Israel's unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (national estimate) was 3% in 2025, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is down 2.18 percentage points from 5.18% in 2015.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 3% | 2025 |
| Five years earlier | 4.17% | 2020 |
| Ten years earlier | 5.18% | 2015 |
| Highest | 13.51% | 2003 |
| Lowest | 2.64% | 1973 |
| Average since 2016 | 3.85% | 2016–2025 |
| First recorded | 4.47% | 1969 |
What the numbers say
In 2025, Israel's unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (national estimate) rose 0.1 percentage points on 2024 (from 2.9% to 3%).
Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was −0.16 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.9 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 2.41 percentage points in 1989 and the biggest yearly fall was 2.2 percentage points in 1994. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2016 to 2025 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.16 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 56% of the movement over 10 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, Israel had the 70th highest value of the 84 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 | |
|---|---|---|
| Israel | 3% | 2025 |
| World | 5.08% | 2022 |
| High income | 4.5% | 2025 |
Closest to Israel in the 2025 ranking
- Ghana — 67th of 84: 3.23%
- Malta — 68th of 84: 3.05%
- Poland — 69th of 84: 3.02%
- El Salvador — 71st of 84: 2.93%
- Korea, Rep. — 72nd of 84: 2.79%
- Czechia — 73rd of 84: 2.79%
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: The criteria for people considered to be seeking work, and the treatment of people temporarily laid off or seeking work for the first time, vary across countries. In many cases it is especially difficult to measure employment and unemployment in agriculture. The timing of a survey can maximize the effects of seasonal unemployment in agriculture. And informal sector employment is difficult to quantify where informal activities are not tracked.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.
All 57 values
| Year | Unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (national estimate) |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 3 |
| 2024 | 2.9 |
| 2023 | 3.37 |
| 2022 | 3.7 |
| 2021 | 4.81 |
| 2020 | 4.17 |
| 2019 | 3.73 |
| 2018 | 3.92 |
| 2017 | 4.14 |
| 2016 | 4.72 |
| 2015 |
Unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (national estimate) in nearby economies
- Algeria — 11.71% (2017)
- Bahrain — 0.89% (2015)
- Egypt, Arab Rep. — 5.95% (2024)
- Iran, Islamic Rep. — 7.63% (2024)
- Jordan — 16.8% (2024)
- Kuwait — 2.16% (2016)
- Malta — 3.05% (2025)
- Morocco — 11.79% (2022)
- Oman — 3.3% (2024)
More social protection & labor data for Israel
- Net migration — 11,466 (2025)
- Unemployment, female (% of female labor force) (national estimate) — 2.9% (2025)
- Unemployment, male (% of male labor force) (national estimate) — 3.1% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) (national estimate) — 45.73% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) (national estimate) — 43.54% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) (national estimate) — 44.61% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15+) (national estimate) — 59.51% (2025)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) (national estimate)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Israel's unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (national estimate)?
- 3% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 1969?
- It is down 1.47 percentage points from 4.47% in 1969. The highest value was 13.51% in 2003 and the lowest 2.64% in 1973.
- How does Israel rank?
- 70th highest of 84 economies with data for 2025.
- Is the latest change in unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (national estimate) unusual for Israel?
- In 2025, Israel's unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (national estimate) rose 0.1 percentage points on 2024 (from 2.9% to 3%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was −0.16 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.9 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SL.UEM.TOTL.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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