Unemployment rate,Percent in South Africa
South Africa: Unemployment rate,Percent was 32.4% in 2025. β² Rising
Latest (2025)
32.4%
Change on year
down 0.8%
World rank
1st
of 71 countries
All-time high
34.3%
in 2021
All-time low
22.5%
in 2008
Years of data
25
2001β2025
Unemployment rate,Percent in South Africa, 2001β2025
Source: World Bank.
Analysis
South Africa recorded 32.4% for unemployment rate,percent in 2025.
The figure is down 0.8% on the previous year and up 27.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment rate,percent in South Africa peaked at 34.3% in 2021 and was at its lowest, 22.5%, in 2008.
South Africa ranks 1st of 71 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 24.9% | 22.5% | 27.8% | 9 |
| 2010s | 26.0% | 24.7% | 28.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 32.4% | 29.1% | 34.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More reference data data for South Africa
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5111 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 8.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 13.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.7468 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 13.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.49 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 41.1 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 63.65 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 4.07 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is unemployment rate,percent in South Africa?
- Unemployment rate,percent in South Africa was 32.4% in 2025, according to the World Bank.
- What is the highest unemployment rate,percent recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 34.3% in 2021.
- What is the lowest unemployment rate,percent recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 22.5% in 2008.
- How does South Africa rank for unemployment rate,percent?
- South Africa ranks 1st out of 71 countries with data for 2025.
- Is unemployment rate,percent rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 27.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from the World Bank, published as part of Unemployment rate,Percent,,,. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV Β· JSON β 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).