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Norway — Labor participation
Labor Force Participation Rate for Norway, 1990–2025.
Latest value · 2025
65.61%
Labor Force Participation Rate · % of population ages 15+ · +6.6% since 1990
Labor participation for Norway was 65.61% in 2025, according to the latest World Bank data. The series covers 36 years, from 1990 to 2025. The highest recorded value was 68.42% in 2008. The lowest was 61.55% in 1990 (about 1.1× the low point). Across that span the compound annual growth rate works out to 0.18% per year.
Norway ranks 55 of 187 economies on this measure (1 = highest), putting it in the top 29%. The median for Europe & Central Asia is 60.12%, so Norway sits above it. It peaked in 2008 and has fallen 4% since. Over the last decade (2015–2025) the figure moved down 1%.
Key figures
Latest (2025)
65.61%
First (1990)
61.55%
Change
+6.6%
Highest
68.42%
in 2008
Lowest
61.55%
in 1990
Average
65.98%
Annual growth (CAGR)
0.18%
Years of data
36
Recent years
| Year | % of population ages 15+ |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 65.61% |
| 2024 | 65.83% |
| 2023 | 65.94% |
| 2022 | 65.96% |
| 2021 | 65.68% |
| 2020 | 65.68% |
| 2019 | 65.93% |
| 2018 | 65.91% |
| 2017 | 65.66% |
| 2016 | 66.2% |
| 2015 | 66.56% |
| 2014 | 66.56% |
Reading this correctly. Proportion of the population aged 15 and above that is economically active: supplying labor for the production of goods and services. Figures are in % of population ages 15+. Comparing this series with a different measure of the same concept (for example a nominal figure against a purchasing-power-parity figure) will give misleading results.
Related data
Source. World Bank Open Data, indicator
SL.TLF.CACT.ZS — Labor Force Participation 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.