Unemployment rate,Percent in United Kingdom
United Kingdom: Unemployment rate,Percent was 4.8% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
4.8%
Change on year
up 13.0%
World rank
41st
of 71 countries
All-time high
10.4%
in 1993
All-time low
3.8%
in 2022
Years of data
36
1990–2025
Unemployment rate,Percent in United Kingdom, 1990–2025
Source: World Bank.
Analysis
United Kingdom recorded 4.8% for unemployment rate,percent in 2025.
That represents a change of up 13.0% on the previous year and down 9.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment rate,percent in United Kingdom peaked at 10.4% in 1993 and was at its lowest, 3.8%, in 2022.
United Kingdom ranks 41st of 71 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 36 years of available data.
Unemployment rate,Percent in United Kingdom, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 7.1% | — |
| 1991 | 8.8% | +24.4% |
| 1992 | 10.0% | +12.9% |
| 1993 | 10.4% | +4.3% |
| 1994 | 9.5% | -8.7% |
| 1995 | 8.7% | -8.9% |
| 1996 | 8.1% | -6.3% |
| 1997 | 7.0% | -14.0% |
| 1998 | 6.3% | -10.3% |
| 1999 | 6.0% | -4.5% |
| 2000 | 5.5% | -8.9% |
| 2001 | 5.1% | -6.7% |
| 2002 | 5.2% | +1.8% |
| 2003 | 5.0% | -3.2% |
| 2004 | 4.8% | -5.2% |
| 2005 | 4.8% | +1.9% |
| 2006 | 5.4% | +11.9% |
| 2007 | 5.3% | -1.5% |
| 2008 | 5.7% | +7.0% |
| 2009 | 7.6% | +33.3% |
| 2010 | 7.9% | +3.7% |
| 2011 | 8.1% | +2.5% |
| 2012 | 8.0% | -1.4% |
| 2013 | 7.6% | -5.0% |
| 2014 | 6.2% | -18.5% |
| 2015 | 5.4% | -13.0% |
| 2016 | 4.9% | -9.0% |
| 2017 | 4.4% | -10.4% |
| 2018 | 4.1% | -7.0% |
| 2019 | 3.9% | -5.5% |
| 2020 | 4.6% | +19.5% |
| 2021 | 4.5% | -1.3% |
| 2022 | 3.8% | -16.7% |
| 2023 | 4.1% | +7.7% |
| 2024 | 4.3% | +5.3% |
| 2025 | 4.8% | +13.0% |
United Kingdom compared with similar countries
- United Kingdom's 4.8% is below the median for high income countries, which is 5.0%, 97% of the median. (45 countries reporting)
- United Kingdom's 4.8% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 5.2%, 93% of the median. (35 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 8.2% | 6.0% | 10.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.4% | 4.8% | 7.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 6.0% | 3.9% | 8.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.4% | 3.8% | 4.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near United Kingdom
More reference data data for United Kingdom
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 3.13 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 3.97 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 13.26 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.01 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 13.26 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 10.5 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 6.51 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 15.81 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 59.34 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 5.48 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is unemployment rate,percent in United Kingdom?
- Unemployment rate,percent in United Kingdom was 4.8% in 2025, according to the World Bank.
- What is the highest unemployment rate,percent recorded in United Kingdom?
- The highest recorded value was 10.4% in 1993.
- What is the lowest unemployment rate,percent recorded in United Kingdom?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.8% in 2022.
- How does United Kingdom rank for unemployment rate,percent?
- United Kingdom ranks 41st out of 71 countries with data for 2025.
- Is unemployment rate,percent rising or falling in United Kingdom?
- Over the last ten years it is down 9.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United Kingdom 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 · JSON — 36 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).