Social Protection & Labor · Sri Lanka
Yearly data from 1991 to 2025, from the World Bank.
Sri Lanka's unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (modeled ILO estimate) was 4.01% in 2025, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is down 0.51 percentage points from 4.52% in 2015.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 4.01% | 2025 |
| Five years earlier | 5.36% | 2020 |
| Ten years earlier | 4.52% | 2015 |
| Highest | 14.66% | 1991 |
| Lowest | 3.88% | 2012 |
| Average since 2016 | 4.49% | 2016–2025 |
| First recorded | 14.66% | 1991 |
Over five years it is down 1.36 percentage points from 5.36% in 2020. Since 1991 it is down 10.66 percentage points from 14.66% in 1991.
In 2025, Sri Lanka's unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (modeled ILO estimate) fell 0.23 percentage points on 2024 (from 4.24% to 4.01%).
Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was −0.29 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.59 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 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 0.86 percentage points in 2002 and the biggest yearly fall was 1.43 percentage points in 1998. 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 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains less than 1% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
In 2025, Sri Lanka had the 115th highest value of the 182 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 | |
|---|---|---|
| Sri Lanka | 4.01% | 2025 |
| World | 4.79% | 2025 |
| South Asia | 4.24% | 2025 |
| Upper middle income | 5.18% | 2025 |
Unemployment refers to the share of the labor force that is without work but available for and seeking employment.
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.
| Year | Unemployment, total (% of total labor force) (modeled ILO estimate) |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 4.01 |
| 2024 | 4.24 |
| 2023 | 4.53 |
| 2022 | 4.53 |
| 2021 | 4.98 |
| 2020 | 5.36 |
| 2019 | 4.67 |
| 2018 | 4.32 |
| 2017 | 4.05 |
| 2016 | 4.24 |
| 2015 | 4.52 |
| 2014 | 4.16 |
| 2013 | 4.19 |
| 2012 | 3.88 |
| 2011 | 4.12 |
| 2010 | 4.78 |
| 2009 | 5.85 |
| 2008 | 5.22 |
| 2007 | 5.97 |
| 2006 | 6.5 |
| 2005 | 7.67 |
| 2004 | 8.38 |
| 2003 | 8.22 |
| 2002 | 8.76 |
| 2001 | 7.9 |
| 2000 | 7.74 |
| 1999 | 8.88 |
| 1998 | 9.17 |
| 1997 | 10.6 |
| 1996 | 11.35 |
| 1995 | 12.27 |
| 1994 | 13.03 |
| 1993 | 13.82 |
| 1992 | 14.22 |
| 1991 | 14.66 |
Every indicator for Sri Lanka is on the Sri Lanka data page.
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SL.UEM.TOTL.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), uri: https://ilostat.ilo.org/data/bulk/, publisher: ILOSTAT, type: external database, date accessed: January 17, 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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