Of the economies in the World Bank's latest release, South Africa has the highest unemployment, youth female (% of female labor force ages 15-24) (national estimate) (63.78% in 2024) and Qatar the lowest (1.26% in 2024).
What this measures
Youth unemployment refers to the share of the labor force ages 15-24 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.
Each country's latest available year is shown; countries report on different schedules, so compare years before comparing values.
Ranking
| # | Economy | Latest value | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Africa | 63.78% | 2024 |
| 2 | West Bank and Gaza | 56.11% | 2025 |
| 3 | Botswana | 48.98% | 2024 |
| 4 | Morocco | 44.36% | 2022 |
| 5 | Suriname | 39.94% | 2016 |
| 6 | Tunisia | 36.29% | 2023 |
| 7 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 34.24% | 2025 |
| 8 | Jordan | 33.76% | 2024 |
| 9 | Puerto Rico (US) | 33.54% | 2020 |
| 10 | Iran, Islamic Rep. | 30.42% | 2024 |
| 11 | Sri Lanka | 30.35% | 2024 |
| 12 | Uruguay | 29.11% | 2025 |
| 13 | Egypt, Arab Rep. | 28.99% | 2024 |
| 14 | Romania | 27.75% | 2025 |
| 15 | North Macedonia | 27.17% | 2025 |
| 16 | Brunei Darussalam | 27.04% | 2025 |
| 17 | Spain | 25.84% | 2025 |
| 18 | Costa Rica | 25.48% | 2025 |
| 19 | Chile | 25.45% | 2025 |
| 20 | Montenegro | 25.24% | 2024 |
| 21 | Armenia | 24.91% | 2023 |
| 22 | Panama | 24.29% | 2025 |
| 23 | Georgia | 23.9% | 2025 |
| 24 | Sweden | 23.88% | 2025 |
| 25 | Kosovo | 23.81% | 2024 |
| 26 | Serbia | 23.75% | 2025 |
| 27 | St. Lucia | 23.34% | 2025 |
| 28 | Albania | 22.54% | 2024 |
| 29 | Colombia | 22.38% | 2025 |
| 30 | Italy | 22.24% | 2025 |
| 31 | Türkiye | 22.12% | 2025 |
| 32 | Bhutan | 21.94% | 2025 |
| 33 | Finland | 21.81% | 2025 |
| 34 | Portugal | 21.61% | 2025 |
| 35 | San Marino | 21.35% | 2022 |
| 36 | Argentina | 21.15% | 2025 |
| 37 | Greece | 20.8% | 2025 |
| 38 | Ukraine | 20.33% | 2021 |
| 39 | Mauritius | 20% | 2024 |
| 40 | France | 19.57% | 2025 |
| 41 | India | 19.09% | 2025 |
| 42 | Saudi Arabia | 18.88% | 2025 |
| 43 | Estonia | 18.8% | 2025 |
| 44 | Croatia | 18.48% | 2025 |
| 45 | Luxembourg | 18.14% | 2024 |
| 46 | Dominican Republic | 17.81% | 2025 |
| 47 | Bahamas, The | 17.48% | 2024 |
| 48 | Barbados | 17.46% | 2024 |
| 49 | Angola | 16.98% | 2025 |
| 50 | Venezuela, RB | 16.78% | 2020 |
| 51 | Zimbabwe | 16.56% | 2025 |
| 52 | Brazil | 15.8% | 2025 |
| 53 | Belgium | 15.73% | 2025 |
| 54 | New Zealand | 15.54% | 2025 |
| 55 | Azerbaijan | 15.25% | 2022 |
| 56 | Mali | 14.65% | 2024 |
| 57 | Slovak Republic | 14.42% | 2025 |
| 58 | Slovenia | 14.35% | 2025 |
| 59 | Hungary | 13.95% | 2025 |
| 60 | Paraguay | 13.92% | 2025 |
| 61 | Honduras | 13.45% | 2025 |
| 62 | Malaysia | 13.38% | 2022 |
| 63 | Latvia | 13.28% | 2025 |
| 64 | Denmark | 13.25% | 2025 |
| 65 | Pakistan | 13.23% | 2025 |
| 66 | Indonesia | 13.2% | 2023 |
| 67 | United Kingdom | 12.98% | 2025 |
| 68 | United Arab Emirates | 12.88% | 2025 |
| 69 | Canada | 12.85% | 2025 |
| 70 | Norway | 12.77% | 2025 |
| 71 | Poland | 12.69% | 2025 |
| 72 | Cyprus | 12.54% | 2025 |
| 73 | Bulgaria | 11.78% | 2025 |
| 74 | Ireland | 11.71% | 2025 |
| 75 | Trinidad and Tobago | 11.64% | 2024 |
| 76 | Austria | 11.4% | 2025 |
| 77 | Zambia | 11.2% | 2024 |
| 78 | Hong Kong SAR, China | 10.89% | 2025 |
| 79 | Ecuador | 10.86% | 2025 |
| 80 | Lithuania | 10.72% | 2025 |
| 81 | Jamaica | 10.63% | 2023 |
| 82 | Mongolia | 10.61% | 2025 |
| 83 | Czechia | 10.36% | 2025 |
| 84 | Iceland | 10.22% | 2025 |
| 85 | Malta | 10.16% | 2025 |
| 86 | El Salvador | 10.14% | 2025 |
| 87 | Peru | 9.72% | 2025 |
| 88 | Cambodia | 9.52% | 2025 |
| 89 | Philippines | 9.49% | 2024 |
| 90 | Singapore | 9.39% | 2025 |
| 91 | Rwanda | 9.37% | 2025 |
| 92 | Switzerland | 9.23% | 2025 |
| 93 | United States | 9% | 2025 |
| 94 | Seychelles | 8.93% | 2025 |
| 95 | Netherlands | 8.59% | 2025 |
| 96 | Australia | 8.58% | 2025 |
| 97 | Senegal | 8.34% | 2025 |
| 98 | Russian Federation | 7.97% | 2025 |
| 99 | Belarus | 7.81% | 2025 |
| 100 | Guatemala | 7.05% | 2025 |
| 101 | Kyrgyz Republic | 7% | 2023 |
| 102 | Tanzania | 6.92% | 2025 |
| 103 | Germany | 6.58% | 2025 |
| 104 | Mexico | 6.36% | 2025 |
| 105 | Viet Nam | 6.14% | 2024 |
| 106 | Macao SAR, China | 6.12% | 2020 |
| 107 | Korea, Rep. | 5.75% | 2025 |
| 108 | Ghana | 5.71% | 2025 |
| 109 | Bangladesh | 5.02% | 2024 |
| 110 | Kazakhstan | 4.93% | 2022 |
| 111 | Bolivia | 4.79% | 2025 |
| 112 | Israel | 4.67% | 2025 |
| 113 | Thailand | 4.65% | 2025 |
| 114 | Moldova | 3.87% | 2025 |
| 115 | Japan | 3.7% | 2025 |
| 116 | Qatar | 1.26% | 2024 |
Regions and income groups
| Region or group | Latest value | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Central Europe and the Baltics | 15.98% | 2025 |
| Early-demographic dividend | 17.45% | 2024 |
| Euro area | 16.81% | 2025 |
| Europe & Central Asia | 15.62% | 2025 |
| Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) | 25.43% | 2021 |
| Europe & Central Asia (IDA & IBRD) | 15.15% | 2025 |
| European Union | 16.89% | 2025 |
| High income | 11.97% | 2025 |
| Latin America & Caribbean | 13.72% | 2025 |
| Latin America & Caribbean (excluding high income) | 13.13% | 2025 |
| Latin America & Caribbean (IDA & IBRD) | 13.72% | 2025 |
| Lower middle income | 15.14% | 2024 |
| Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan | 28.08% | 2021 |
| Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (excluding high income) | 28.48% | 2021 |
| Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan (IDA & IBRD) | 28.14% | 2021 |
| North America | 9.38% | 2025 |
| OECD members | 12.31% | 2025 |
| Post-demographic dividend | 11.48% | 2025 |
| South Asia | 19.09% | 2025 |
| South Asia (IDA & IBRD) | 19.09% | 2025 |
More social protection & labor indicators
- Employment in agriculture, female (% of female employment) (modeled ILO estimate)
- Employment in agriculture, male (% of male employment) (modeled ILO estimate)
- Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) (modeled ILO estimate)
- Employment to population ratio, ages 15-24, female (%) (national estimate)
- Employment to population ratio, ages 15-24, female (%) (modeled ILO estimate)
- Employment to population ratio, ages 15-24, male (%) (national estimate)
- Employment to population ratio, ages 15-24, male (%) (modeled ILO estimate)
- Employment to population ratio, ages 15-24, total (%) (national estimate)
- Employment to population ratio, ages 15-24, total (%) (modeled ILO estimate)
- Employers, female (% of female employment) (modeled ILO estimate)
- Employers, male (% of male employment) (modeled ILO estimate)
- Employers, total (% of total employment) (modeled ILO estimate)
Reading data like this
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, SL.UEM.1524.FE.NE.ZS, 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 View on data.worldbank.org; the full definition is in the World Bank's metadata glossary.
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