Philippines — Unemployment
Unemployment Rate for Philippines, 1991–2025.
Unemployment for Philippines was 2.23% in 2025, according to the latest World Bank data. The series covers 35 years, from 1991 to 2025. The highest recorded value was 4.05% in 2006. The lowest was 2.20% in 2023 (about 1.0× the low point). Across that span the compound annual growth rate works out to -1.49% per year.
Philippines ranks 167 of 187 economies on this measure (1 = highest), putting it in the top 89%. The median for East Asia & Pacific is 3.05%, so Philippines sits below it. It peaked in 2006 and has fallen 45% since. Over the last decade (2015–2025) the figure moved down 27%. Within East Asia & Pacific it ranks 22 of 29 economies; Tonga (2.01%) is just below it. Its sharpest one-year move was up 35% in 2021. That is 12% below this series' own ten-year average.
Data highlights
World ranking. Slipped: 119th of 187 in 1991 → 143rd of 187 in 2000 → 147th of 187 in 2010 → 171st of 187 in 2020 → 162nd of 182 in 2025.
Key figures
Full history — 1991 to 2025
| Year | % of total labor force | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2.24% | +0.0 pp |
| 2024 | 2.2% | +0.0 pp |
| 2023 | 2.2% | -0.4 pp |
| 2022 | 2.6% | -0.8 pp |
| 2021 | 3.4% | +0.9 pp |
| 2020 | 2.52% | +0.3 pp |
| 2019 | 2.24% | -0.1 pp |
| 2018 | 2.34% | -0.2 pp |
| 2017 | 2.55% | -0.1 pp |
| 2016 | 2.7% | -0.4 pp |
| 2015 | 3.07% | -0.5 pp |
| 2014 | 3.6% | +0.1 pp |
| 2013 | 3.5% | -0.0 pp |
| 2012 | 3.5% | -0.1 pp |
| 2011 | 3.59% | -0.0 pp |
| 2010 | 3.61% | -0.3 pp |
| 2009 | 3.86% | +0.1 pp |
| 2008 | 3.72% | +0.3 pp |
| 2007 | 3.43% | -0.6 pp |
| 2006 | 4.05% | +0.3 pp |
| 2005 | 3.8% | +0.2 pp |
| 2004 | 3.55% | +0.0 pp |
| 2003 | 3.53% | -0.1 pp |
| 2002 | 3.62% | -0.1 pp |
| 2001 | 3.7% | -0.1 pp |
| 2000 | 3.77% | +0.0 pp |
| 1999 | 3.75% | +0.1 pp |
| 1998 | 3.7% | +0.1 pp |
| 1997 | 3.59% | -0.0 pp |
| 1996 | 3.61% | -0.1 pp |
| 1995 | 3.68% | -0.1 pp |
| 1994 | 3.77% | -0.1 pp |
| 1993 | 3.87% | +0.0 pp |
| 1992 | 3.85% | +0.1 pp |
| 1991 | 3.73% | — |
Frequently asked questions
What was Philippines’s Unemployment in 1992?
3.85% (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 Philippines’s Unemployment growing or shrinking?
Between 1991 and 2025 the series was shrinking overall: -40.0% in total — about 1.5% 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: 2.24%; 2024: 2.2%; 2023: 2.2%; 2022: 2.6%; 2021: 3.4%. 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.