Unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates in Egypt
Egypt: Unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates was 5.9% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates in Egypt, 1970–2024
Source: Labour Force Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates in Egypt stood at 5.9%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 12.0% on the previous year and down 54.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates in Egypt peaked at 13.2% in 2013 and was at its lowest, 0.7%, in 1975.
Egypt ranks 78th of 185 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 49 years of available data.
Unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates in Egypt, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 2.4% | — |
| 1971 | 1.8% | -25.0% |
| 1972 | 1.5% | -16.7% |
| 1974 | 2.3% | +53.3% |
| 1975 | 0.7% | -68.3% |
| 1977 | 3.1% | +330.0% |
| 1978 | 3.6% | +16.1% |
| 1979 | 4.6% | +26.4% |
| 1980 | 5.2% | +13.0% |
| 1981 | 5.4% | +3.8% |
| 1982 | 5.7% | +5.6% |
| 1983 | 6.5% | +13.5% |
| 1984 | 5.9% | -9.0% |
| 1989 | 7.1% | +19.9% |
| 1990 | 8.4% | +19.5% |
| 1991 | 9.4% | +11.2% |
| 1992 | 8.9% | -4.9% |
| 1993 | 10.9% | +22.3% |
| 1994 | 10.9% | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 11.0% | +1.0% |
| 1996 | 9.0% | -18.5% |
| 1997 | 8.4% | -7.0% |
| 1998 | 8.0% | -4.1% |
| 1999 | 8.0% | -0.9% |
| 2000 | 9.0% | +13.0% |
| 2001 | 9.2% | +2.4% |
| 2002 | 10.0% | +8.9% |
| 2003 | 10.4% | +4.0% |
| 2004 | 10.7% | +3.2% |
| 2005 | 11.2% | +4.6% |
| 2006 | 10.5% | -6.7% |
| 2007 | 8.8% | -16.1% |
| 2008 | 8.5% | -3.3% |
| 2009 | 9.1% | +6.7% |
| 2010 | 8.8% | -3.6% |
| 2011 | 11.8% | +35.3% |
| 2012 | 12.6% | +6.3% |
| 2013 | 13.2% | +4.4% |
| 2014 | 13.1% | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 13.1% | -0.4% |
| 2016 | 12.4% | -4.6% |
| 2017 | 11.8% | -5.5% |
| 2018 | 9.9% | -16.2% |
| 2019 | 7.9% | -20.3% |
| 2020 | 8.0% | +1.6% |
| 2021 | 7.4% | -6.7% |
| 2022 | 7.3% | -1.3% |
| 2023 | 6.8% | -8.0% |
| 2024 | 5.9% | -12.0% |
Egypt compared with similar countries
- Egypt's 5.9% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 5.0%, 1.2× the median. (42 countries reporting)
- Egypt's 5.9% is below the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 7.0%, 85% of the median. (21 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates in Egypt changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | +330.0% | 0.7% | 3.1% |
| 1975 | -68.3% | 2.3% | 0.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 2.5% | 0.7% | 4.6% | 8 |
| 1980s | 6.0% | 5.2% | 7.1% | 6 |
| 1990s | 9.3% | 8.0% | 11.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 9.8% | 8.5% | 11.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 11.4% | 7.9% | 13.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 7.1% | 5.9% | 8.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Egypt
More reference data data for Egypt
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.2851 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 5.23 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 16.05 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.2 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 16.05 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.956 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.4622 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 25.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 71.76 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 6.55 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates in Egypt?
- Unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates in Egypt was 5.9% in 2024, according to Labour Force Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates recorded in Egypt?
- The highest recorded value was 13.2% in 2013.
- What is the lowest unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates recorded in Egypt?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.7% in 1975.
- How does Egypt rank for unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates?
- Egypt ranks 78th out of 185 countries with data for 2024.
- Is unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates rising or falling in Egypt?
- Over the last ten years it is down 54.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Egypt data come from?
- The figures come from Labour Force Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 49 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of the labor force without work, but actively looking for a job and available to start soon. Figures refer to national estimates and may not be fully comparable across countries.