Unemployment international comparisons: Economic indicators

Economic indicators are quick-read summaries of the latest data focusing on different aspects of the UK economy. The full suite of indicators can be found on the main Economic Indicators page.

The OECD produces harmonised unemployment rates for OECD members based on the ILO definition of unemployment.

The UK harmonised unemployment rate for Q3 2024 was 4.3%. This was above Germany (3.4%) and the US (4.2%) but below France (7.5%).

The Eurozone’s rate was 6.3% in Q3 2024, while in the G7 it was 4.3%.

Unemployment rates rose in almost all the OECD countries following the coronavirus outbreak, although the size of the increase varied widely.

Spain had the highest unemployment rate out of the OECD member states in Q3 2024 at 11.3%, followed by Colombia at 9.9%. Japan and Korea had the lowest at 2.5%.

Youth (aged 15-24) unemployment is a major issue in many developed economies at present. In Q3 2024 the youth unemployment rate was 26.6% in Spain, and it was at least 20% for a further eight OECD countries. It was 14.8% in the UK.

Next updates

This page is updated when new data is published. The next source updates will be:

• OECD, Harmonised Unemployment Rates, 13 February 2025