Unemployment Rate in the United Kingdom increased to 5 percent in September from 4.80 percent in August of 2025. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United Kingdom Unemployment Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

The unemployment rate of the United Kingdom was five percent in September 2025, up from 4.8 percent in the previous month, and the highest rate of unemployment since 2021. Before the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic, the UK had relatively low levels of unemployment. Between January 2000 and the most recent month, unemployment was highest in November 2011, when the unemployment rate hit 8.5 percent. Will unemployment continue to rise in 2025? Although low by historic standards, there has been a noticeable uptick in the UK's unemployment rate, with other labor market indicators also pointing to further loosening. In December 2024, the number of job vacancies in the UK fell to its lowest level since May 2021, while payrolled employment declined by 47,000 compared with November. Whether this is a continuation of a broader cooling of the labor market since 2022 or a reaction to more recent economic developments, such as upcoming tax rises for employers, remains to be seen. Forecasts made in late 2024 suggest that the unemployment rate will remain relatively stable in 2025, averaging out at 4.1 percent and falling again to four percent in 2026.
Demographics of the unemployed As of the third quarter of 2024, the unemployment rate for men was slightly higher than that of women, at 4.4 percent, compared to 4.1 percent. During the financial crisis at the end of the 2000s, the unemployment rate for women peaked at a quarterly rate of 7.7 percent, whereas for men, the rate was 9.1 percent. Unemployment is also heavily associated with age, and young people in general are far more vulnerable to unemployment than older age groups. In late 2011, for example, the unemployment rate for those aged between 16 and 24 reached 22.3 percent, compared with 8.2 percent for people aged 25 to 34, while older age groups had even lower peaks during this time.

In the third quarter of 2025, the unemployment rate in the United Kingdom was highest in Wales, where it was 5.7 percent, followed by England at 5.1 percent, Scotland at 3.7 percent, and 2.4 percent in Northern Ireland, the lowest rate among the four countries of the UK. For all four countries, the peak in unemployment during this period was in the early 2010s. England and Scotland's unemployment rates were highest in Q4 2011 at 8.4 percent and 8.6 percent respectively, with unemployment reaching 9.7 percent in Wales during Q3 2011. Northern Ireland reported its highest unemployment rate in Q1 of 2013 when it reached eight percent. Unemployment ticking up as UK enters 2025 For the United Kingdom as a whole, the unemployment rate was 4.4 percent in November 2024, the joint-highest rate recorded since August 2021. After reaching 8.5 percent in late 2011, unemployment in the UK fell quite consistently for several years, with this recovery interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw unemployment rise to 5.3 percent in late 2020 and early 2021. From this point onwards, however, the labor market bounced back, and was particular strong in 2022 when there were a record number of job vacancies and unemployment fell to as low as 3.6 percent. While the labor market cooled throughout 2023 and 2024, unemployment remained at historically low levels. Overall economy grows but GDP per head falls Throughout the whole of 2024, gross domestic product in the UK grew by 0.9 percent, but in the third quarter of the year, there was no economic growth, followed by the relatively weak growth rate of 0.1 percent in the fourth quarter. Furthermore, GDP per head in the UK, declined for a second-consecutive year, and was just 36,977 pounds in 2024, compared with 37,371 pounds in 2022. Inflation, meanwhile, has fallen from the peak of 11.1 percent in October 2022, but was still at the relatively high rate of 4 percent at the start of 2024, with this falling to 2.5 percent by the end of the year.

View monthly updates and historical trends for UK Unemployment Rate. from United Kingdom. Source: Office for National Statistics. Track economic data with…

Approximately 14.1 percent of people aged 16 to 24 were unemployed in the United Kingdom in the second quarter of 2025, the highest of any age group in that month. During this time period, older age groups have had much lower unemployment rates than younger ones, who have consistently had the highest unemployment rate. For almost all the age groups, the peak in the unemployment rate was recorded in 2011 when almost a quarter of young working age people were unemployed. Young adults in the labor market In the provided time period, youth unemployment was at its lowest rate in the third quarter of 2022, when it was 10.3 percent. Since then, there has been a noticeable uptick in youth unemployment, which was 14.8 percent towards the end of 2024. A more long-term trend among this age group is the increase in economic inactivity, with 40.8 percent of 16 to 24-year-old's not in work or actively looking for work in 2024. Although students or people in training account for a high share of this economic inactivity, there has also been a rise in the proportion of young adults who are not in education, employment or training (NEET), which reached a ten-year-high of 13.2 percent in late 2024. Unemployment up from low baseline in late 2024 In 2022, the UK labor market, had very low levels of unemployment along with a record number of job vacancies. Throughout 2023 and 2024, this very tight labor market began to loosen, although is still quite low by historic standards. One indicator that has stood out since the COVID-19 pandemic, however, has been the number of people economically inactive due to being on long-term sick leave, which reached 2.82 million in the first quarter of 2024, and has been the main reason for economic inactivity in the UK since late 2021.

Unemployment by age and duration (seasonally adjusted). These estimates are sourced from the Labour Force Survey, a survey of households. These are official statistics in development.

This dataset contains all the data tables related to UK employment rate (aged 16 to 64, seasonally adjusted) published in March 2023 by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) from Q1 1971 - Q1 2023.

Throughout these tables, Q1 refers to Quarter 1 (January to March), Q2 refers to Quarter 2 (April to June), Q3 refers to Quarter 3 (July to September), and Q4 refers to Quarter 4 (October to December).

Youth Unemployment Rate in the United Kingdom increased to 12.70 percent in September from 12 percent in August of 2025. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United Kingdom Youth Unemployment Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

Unemployment by age and sex for UK regions and countries, rolling three-monthly figures published monthly, not seasonally adjusted. Labour Force Survey.

In the third quarter of 2025 the unemployment rate for men in the United Kingdom was 5.4 percent, while for women it was 4.5 percent. The male unemployment rates seen in late 2020 were the highest since 2015, while the rates for women reached heights last seen in 2016. During the provided time period, the unemployment rate for men peaked in Q1 1993 at 12.7 percent, while for women the unemployment rate was highest in Q2 1984 when it was 11.8 percent. Unemployment uptick to continue? The overall unemployment rate for the UK was 4.4 percent in November 2024, which was quite low but, slightly above the record low rates seen in 2022. During that year, there was also a peak in the number of job vacancies in the UK, which reached 1.3 million in May 2022. Since that point, however, the number of vacancies has been falling, and was at its lowest level since May 2021 in January 2024, at 812,000. Current forecasts for unemployment anticipate an annual rate of 4.1 percent for 2025, although this may be revised upwards in the future. Youth unemployment in the UK The unemployment rate for people in the United Kingdom is heavily associated with age. For people aged between 16 and 24 years, for example, the unemployment rate was 14.8 percent in the third quarter of 2024, compared with just 2.3 percent for those aged between 35 and 49. As with the overall unemployment rate, young men had a higher unemployment rate at 17.7 percent, compared with 11.9 percent for young women in the third quarter of 2024.

As of the third quarter of 2025, the unemployment rate for people of white ethnicity in the United Kingdom was 4.3 percent, the lowest of the provided ethnic groups in this quarter. By contrast, the unemployment rate for people in the Bangladeshi ethnic group was 18.1 percent.

Graph and download economic data for Infra-Annual Labor Statistics: Monthly Unemployment Rate Total: 15 Years or over for United Kingdom (LRHUTTTTGBM156S) from Jan 1983 to Aug 2025 about harmonized, United Kingdom, persons, unemployment, and rate.

Employment, unemployment and economic inactivity levels and rates by age group, UK, rolling three-monthly figures, seasonally adjusted. Labour Force Survey. These are official statistics in development.

Unemployment by previous industrial sector. These estimates are sourced from the Labour Force Survey, a survey of households. These are official statistics in development.

As of the second quarter of 2025, there were approximately 886,000 unemployed men in the United Kingdom and 787,000 unemployed women, compared with the previous quarter when there were 863,000 unemployed men and 751,000 unemployed women.

Key information about UK Unemployment Rate

• UK Unemployment Rate dropped to 3.93% in Oct 2023, from the previously reported figure of 3.95% in Sep 2023.
• UK Unemployment Rate is updated monthly, available from Aug 2022 to Oct 2023, with an average rate of 3.93%.
• The data reached an all-time high of 4.33% in Jun 2023 and a record low of 3.75% in Aug 2022.
• The data is reported by reported by Office for National Statistics.
• In the latest reports, UK Population reached 67.03 million people in Dec 2021.

Long Term Unemployment Rate in the United Kingdom increased to 1 percent in the third quarter of 2020 from 0.90 percent in the first quarter of 2020. This dataset provides - United Kingdom Long Term Unemployment Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

United Kingdom UK: Unemployment Rate data was reported at 4.144 % in Mar 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 4.241 % for Dec 2017. United Kingdom UK: Unemployment Rate data is updated quarterly, averaging 4.527 % from Mar 1957 (Median) to Mar 2018, with 245 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 12.033 % in Dec 1982 and a record low of 1.200 % in Jun 1966. United Kingdom UK: Unemployment Rate data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by International Monetary Fund. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United Kingdom – Table UK.IMF.IFS: Labour Force, Employment and Unemployment: Quarterly.

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate in the United Kingdom (AURUKM) from Jan 1855 to Dec 2016 about administrative, academic data, United Kingdom, unemployment, and rate.

Unemployment numbers and rates for those aged 16 or over. The unemployed population consists of those people out of work, who are actively looking for work and are available to start immediately. Unemployed numbers and rates also shown for equalities groups, by age, sex, ethnic group, and disability. The data are taken from the Labour Force Survey and Annual Population Survey, produced by the Office for National Statistics. The data are produced monthly on a rolling quarterly basis. The month shown is the month the quarter ends on. The International Labour Organization defines unemployed people as: without a job, want a job, have actively sought work in the last 4 weeks and are available to start work in the next 2 weeks, or, out of work, have found a job and are waiting to start it in the next 2 weeks. The figures in this dataset are adjusted to compensate for seasonal variations in employment (seasonally adjusted). Data by equalities groups has a longer time lag and is only available quarterly from the Annual Population Survey, which is not seasonally adjusted. Useful links Click here for Regional labour market statistics from the Office for National Statistics. Click here for Labour market statistics from the Office for National Statistics. See here for GLA Economics' Labour Market Analysis. See here for Economic Inactivity statistics. See here for Employment rates. This dataset is one of the Greater London Authority's measures of Economic Fairness. Click here to find out more.