Data extracted in May 2025.
Planned article update: May 2026.
Highlights
This article presents annual statistics on unemployment based on the EU labour force survey. It shows unemployment rates by sex, age, education attainment level, previous occupation, degree of urbanisation, duration of unemployment and methods used to find a job.
A separate article on unemployment statistics presents the unemployment figures on a monthly basis. An article on labour market slack - employment supply and demand mismatch is also available, focusing on the three measures of labour market attachment that supplement the unemployment rate.
Trends in the unemployment rate
In 2024, the unemployment rate in the EU for people aged 15-74 years reached 5.9%, the lowest rate since 2015 (see Figure 1). Over 5 consecutive years from 2015 to 2019, the unemployment rate steadily declined. This was followed by a slight increase of 0.4 percentage points (pp) in 2020. The EU unemployment rate decreased by 0.1 pp in 2021, 0.9 pp in 2022, 0.1 pp in 2023 and 0.2 pp in 2024.
In 2024, in the EU there were 6.7 million unemployed men and 6.3 million unemployed women. Despite the lower number of unemployed women, they represented 6.2% of the female labour force, whereas unemployed men accounted for a lower percentage - 5.7% - of the male labour force. Figure 1 above illustrates that women have consistently experienced higher unemployment rates than men since 2015.
Women had higher unemployment rates than men in 12 out of the 27 EU countries (see Figure 2). Greece recorded the most significant gender difference, with a 12.8% unemployment rate for women compared with 8.0% for men (a gap of 4.8 pp). In the remaining 13 EU countries, the unemployment rate for men surpassed that of women. Latvia showed the most pronounced difference, with a male unemployment rate of 8.0% compared with 5.8% for women (a 2.2 pp gap). Croatia and Ireland recorded equal unemployment rates for men and women.
Unemployment rate by level of education
The unemployment rate varies significantly depending on educational attainment level for people aged 25 to 74 (see Figure 3). Generally, as educational attainment increases, the unemployment rate decreases. This is the case in the majority of countries. The exceptions are Denmark and the Netherlands, where people with a high level of education had higher unemployment rates compared with those with a medium level, and Germany, where the unemployment rate was equal for those with high and medium education level.
The highest unemployment rates in the EU were recorded for those with a low level of education, reaching 36.7% in Slovakia and 19.0% in Sweden. Conversely, the lowest rates, were found among the labour force with a high level of education in Czechia, Poland (both with 1.3%) and Romania (1.4%).
Unemployment rate by degree of urbanisation
Figure 4 illustrates the unemployment rate for people aged 15-74 years across different degrees of urbanisation in 2024, revealing distinct patterns among countries. The highest rates for people living in rural areas were in Lithuania, Latvia, Romania, Slovakia, Croatia, Hungary, Bulgaria and Poland. Conversely, other countries had their highest national unemployment rates in either cities or towns and suburbs. For instance, Belgium and Austria recorded substantially higher unemployment rates for people in cities compared with those residing in other areas, and in Spain, Greece, Luxembourg, Ireland and Czechia the unemployment rate for those living in towns and suburbs surpassed that of residents in both cities and rural areas.
Unemployment by age
Figure 5 shows a consistent trend in the EU, demonstrating that the unemployment rate for young people aged 15-24 exceeded the overall unemployment rate (for people aged 15-74) since 2015. Conversely, the unemployment rate for people aged 55-74 years consistently remained lower than the overall unemployment rate throughout the same period.
The high unemployment rate of young people reflects the challenges they face in finding employment, but this does not necessarily mean a substantial number of unemployed people aged 15 to 29. Many young people, unlike their older counterparts, are engaged in full-time studies and do not actively seek employment. This means they are not part of the labour force for which the unemployment rate is calculated. To address this, an alternative indicator is calculated for analytical purposes: unemployment ratio for young people. This ratio represents the proportion of unemployed young individuals among all young people aged 15 to 29, whether they are seeking employment or not.
Figure 6 indicates that the unemployment ratio for the young people in the EU stood at 6.3% for the year 2024. If only young people participating in the labour force are included in the denominator, the youth unemployment rate is 11.4%. For comparison, unemployed people aged 30-74 years represented 3.2% of the total population and 4.7% of the labour force of the same age group.
Across the EU countries, the unemployment ratio of young people varied from 2.6% in Czechia to 11.6% in Sweden, while the youth unemployment rate ranged from 5.6% in Germany to 20.2% in Spain.
In some countries the values of the rate and ratio are closer to each other than in others, meaning that young people in the labour force overlap more closely with the total population of the same age. For example, in Germany, Malta, and the Netherlands, the difference between the youth unemployment rate and the youth unemployment ratio is less than 2 pp. By contrast, this difference exceeds 10 pp in Greece.
Long-term unemployment
The long-term unemployment rate, which represents the percentage of people unemployed for 12 months or more within the labour force, is displayed in Map 1. The age group in focus is 15-74 years old. Greece stood out with the highest long-term unemployment rate in the EU at 5.4%. Spain followed with the second highest rate of 3.8%.
On the other end of the scale, the Netherlands, Malta, Czechia, Denmark, Poland and Germany reported the lowest long-term unemployment rates in the EU, with rates below 1%.
At EU level, the long-term unemployment rate was 1.9%.
Figure 7 shows the breakdown of unemployed people by unemployment duration. At EU level, almost one-fifth (17.7%) have been unemployed for a period of 24 months or more (classified as very long-term unemployment). However, there are substantial differences between countries. Almost half (47.4%) of the unemployed people in Slovakia had been looking for a job for 24 months or more. Greece and Italy also had relatively high shares of long-term unemployed, respectively 34.2% and 33.5%. By contrast, less than 10% of the unemployed in Denmark, Sweden, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Austria, France and Estonia had been unemployed for this long.
Previous occupation
Figure 8 provides insights into the occupation of unemployed people in their last job. Data on the previous occupation is available only for those previously in employment and who left their last job within the past 8 years. The statistics show the percentage of each occupational group (ISCO-08) within this population at EU level. Almost a quarter (24.4%) of the unemployed had previously been employed as service and sales workers, while another 21.8% had worked in what are referred to as elementary occupations such as cleaners, helpers, or food preparation assistants. By contrast, only 1.6% had previously been skilled agricultural, forestry and fishery workers, and 2.5% had been managers.
Significant differences between men and women are apparent. Those whose former occupation was service and sales workers constituted 17.5% of unemployed men, whereas this group made up 32.0% of unemployed women. A significant difference in the opposite direction can be observed for those who had previously worked in craft and related trades: 18.6% of unemployed men held a profession in this occupational group, whereas the corresponding percentage of women was only 3.5%.
Methods to find a job
Information on the most effective method to find a job is available only for those who started their current main job within the past 8 years. In total, 28.8% of employees in the EU aged 25-74 considered that relying on friends, relatives or other acquaintances had been the most effective method to find their current job (see Figure 9). This percentage varies greatly according to the level of education: 42.9% compared to 19.7% for those with а high level.
Among the various methods, job advertisements had the second highest percentage, as 26.1% considered them to be the most effective way to find their current main job. Compared to personal connections, the percentage of job advertisements was much higher among those with a high level of education (32.1%) than among those with a low level (14.5%).
The following methods were the least effective, with less than 5% considering them as the most effective to find their current main job: applying for a public competition, relying on a private employment agency or public employment service and educational or training institution (including internship or previous work experience).
Source data for tables and graphs
Methods and definitions
Source. All figures in this article are based on the European Union labour force survey (EU-LFS). The EU-LFS is the largest European household sample survey providing quarterly and annual results on labour participation of people aged 15 years and over as well as on persons outside the labour force. It covers residents in private households. Conscripts in military or community service are not included in the results. The EU-LFS is based on the same target populations and uses the same definitions in all countries, which means that the results are comparable between the countries. The EU-LFS is an important source of information about the situation and trends in the national and EU labour markets. Each quarter around 1.2 million interviews are conducted throughout the participating countries to obtain statistical information for some 100 variables. Due to the diversity of information and the large sample size, the EU-LFS is also an important source for other European statistics such as education statistics or regional statistics.
Coverage. The results from the EU-LFS currently cover all European Union countries, the EFTA countries (Iceland, Norway and Switzerland), as well as two candidate countries (Serbia and Türkiye). For Cyprus, the survey covers only the areas of Cyprus controlled by the Government of the Republic of Cyprus.
European aggregates. EU refers to the 27 EU Member States. If data are unavailable for a country, EU aggregates are calculated using the data for the most recent period available for the country in question. Such cases are indicated.
Country notes
The Netherlands collects the EU-LFS data using a rolling reference week instead of a fixed reference week, i.e. interviewees are asked about the situation of the week before the interview rather than a pre-selected week.
Definitions and main concepts
The concepts and definitions used in the EU-LFS follow the resolutions of the International Conference of Labour Statisticians (ICLS) organised every 5 years by the International Labour Organization (ILO).
Unemployment
Eurostat publishes unemployment statistics based on a definition of unemployment for which there are three criteria, namely
- being without work
- actively seeking work
- and being available for work
Unemployed people comprise persons who were: (a) not employed according to the definition of employment above; (b) actively seeking work, i.e. had taken specific steps in the four week period ending with the reference week to seek paid employment or self-employment or who found a job to start later, i.e. within a period of at most three months from the end of the reference week; (c) currently available for work, i.e. were available for paid employment or self-employment before the end of the two weeks following the reference week.
For calculating the unemployment rate, the denominator used is the labour force, which encompasses the total number of employed and unemployed people of the same age group.
Monthly unemployment figures are published by Eurostat as rates (as a percentage of the labour force) or levels (in thousands), by sex and for two age groups (people aged 15 to 24, and those aged 25 to 74). The figures are available as unadjusted, seasonally adjusted and as a trend series. The time series for data for the EU and the euro area (EA-19) aggregates start in 2000; the starting point for individual EU Member States varies.
Quarterly and annual unemployment figures from the EU-LFS are published with more detailed breakdowns (for example, a wider range of age groups, by nationality, or by educational attainment); there are also figures available on long-term unemployment (unemployed for more than 12 months) and very long-term unemployment (unemployed for more than 24 months).
Unemployment rates are also presented according to the educational attainment level of the population, i.e. the highest level of education successfully completed. The different levels of educational attainment are defined by the International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED 2011). Low level of educational attainment refers to ISCED levels 0-2 (lower than primary, primary and lower secondary education), medium level refers to ISCD levels 3 and 4 (upper secondary and post-secondary non-tertiary education) and high level refers to ISCED levels 5-8 (tertiary education).
Underemployment and potential additional labour force
Many persons only partially fulfil the three unemployment criteria above and are therefore not considered as unemployed. In order to provide information on people who are not unemployed, Eurostat also publishes indicators on labour market slack, meaning on people who have an unmet supply of employment, so all those who are either unemployed or underemployed (i.e. those working part-time but who whish to work more and are available to do so), or associated to the labour force because of their availability to work or their search for work but who are not recorded as part of it (they meet some but not all of the criteria for unemployment).
Time series
Regulation (EU) 2019/1700 came into force on 1 January 2021 and induced a break in the EU-LFS time series for several EU Member States. To monitor changes in employment and unemployment despite this break, EU Member States assessed the impact of the break in their country and computed impact factors or break corrected data for a set of indicators. Break corrected data are published on the Eurostat website for the LFS main indicators.
More information on the EU-LFS can be found at EU Labour Force Survey, which includes eight articles on the technical and methodological aspects of the survey. The article on methodology from 2021 onwards describes the methodology currently in use. Detailed information on coding lists, explanatory notes and classifications used over time can be found in the article on documentation.
Publication of results
Eurostat provides two sets of indicators linked to the annual unemployment rate, which serve different purposes and which in some cases differ from each other:
1) The EU-LFS main indicators, which contain seasonally adjusted series. They include the labour market headline indicators used e.g. in the Macroeconomic Imbalance Procedure Scoreboard or the European Statistical Monitor and are consequently used for monitoring policy. They only have a few breakdowns and normally refer to the 20-64 age group.
2) The detailed results, which contain series that are not seasonally adjusted. They have a large number of breakdowns and can therefore be used for more detailed analysis. For France, only one data series is published. This series contains data for metropolitan France until the fourth quarter of 2013, and from 2014 also for the French overseas departments.
Reference period. Yearly results are obtained as averages of the four quarters in the year.
Context
The unemployment rate is an important indicator with both social and economic dimensions. Rising unemployment results in a loss of income for individuals, increased pressure with respect to government spending on social benefits and a reduction in tax revenue. From an economic perspective, unemployment may be viewed as unused labour capacity.
Time series for unemployment are used by the European Commission, other public institutions, and the media as an economic indicator, while banks may use the data for business cycle analysis. The general public is also interested in information concerning unemployment.
The unemployment rate is considered to be a lagging indicator. When there is an economic downturn, it usually takes several months before the unemployment rate begins to rise. Once the economy starts to pick up again, employers usually remain cautious about hiring new workers and it may take several months before unemployment rates start to fall.
Male, youth and long-term unemployment appear to be more susceptible to cyclical economic changes than overall unemployment.
Globalisation and technological developments appear to have an ever-increasing effect on daily life, and the demand for different types of labour and skills changes, sometimes at a rapid pace. While enterprises try to improve their productivity and become more competitive and innovative, they may well seek to pass on risk to the labour force through greater flexibility — both in relation to those already in employment, as well as those searching for a new job. Within the context of the European employment strategy (EES), there are a number of measures that are designed to help encourage people to remain in work or find a new job, including: the promotion of a life-cycle approach to work, encouraging lifelong learning, improving support to those seeking a job, as well as ensuring equal opportunities.
Explore further
Other articles
Database
- LFS main indicators (lfsi)
- Unemployment - LFS adjusted series (une)
- LFS series - detailed quarterly survey results (from 1998 onwards) (lfsq)
- Total unemployment - LFS series (lfsq_unemp)
- LFS series - Detailed annual survey results (lfsa)
- Total unemployment - LFS series (lfsa_unemp)
Thematic section
Publications
- Labour force survey in the EU, EFTA and candidate countries — Main characteristics of national surveys, 2021, 2024 edition
- Quality report of the European Union Labour Force Survey 2020, 2022 edition
- EU labour force survey — online publication
- European Union Labour force survey - selection of articles (Statistics Explained)
Selected datasets
- LFS main indicators (t_lfsi)
- Unemployment - LFS adjusted series (t_une)
- LFS series - detailed annual survey results (t_lfsa)
- Unemployment rates of the population aged 25-64 years by educational attainment level (tps00066)
Methodology
Publications
- EU labour force survey — online publication
- Labour force survey in the EU, EFTA and candidate countries — Main characteristics of national surveys, 2020, 2022 edition
- Quality report of the European Union Labour Force Survey 2020, 2022 edition
- Statistical working papers / Manuals and guidelines
ESMS metadata files and EU-LFS methodology
- Employment and unemployment (Labour Force Survey) (ESMS metadata file — employ_esms)
- LFS main indicators (ESMS metadata file — lfsi_esms)
- LFS series - detailed annual survey results (ESMS metadata file — lfsa_esms)
- LFS series - detailed quarterly survey results (from 1998 onwards) (ESMS metadata file — lfsq_esms)
- LFS ad-hoc modules (ESMS metadata file — lfso_esms)
- Unemployment by sex and age – monthly data (ESMS metadata file — une_rt_m_esms)
- LFS regional series (ESMS metadata file — reg_lmk_esms)