Unemployment rate in East Timor
East Timor: Unemployment rate was 1.59 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Unemployment rate in East Timor, 1991–2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
East Timor recorded 1.59 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 4.66 in 2016 and was at its lowest, 1.52, 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.
Unemployment rate in East Timor, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 3.45 | — |
| 1992 | 3.36 | -2.7% |
| 1993 | 3.27 | -2.6% |
| 1994 | 3.31 | +1.1% |
| 1995 | 3.35 | +1.2% |
| 1996 | 3.37 | +0.7% |
| 1997 | 3.41 | +1.0% |
| 1998 | 3.5 | +2.8% |
| 1999 | 3.63 | +3.8% |
| 2000 | 3.53 | -2.9% |
| 2001 | 3.39 | -4.1% |
| 2002 | 3.37 | -0.4% |
| 2003 | 3.54 | +5.0% |
| 2004 | 3.67 | +3.6% |
| 2005 | 3.61 | -1.6% |
| 2006 | 3.63 | +0.6% |
| 2007 | 3.52 | -3.1% |
| 2008 | 3.43 | -2.5% |
| 2009 | 3.29 | -4.2% |
| 2010 | 3.3 | +0.4% |
| 2011 | 3.38 | +2.5% |
| 2012 | 3.47 | +2.5% |
| 2013 | 3.57 | +2.9% |
| 2014 | 3.62 | +1.3% |
| 2015 | 3.68 | +1.7% |
| 2016 | 4.66 | +26.6% |
| 2017 | 4.25 | -8.7% |
| 2018 | 3.77 | -11.5% |
| 2019 | 3.15 | -16.4% |
| 2020 | 2.81 | -10.8% |
| 2021 | 2.34 | -16.5% |
| 2022 | 1.54 | -34.4% |
| 2023 | 1.52 | -0.8% |
| 2024 | 1.52 | -0.1% |
| 2025 | 1.59 | +4.5% |
East Timor compared with similar countries
- East Timor's 1.59 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 5.06, 31% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- East Timor's 1.59 is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3.05, 52% of the median. (29 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Unemployment rate in East Timor 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | -34.4% | 2.34 | 1.54 |
| 2016 | +26.6% | 3.68 | 4.66 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 3.41 | 3.27 | 3.63 | 9 |
| 2000s | 3.5 | 3.29 | 3.67 | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.68 | 3.15 | 4.66 | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.89 | 1.52 | 2.81 | 6 |
Countries ranked near East Timor
More work & labour data for East Timor
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 321 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 67.53 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 667.78 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 1.77 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 1.22 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 11,687 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 3,450 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 66.34 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 1.18 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate 2.55 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is unemployment rate in East Timor?
- Unemployment rate in East Timor was 1.59 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest unemployment rate recorded in East Timor?
- The highest recorded value was 4.66 in 2016.
- What is the lowest unemployment rate recorded in East Timor?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.52 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 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).