Unemployment rate in East Timor
East Timor: Unemployment rate was 1.6% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Unemployment rate in East Timor, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
East Timor recorded 1.6% for unemployment rate in 2025.
The figure is up 4.5% on the previous year and down 56.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment rate in East Timor peaked at 4.7% in 2016 and was at its lowest, 1.5%, in 2024.
That places East Timor 173rd out of 186 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 3.4% | 3.3% | 3.6% | 9 |
| 2000s | 3.5% | 3.3% | 3.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.7% | 3.1% | 4.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.9% | 1.5% | 2.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near East Timor
More work & labour data for East Timor
- Women can take the same jobs as men 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Legislation on sexual harassment in employment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Criminal sanctions or compensation for workplace sexual harassment 0 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) 85.4% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15+) 72.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 67.0% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) 34.4% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) 40.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) 37.5% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 61.7% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is unemployment rate in East Timor?
- Unemployment rate in East Timor was 1.6% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest unemployment rate recorded in East Timor?
- The highest recorded value was 4.7% in 2016.
- What is the lowest unemployment rate recorded in East Timor?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.5% in 2024.
- How does East Timor rank for unemployment rate?
- East Timor ranks 173rd out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
- Is unemployment rate rising or falling in East Timor?
- Over the last ten years it is down 56.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this East Timor data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Unemployment rate. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of the labor force without work, but actively looking for a job and available to start soon.