2025 | 13.57 | +1.6% |
Syria compared with similar countries
- Syria's 13.57 is above the median for low income countries, which is 4.43, 3.1× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Syria's 13.57 is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 9, 1.5× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Unemployment rate in Syria 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | +60.0% | 8.63 | 13.8 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 7.26 | 6.75 | 7.6 | 9 |
| 2000s | 9.64 | 8.14 | 11.63 | 10 |
| 2010s | 12.88 | 8.61 | 14.78 | 10 |
| 2020s | 13.92 | 13.24 | 15.18 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Syria
- 17 Haiti 14.94 compare
- 18 Angola 14.11 compare
- 19 Montenegro 13.57 compare
- 21 Afghanistan 13.35 compare
- 22 Armenia 12.87 compare
- 23 South Sudan 12.37 compare
More work & labour data for Syria
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 12,499 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 36.74 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 7,259 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 13.9 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 3.36 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 14,788 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 2,364 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 31.63 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 3.65 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate 3.31 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is unemployment rate in Syria?
- Unemployment rate in Syria was 13.57 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest unemployment rate recorded in Syria?
- The highest recorded value was 15.18 in 2020.
- What is the lowest unemployment rate recorded in Syria?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.75 in 1991.
- How does Syria rank for unemployment rate?
- Syria ranks 20th out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
- Is unemployment rate rising or falling in Syria?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Syria data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Unemployment rate. 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).