United States
US desk: United States first; United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, euro-area members, Korea, Taiwan and New Zealand alongside.
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As of 2025 | % of population ages 15+
| Year | Employment ratio |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 59.11% |
| 2024 | 59.47% |
| 2023 | 59.82% |
| 2022 | 59.54% |
| 2021 | 58.21% |
| 2020 | 56.60% |
| 2019 | 60.54% |
| 2018 | 60.15% |
| 2017 | 59.82% |
| 2016 | 59.39% |
| 2015 | 58.98% |
| 2014 | 58.60% |
| 2013 | 58.11% |
| 2012 | 58.02% |
| 2011 | 57.57% |
| 2010 | 57.59% |
| 2009 | 58.41% |
| 2008 | 61.23% |
| 2007 | 61.99% |
| 2006 | 62.16% |
| 2005 | 61.74% |
| 2004 | 61.41% |
| 2003 | 61.31% |
| 2002 | 61.79% |
The employment-to-population ratio (SL.EMP.TOTL.SP.ZS, modelled ILO estimate) is employed people as a share of the population aged 15 and over. Latest: 59.11% in 2025.
It is not the unemployment rate. Students, retirees and people outside the labour force sit in the denominator. From 1991 to 2025 (35 years): latest 59.11% (2025), previous year 59.47% (2024); low 56.60% (2020), high 63.51% (2000).
Source: World Bank Open Data. Licence: CC BY 4.0 (terms).
This series is the employment-to-population ratio for people aged 15 and over: the share of that population who are employed. It comes from World Bank Open Data indicator SL.EMP.TOTL.SP.ZS, a modelled ILO estimate. It is not the unemployment rate. Students, retirees, people looking after a household and others outside the labour force are all in the denominator, so the ratio can fall even when unemployment is unchanged.
The indicator is modelled from national labour-force surveys and censuses and is revised when those inputs change. Population age structure and retirement ages differ between economies, so levels are not directly equivalent. The chart shows selected economies over the years you choose, and the ranked table shows each economy’s latest published year. Read the direction of travel and the broad level; small differences between neighbouring economies sit within the uncertainty of the estimates. The ratio also treats each employed person alike, whether they work an hour a week or a full year, so it says nothing about hours worked.
United States appears first, with comparison economies where the producer publishes them. This desk filters the same official series as the all-countries view; it does not recalculate values.
Output per worker and employment-share indicators come from World Bank Open Data. The employment shares are ILO-modelled estimates published by the Bank. Each page gives its indicator and source link.
Chart and Table show the same observations. Range buttons change only the displayed years; use Country to switch desks. Each page names its source and licence.