Labour · Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan · Upper-middle income
Algeria: the labour market
Labour force is 13.6m (2025), 45th of 187 in the world and 5th of 23 in the Middle East & North Africa. Participation rate is 40.8% (2025), 176th of 187 in the world and 18th of 23 in the Middle East & North Africa. Women's participation is 14.1% (2025), 182nd of 187 in the world and 18th of 23 in the Middle East & North Africa.
Labour force
Algeria
Participation rate
AlgeriaMiddle East, North Africa, A…Upper-middle incomeWorld
13 indicators
Labour: Algeria in detail
Latest reported value, world rank and rank within Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan; values around 2000, 2010, 2020; group and world columns are World Bank aggregates.
| Indicator | Latest | World rank | In region | ~2000 | ~2010 | ~2020 | 10-year change | Region | Income group | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour forceLabour force, total | 13.6m2025 | 45/187 | 5/23 | 9.1m | 11.4m | 11.6m | +12%since 2015 | 264m | 1.5bn | 3.7bn | |
| Participation rateLabour force participation, % of 15+ | 40.8%2025 | 176/187 | 18/23 | 44.3% | 43.5% | 38.0% | −1.7 ppsince 2015 | 47.4% | 62.7% | 61.0% | |
| Women's participationFemale labour force participation, % of women 15+ | 14.1%2025 | 182/187 | 18/23 | 12.0% | 14.4% | 13.2% | −1.1 ppsince 2015 | 19.7% | 53.4% | 48.9% | |
| Employment rateEmployment to population ratio, 15+ (ILO) | 36.0%2025 | 174/187 | 16/23 | 31.1% | 39.2% | 32.7% | −1.7 ppsince 2015 | 43.7% | 59.5% | 58.1% | |
| UnemploymentUnemployment, % of labour force (ILO) | 11.6%2025 | 29/187 | 10/23 | 29.8% | 10.0% | 14.1% | +0.4 ppsince 2015 | 7.8% | 5.2% | 4.8% | |
| Female unemploymentFemale unemployment, % of female labour force (ILO) | 20.6%2025 | 15/187 | 9/23 | 29.7% | 19.2% | 24.0% | +3.9 ppsince 2015 | 12.1% | 5.1% | 4.9% | |
| Youth unemploymentYouth unemployment, ages 15–24 (ILO) | 29.4%2025 | 21/187 | 9/23 | 50.7% | 22.2% | 35.8% | −0.9 ppsince 2015 | 18.7% | 15.6% | 13.4% | |
| Youth NEET rateYouth not in education, employment or training, % | 20.9%2017 | 68/170 | 12/16 | · | 24.5% | · | — | 32.2% | 17.3% | — | |
| Wage workersWage and salaried workers, % of total employment | 69.8%2025 | 86/187 | 15/23 | 61.3% | 66.8% | 68.8% | +1.2 ppsince 2015 | 61.0% | 61.3% | 53.6% | |
| Vulnerable employmentVulnerable employment, % of total employment (ILO) | 25.6%2025 | 100/187 | 9/23 | 31.6% | 29.5% | 26.7% | −1.5 ppsince 2015 | 36.1% | 34.8% | 42.4% | |
| Jobs in agricultureEmployment in agriculture, % of total employment | 9.5%2025 | 110/187 | 10/23 | 22.0% | 12.0% | 10.5% | +0.6 ppsince 2015 | 21.7% | 19.8% | 25.8% | |
| Jobs in industryEmployment in industry, % of total employment | 32.3%2025 | 11/187 | 6/23 | 24.7% | 30.4% | 31.3% | +1.1 ppsince 2015 | 26.6% | 27.7% | 23.7% | |
| Jobs in servicesEmployment in services, % of total employment | 58.3%2025 | 99/187 | 15/23 | 53.3% | 57.6% | 58.3% | −1.8 ppsince 2015 | 51.7% | 52.4% | 50.6% |
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (CC BY 4.0)“·” — no value reported within two years of that date. World rank counts countries with a recent value.
Better than ten years ago
- Youth unemployment−0.9 pp29.4% in 2025
- Wage workers+1.2 pp69.8% in 2025
- Vulnerable employment−1.5 pp25.6% in 2025
Worse than ten years ago
- Women's participation−1.1 pp14.1% in 2025
- Employment rate−1.7 pp36.0% in 2025
- Unemployment+0.4 pp11.6% in 2025
- Female unemployment+3.9 pp20.6% in 2025
Only indicators where higher or lower is clearly better are rated (for example, unemployment down is better, life expectancy up is better).
neighbours
Algeria and its neighbours
Countries sharing a land border with Algeria. Latest values since 2005; the highest in each row is marked.
| Indicator | Algeria | Italy | Spain | Morocco | Niger | Mali |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour force | 13.6m2025 | 25.7m2025 | 24.8m2025 | 12.6m2025 | 12.0m2025 | 9.2m2025 |
| Participation rate | 40.8%2025 | 49.3%2025 | 57.4%2025 | 43.9%2025 | 79.7%2025 | 67.0%2025 |
| Women's participation | 14.1%2025 | 40.8%2025 | 52.8%2025 | 19.7%2025 | 72.8%2025 | 52.8%2025 |
| Employment rate | 36.0%2025 | 46.2%2025 | 51.5%2025 | 40.0%2025 | 79.4%2025 | 65.1%2025 |
| Unemployment | 11.6%2025 | 6.4%2025 | 10.4%2025 | 9.0%2025 | 0.4%2025 | 2.8%2025 |
| Female unemployment | 20.6%2025 | 7.3%2025 | 11.9%2025 | 10.6%2025 | 0.3%2025 | 3.0%2025 |
| Youth unemployment | 29.4%2025 | 20.5%2025 | 24.7%2025 | 21.9%2025 | 0.5%2025 | 3.9%2025 |
| Youth NEET rate | 20.9%2017 | 9.9%2025 | 9.4%2025 | 35.3%2014 | 15.7%2022 | 30.1%2024 |
| Wage workers | 69.8%2025 | 78.9%2025 | 85.5%2025 | 59.9%2025 | 10.5%2025 | 23.6%2025 |