Labour · East Asia & Pacific · Upper-middle income
Samoa: the labour market
Labour force is 57,776 (2025), 183rd of 187 in the world and 28th of 29 in East Asia & Pacific. Participation rate is 42.5% (2025), 172nd of 187 in the world and 29th of 29 in East Asia & Pacific. Women's participation is 30.7% (2025), 166th of 187 in the world and 29th of 29 in East Asia & Pacific.
Labour force
Samoa
Participation rate
SamoaEast Asia & PacificUpper-middle incomeWorld
13 indicators
Labour: Samoa in detail
Latest reported value, world rank and rank within East Asia & Pacific; 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 | 57,7762025 | 183/187 | 28/29 | 60,878 | 65,260 | 61,909 | −15%since 2015 | 1.3bn | 1.5bn | 3.7bn | |
| Participation rateLabour force participation, % of 15+ | 42.5%2025 | 172/187 | 29/29 | 56.3% | 54.9% | 47.6% | −12.2 ppsince 2015 | 65.2% | 62.7% | 61.0% | |
| Women's participationFemale labour force participation, % of women 15+ | 30.7%2025 | 166/187 | 29/29 | 42.5% | 41.5% | 35.2% | −10.7 ppsince 2015 | 58.1% | 53.4% | 48.9% | |
| Employment rateEmployment to population ratio, 15+ (ILO) | 40.4%2025 | 164/187 | 29/29 | 53.6% | 51.8% | 44.0% | −9.4 ppsince 2015 | 62.7% | 59.5% | 58.1% | |
| UnemploymentUnemployment, % of labour force (ILO) | 5.0%2025 | 102/187 | 9/29 | 4.7% | 5.6% | 7.5% | −3.9 ppsince 2015 | 3.8% | 5.2% | 4.8% | |
| Female unemploymentFemale unemployment, % of female labour force (ILO) | 7.3%2025 | 70/187 | 3/29 | 5.8% | 6.6% | 11.4% | −4.4 ppsince 2015 | 3.4% | 5.1% | 4.9% | |
| Youth unemploymentYouth unemployment, ages 15–24 (ILO) | 13.0%2025 | 94/187 | 9/29 | 11.0% | 14.6% | 17.8% | −5.1 ppsince 2015 | 12.5% | 15.6% | 13.4% | |
| Youth NEET rateYouth not in education, employment or training, % | 30.1%2022 | 30/170 | 5/28 | · | 39.1%2012 | 30.1%2022 | −9.0 ppsince 2012 | 15.3% | 17.3% | — | |
| Wage workersWage and salaried workers, % of total employment | 55.5%2025 | 122/187 | 18/29 | 52.2% | 54.3% | 54.9% | +1.2 ppsince 2015 | 61.0% | 61.3% | 53.6% | |
| Vulnerable employmentVulnerable employment, % of total employment (ILO) | 41.6%2025 | 63/187 | 12/29 | 44.8% | 42.8% | 42.2% | −1.3 ppsince 2015 | 35.3% | 34.8% | 42.4% | |
| Jobs in agricultureEmployment in agriculture, % of total employment | 26.9%2025 | 70/187 | 13/29 | 35.9% | 32.3% | 30.0% | −4.4 ppsince 2015 | 21.7% | 19.8% | 25.8% | |
| Jobs in industryEmployment in industry, % of total employment | 15.9%2025 | 134/187 | 19/29 | 23.8% | 15.0% | 13.9% | +2.8 ppsince 2015 | 28.5% | 27.7% | 23.7% | |
| Jobs in servicesEmployment in services, % of total employment | 57.2%2025 | 102/187 | 14/29 | 40.3% | 52.7% | 56.1% | +1.6 ppsince 2015 | 49.9% | 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
- Unemployment−3.9 pp5.0% in 2025
- Female unemployment−4.4 pp7.3% in 2025
- Youth unemployment−5.1 pp13.0% in 2025
- Youth NEET rate−9.0 pp30.1% in 2022
Worse than ten years ago
- Women's participation−10.7 pp30.7% in 2025
- Employment rate−9.4 pp40.4% 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
Samoa and its neighbours
Countries sharing a land border with Samoa. Latest values since 2005; the highest in each row is marked.
| Indicator | Samoa | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Labour force | 57,7762025 | 175m2025 |
| Participation rate | 42.5%2025 | 61.7%2025 |
| Women's participation | 30.7%2025 | 56.3%2025 |
| Employment rate | 40.4%2025 | 59.1%2025 |
| Unemployment | 5.0%2025 | 4.2%2025 |
| Female unemployment | 7.3%2025 | 4.2%2025 |
| Youth unemployment | 13.0%2025 | 9.3%2025 |
| Youth NEET rate | 30.1%2022 | 11.6%2025 |
| Wage workers | 55.5%2025 | 93.9%2025 |