Netherlands — Unemployment
Unemployment Rate for Netherlands, 1991–2025.
Unemployment for Netherlands was 3.87% in 2025, according to the latest World Bank data. The series covers 35 years, from 1991 to 2025. The highest recorded value was 7.42% in 2014. The lowest was 2.12% in 2001 (about 1.8× the low point). Across that span the compound annual growth rate works out to -1.84% per year.
Netherlands ranks 121 of 187 economies on this measure (1 = highest), putting it in the top 65%. The median for Europe & Central Asia is 5.58%, so Netherlands sits below it. It peaked in 2014 and has fallen 48% since. Over the last decade (2015–2025) the figure moved down 44%. Within Europe & Central Asia it ranks 39 of 49 economies; Germany (3.71%) is just below it. Its sharpest one-year move was up 41% in 2003. That is 10% below this series' own ten-year average.
Data highlights
World ranking. Slipped: 80th of 187 in 1991 → 160th of 187 in 2000 → 121st of 187 in 2010 → 151st of 187 in 2020 → 116th of 182 in 2025.
Key figures
Full history — 1991 to 2025
| Year | % of total labor force | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 3.87% | +0.2 pp |
| 2024 | 3.7% | +0.2 pp |
| 2023 | 3.54% | +0.0 pp |
| 2022 | 3.53% | -0.7 pp |
| 2021 | 4.21% | +0.4 pp |
| 2020 | 3.82% | +0.4 pp |
| 2019 | 3.38% | -0.5 pp |
| 2018 | 3.83% | -1.0 pp |
| 2017 | 4.84% | -1.2 pp |
| 2016 | 6.01% | -0.9 pp |
| 2015 | 6.87% | -0.5 pp |
| 2014 | 7.42% | +0.2 pp |
| 2013 | 7.24% | +1.4 pp |
| 2012 | 5.82% | +0.8 pp |
| 2011 | 4.98% | -0.0 pp |
| 2010 | 4.99% | +0.6 pp |
| 2009 | 4.35% | +0.7 pp |
| 2008 | 3.66% | -0.5 pp |
| 2007 | 4.15% | -0.9 pp |
| 2006 | 5.01% | -0.9 pp |
| 2005 | 5.87% | +1.2 pp |
| 2004 | 4.65% | +1.1 pp |
| 2003 | 3.59% | +1.0 pp |
| 2002 | 2.55% | +0.4 pp |
| 2001 | 2.12% | -0.6 pp |
| 2000 | 2.73% | -0.9 pp |
| 1999 | 3.62% | -0.8 pp |
| 1998 | 4.39% | -1.1 pp |
| 1997 | 5.51% | -0.9 pp |
| 1996 | 6.42% | -0.7 pp |
| 1995 | 7.16% | -0.0 pp |
| 1994 | 7.16% | +0.9 pp |
| 1993 | 6.29% | +0.7 pp |
| 1992 | 5.56% | -1.7 pp |
| 1991 | 7.29% | — |
Frequently asked questions
What was Netherlands’s Unemployment in 1992?
5.56% (1992). The full year-by-year table above lists every published year, most recent first.
Are changes in this series measured in percentage points?
Yes. The series is a share expressed in % of total labor force, so year-over-year movements in the Change column are percentage points (pp), not percent.
Is Netherlands’s Unemployment growing or shrinking?
Between 1991 and 2025 the series was shrinking overall: -46.8% in total — about 1.8% a year compounded.
Where does this data come from?
World Bank Open Data (CC BY-4.0), indicator SL.UEM.TOTL.ZS. Values are reproduced as published; this page only computes summary statistics such as change, CAGR and extremes.
What are the most recent published figures?
The last five published years: 2025: 3.87%; 2024: 3.7%; 2023: 3.54%; 2022: 3.53%; 2021: 4.21%. Earlier years are in the full-history table below.
Related data
SL.UEM.TOTL.ZS — Unemployment Rate. Data licensed under CC BY 4.0. Values are reproduced as published; this page computes the summary statistics (change, CAGR, extremes) from the underlying annual series. View the original dataset on data.worldbank.org.