Among European Union countries in December 2024, Spain had the highest unemployment rate at 10.6 percent, followed by Greece at 9.4 percent. By contrast, Czechia has the lowest unemployment rate in Europe, at 2.6 percent. The overall rate of unemployment in the European Union was 5.9 percent in the same month - a historical low-point for unemployment in the EU, which had been at over 10 percent for much of the 2010s.

The statistic reflects the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in member states of the European Union in November 2024. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in Spain in November 2024 was 11.2 percent.The unemployment rate represents the share of the unemployed in all potential employees available to the job market. Unemployment rates in the EU The unemployment rate is an important measure of a country or region’s economic health, and despite unemployment levels in the European Union falling slightly from a peak in early 2013 , they remain high, especially in comparison to what the rates were before the worldwide recession started in 2008. This confirms the continuing stagnation in European markets, which hits young job seekers particularly hard as they struggle to compete against older, more experienced workers for a job, suffering under jobless rates twice as high as general unemployment. Some companies, such as Microsoft and Fujitsu, have created thousands of jobs in some of the countries which have particularly dire unemployment rates, creating a beacon of hope. However, some industries such as information technology, face the conundrum of a deficit of qualified workers in the local unemployed work force, and have to hire workers from abroad instead of helping decrease the local unemployment rates. This skills mismatch has no quick solution, as workers require time for retraining to fill the openings in the growing science-, technology-, or engineering-based jobs, and too few students choose degrees that would help them obtain these positions. Worldwide unemployment also remains high, with the rates being worst in the Middle East and North Africa. Estimates by the International Labour Organization predict that the problem will stabilize in coming years, but not improve until at least 2017.

This dataset provides values for UNEMPLOYMENT RATE reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

The statistic shows the seasonally adjusted youth unemployment rate in EU member states as of November 2024. The source defines youth unemployment as unemployment of those younger than 25 years. In November 2024, the seasonally adjusted youth unemployment rate in Spain was at 26.6 percent. Youth unemployment rate in EU member states Unemployment is a crucial economic factor for a country; youth unemployment is often examined separately because it tends to be higher than unemployment in older age groups. It comprises the unemployment figures of a country’s labor force aged 15 to 24 years old (i.e. the earliest point at which mandatory school education ends). Typically, teenagers and those in their twenties who are fresh out of education do not find jobs right away, especially if the country’s economy is experiencing difficulties, as can be seen above. Additionally, it also tends to be higher in emerging markets than in industrialized nations. Worldwide, youth unemployment figures have not changed significantly over the last decade, nor are they expected to improve in the next few years. Youth unemployment is most prevalent in the Middle East and North Africa, even though these regions report high unemployment figures regardless (Zimbabwe and Turkmenistan are among the countries with the highest unemployment rates in the world, for example), and are also highly populated areas with a rather weak infrastructure, compared to industrialized regions. In the European Union and the euro area, unemployment in general has been on the rise since 2008, which is due to the economic crisis which caused bankruptcy and financial trouble for many employers, and thus led to considerable job loss, less job offerings, and consequently, to a rise of the unemployment rate. Older workers are struggling to find new jobs despite their experience, and young graduates are struggling to find new jobs, because they have none. All in all, the number of unemployed persons worldwide is projected to rise, this is not down to the economic crisis alone, but also the industrial automation of processes previously performed by workers, as well as rising population figures.

As of June 2024, Spain had the highest youth unemployment rate in Europe, at 25.8 percent, with Sweden having the second-highest youth unemployment rate as of this month, at 23.8 percent. Across the 27 member states of the European Union, the overall youth unemployment rate was 14.6 percent, with Germany having the lowest youth unemployment rate of 6.8 percent.

Key information about EU Unemployment Rate

• EU Unemployment Rate remained the same at 5.80% in Jan 2025, from the previously reported figure of 5.80% in Dec 2024.
• EU Unemployment Rate is updated monthly, available from Jan 2000 to Jan 2025, with an average rate of 9.30%.
• The data reached an all-time high of 11.70% in May 2013 and a record low of 5.80% in Jan 2025.
• The data is reported by reported by Eurostat.
• In the latest reports, EU Population reached 449.31 million people in Dec 2023.

In 2024, Czechia and Poland had the lowest unemployment rate among Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries, at 2.6 percent and 2.9 percent, respectively. On the other hand, the highest unemployment rate was recorded in Estonia and Lithuania. The average unemployment rate in all European Union member states amounted to six percent in this period.

This dataset provides values for LONG TERM UNEMPLOYMENT RATE reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

EU Unemployment Rate: Euro Area data was reported at 8.000 % in Jun 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 8.200 % for May 2018. EU Unemployment Rate: Euro Area data is updated monthly, averaging 9.000 % from Jan 1983 (Median) to Jun 2018, with 426 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 12.700 % in Feb 2013 and a record low of 7.200 % in Jul 2008. EU Unemployment Rate: Euro Area data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Eurostat. The data is categorized under Global Database’s EU – Table EU.G010: Eurostat: Unemployment Rate.

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate: Aged 15-24: All Persons for the Euro Area (19 Countries) (LRUN24TTEZA156N) from 2005 to 2022 about 15 to 24 years, Euro Area, Europe, unemployment, and rate.

This dataset provides values for UNEMPLOYMENT RATE) reported in several countries. The data includes current values, previous releases, historical highs and record lows, release frequency, reported unit and currency.

This horizontal bar chart displays unemployment (% of total labor force) by capital city using the aggregation average and is filtered where the region is Western Europe. The data is about countries per year.

Unemployment in the European Union has reached its low point in the twenty-first century in 2024. The share of the labour force out of work was slighly under 5.9 percent between August and November of that year, a marked decrease from its most recent peak of 7.8 percent in the Summer of 2020. While the jobs recovery has been strong in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic in the EU, this number is still far above the remarkably low rate in the United States, which has reached 4.3 percent in 2024. Nevertheless, this recent decline is a positive development for the EU countries, many of which have long suffered from chronic unemployment issues. In some regional labour markets in the EU, the issue is now less of people who can't find work, but employers who cannot find employees, leading to labour shortages. The sick men of Europe Several EU member states have long had high unemployment rates, with the large numbers of people in long-term unemployment being particularly concerning. Italy, France, Greece, Spain, and Portugal have all had double-digit unemployment rates for significant amounts of time during this period, with the ability of people to freely migrate to other EU countries for work only marginally decreasing this. While these countries have long dealt with these issues due to their declining legacy industries and the struggle of competing in a liberalized, globalized economy, their unemployment rates reached their highest points following the global financial crisis, great recession, and Eurozone crisis. These interconnected crises led to a period of prolonged stagnation in their economies, with unemployment reaching as high as 25 percent in Greece, the worst affected economy.

European Union Unemployment Rate: Trend: Euro Area 20: Age 25 to 74 data was reported at 5.300 % in Jan 2025. This records a decrease from the previous number of 5.400 % for Dec 2024. European Union Unemployment Rate: Trend: Euro Area 20: Age 25 to 74 data is updated monthly, averaging 7.700 % from Jan 2001 (Median) to Jan 2025, with 289 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 10.900 % in May 2013 and a record low of 5.300 % in Jan 2025. European Union Unemployment Rate: Trend: Euro Area 20: Age 25 to 74 data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Eurostat. The data is categorized under Global Database’s European Union – Table EU.G015: Eurostat: Unemployment Rate: Trend.

European Union Unemployment Rate: sa: EU 27 excl UK: Male: Age 15 to 24 data was reported at 15.500 % in Mar 2020. This records an increase from the previous number of 15.200 % for Feb 2020. European Union Unemployment Rate: sa: EU 27 excl UK: Male: Age 15 to 24 data is updated monthly, averaging 19.500 % from Jan 2000 (Median) to Mar 2020, with 243 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 25.300 % in Feb 2013 and a record low of 15.000 % in Mar 2008. European Union Unemployment Rate: sa: EU 27 excl UK: Male: Age 15 to 24 data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Eurostat. The data is categorized under Global Database’s European Union – Table EU.G011: Eurostat: Unemployment Rate: Seasonally Adjusted.

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate: Aged 15-74: Females for the Euro Area (19 Countries) (LRUN74FEEZQ156S) from Q1 2005 to Q4 2022 about 15 to 74 years, females, Euro Area, Europe, unemployment, and rate.

Youth unemployment refers to the share of the labor force ages 15-24 without work but available for and seeking employment.

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate: Aged 15-74: Males for the Euro Area (19 Countries) (LRUN74MAEZQ156N) from Q1 1993 to Q4 2022 about 15 to 74 years, males, Euro Area, Europe, unemployment, and rate.

The average for 2023 based on 40 countries was 16.04 percent. The highest value was in Spain: 28.7 percent and the lowest value was in Moldova: 4.18 percent. The indicator is available from 1991 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Graph and download economic data for Harmonised Unemployment - Monthly Rates: Total: All Persons for the Euro Area (19 Countries) (LRHUTTTTEZM156S) from Jul 1990 to Jan 2023 about harmonized, Euro Area, Europe, unemployment, persons, and rate.