India's unemployment, male (% of male labor force) (national estimate) was 4.56% in 2025, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is down 3.67 percentage points from 8.24% in 2020.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 4.56% | 2025 |
| Five years earlier | 8.24% | 2020 |
| Highest | 8.24% | 2020 |
| Lowest | 2.24% | 1994 |
| Average since 2018 | 5.89% | 2018–2025 |
| First recorded | 2.24% | 1994 |
Over five years it is down 3.67 percentage points from 8.24% in 2020. Since 1994 it is up 2.32 percentage points from 2.24% in 1994. The World Bank has no value for 19 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.
What the numbers say
From 2018 to 2025 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.57 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 74% of the movement over 8 observed years.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
How it compares
In 2025, India had the 44th highest value of the 83 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| India | 4.56% | 2025 |
| South Asia | 4.56% | 2025 |
| Lower middle income | 4.1% | 2024 |
Closest to India in the 2025 ranking
What this measures
Unemployment refers to the share of the labor force that is without work but available for and seeking employment. Definitions of labor force and unemployment differ by country.
Limitations: While the unemployment rate may be considered the most informative labour market indicator, reflecting the general performance of the labour market and the economy as a whole, it should not be interpreted as a measure of economic hardship or of well-being. When based on the internationally-recommended standards, the unemployment rate simply reflects the proportion of the labour force that does not have a job but is available and actively looking for work. It says nothing about the economic resources of unemployed workers or their family members. Its use should, therefore, be limited to serving as a measurement of the utilization of labour and an indication of the failure to find work.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.
All 13 values
| Year | Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) (national estimate) |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 4.56 |
| 2024 | 4.21 |
| 2023 | 4.22 |
| 2022 | 4.91 |
| 2021 | 6.73 |
| 2020 | 8.24 |
| 2019 | 6.65 |
| 2018 | 7.63 |
| 2017 | no data |
| 2016 | no data |
| 2015 |
Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) (national estimate) in nearby economies
- Bangladesh — 3.73% (2024)
- Bhutan — 2.55% (2025)
- Sri Lanka — 2.98% (2024)
More social protection & labor data for India
- Net migration — -495,753 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of asylum — 238,643 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of origin — 42,610 (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 15.86% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 45.15% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) (modeled ILO estimate) — 31.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15-64) (modeled ILO estimate) — 34.88% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) (modeled ILO estimate)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is India's unemployment, male (% of male labor force) (national estimate)?
- 4.56% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 1994?
- It is up 2.32 percentage points from 2.24% in 1994. The highest value was 8.24% in 2020 and the lowest 2.24% in 1994.
- How does India rank?
- 44th highest of 83 economies with data for 2025.
- Where does this data come from?
- The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO), uri: https://ilostat.ilo.org/data/bulk/, publisher: ILOSTAT, type: external database, date accessed: September 28, 2026.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SL.UEM.TOTL.MA.NE.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO), uri: https://ilostat.ilo.org/data/bulk/, publisher: ILOSTAT, type: external database, date accessed: September 28, 2026 Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.
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