Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in OECD members
OECD members: Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) was 11.6% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in OECD members, 1983–2025
Source: Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
In 2025, unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in OECD members stood at 11.6%.
That represents a change of up 0.9% on the previous year and down 23.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in OECD members peaked at 18.4% in 2010 and was at its lowest, 11.2%, in 2023.
That places OECD members 17th out of 21 groups with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 43 years of available data.
Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in OECD members, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1983 | 17.4% | — |
| 1984 | 16.4% | -6.0% |
| 1985 | 16.1% | -2.0% |
| 1986 | 15.5% | -3.3% |
| 1987 | 14.5% | -6.3% |
| 1988 | 13.7% | -5.7% |
| 1989 | 12.5% | -8.8% |
| 1990 | 12.1% | -2.9% |
| 1991 | 13.3% | +9.7% |
| 1992 | 14.8% | +10.9% |
| 1993 | 16.4% | +11.3% |
| 1994 | 16.5% | +0.4% |
| 1995 | 16.0% | -2.8% |
| 1996 | 16.4% | +2.0% |
| 1997 | 15.7% | -4.0% |
| 1998 | 15.0% | -4.5% |
| 1999 | 15.1% | +0.6% |
| 2000 | 14.1% | -6.8% |
| 2001 | 15.1% | +7.1% |
| 2002 | 14.8% | -1.5% |
| 2003 | 15.3% | +2.9% |
| 2004 | 15.1% | -1.3% |
| 2005 | 14.7% | -2.2% |
| 2006 | 13.4% | -8.9% |
| 2007 | 12.9% | -3.8% |
| 2008 | 13.9% | +7.6% |
| 2009 | 18.4% | +32.2% |
| 2010 | 18.4% | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 17.5% | -5.0% |
| 2012 | 17.6% | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 17.5% | -0.9% |
| 2014 | 16.4% | -6.2% |
| 2015 | 15.2% | -7.6% |
| 2016 | 14.3% | -5.8% |
| 2017 | 13.2% | -7.6% |
| 2018 | 12.4% | -5.8% |
| 2019 | 12.6% | +1.1% |
| 2020 | 15.4% | +22.8% |
| 2021 | 13.3% | -13.6% |
| 2022 | 11.4% | -14.3% |
| 2023 | 11.2% | -2.0% |
| 2024 | 11.5% | +3.1% |
| 2025 | 11.6% | +0.9% |
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in OECD members 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | +32.2% | 13.9% | 18.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 15.2% | 12.5% | 17.4% | 7 |
| 1990s | 15.1% | 12.1% | 16.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 14.8% | 12.9% | 18.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 15.5% | 12.4% | 18.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 12.4% | 11.2% | 15.4% | 6 |
Countries ranked near OECD members
- 14 Montenegro 26.5% compare
- 15 Algeria 25.7% compare
- 16 Guyana 25.4% compare
- 17 Bosnia and Herzegovina 25.4% compare
- 18 Romania 25.0% compare
- 19 Sweden 24.7% compare
- 20 Luxembourg 24.4% compare
More work & labour data for OECD members
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages) 53.3% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 60.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15+) 68.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) 43.7% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) 50.3% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) 47.1% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) 80.4% (2025)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) 78.8% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages) 66.8% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages) 73.6% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in OECD members?
- Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in OECD members was 11.6% in 2025, according to Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) recorded in OECD members?
- The highest recorded value was 18.4% in 2010.
- What is the lowest unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) recorded in OECD members?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.2% in 2023.
- How does OECD members rank for unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24)?
- OECD members ranks 17th out of 21 groups with data for 2025.
- Is unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) rising or falling in OECD members?
- Over the last ten years it is down 23.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this OECD members data come from?
- The figures come from Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) (national estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Youth unemployment refers to the share of the labor force ages 15-24 without work but available for and seeking employment. Definitions of labor force and unemployment differ by country.