Arab News
Arab
News,
Wed, April 1, 2026 | Shawwal 13, 1447
Saudi unemployment holds at 3.5% in Q4 2025: GASTAT
Saudi Arabia:
Saudi Arabia’s unemployment rate for the total
working-age population aged 15 years and above stood at 3.5 percent in the
fourth quarter of 2025, according to the General Authority for Statistics, or
GASTAT.
The authority’s Labor Market Statistics
Bulletin showed that the unemployment rate among Saudi males and females
combined reached 7.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025.
The bulletin indicated that the unemployment rate
among Saudi women declined year on year to 10.3 percent, down by 1.6 percentage
points compared with the fourth quarter of 2024.
It also showed that the economic participation
rate among Saudi males rose to 64.7 percent, an increase of 0.4 percentage
points compared with the previous quarter of 2025. Meanwhile, the employment
rate among Saudi women increased over the past five years by 4.2 percentage
points to reach 31 percent.
Regarding other labor market indicators, the Saudi
labor force participation rate stood at 49.5 percent in the fourth quarter of
2025, recording a quarterly increase of 0.5 percentage points and a year-on-year
decline of 1.6 percentage points compared with the fourth quarter of 2024.
The employment-to-population ratio for Saudis
reached 45.9 percent, up by 0.6 percentage points compared with the third
quarter of 2025, but down by 1.6 percentage points on an annual basis.
For the total working-age population, the
unemployment rate for both citizens and residents in the Kingdom stood at 3.5
percent in the fourth quarter of 2025, up by 0.1 percentage points compared with
the third quarter of the same year, while remaining stable year on year compared
with the fourth quarter of 2024.
The overall labor force participation rate for the
total population reached 67.4 percent, increasing by 0.5 percentage points
quarter on quarter and by 1 percentage point year on year.
The employment-to-population ratio for the
working-age population reached 65 percent, up by 0.4 percentage points compared
with the third quarter of 2025 and by 1 percentage point compared with the
fourth quarter of 2024.
Regarding active job search methods, the results
showed that unemployed Saudis used a variety of approaches, with an average of 4
active methods per job seeker.
The most commonly used method was applying
directly to employers, at 74.1 percent, followed by the National Unified
Employment Platform, known as Jadarat, at 58 percent. Posting or updating
resumes on professional social media platforms accounted for 50.2 percent.