Ireland’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to 5.0% in September 2026, matching the rate recorded in the previous two months and slightly above 4.9% in the same month last year. The total number of unemployed people increased by 900 from the previous month and by 5,800 from a year earlier, reaching 149,500. By gender, the unemployment rate for women held steady at 5.2% from August, while the number of unemployed women decreased by 300 to 72,800. For men, the unemployment rate edged up to 4.9% from 4.8%, with the number of unemployed men rising by 1,200 to 76,700. Meanwhile, the youth unemployment rate among those aged 15-24 edged up to 12.5% from 12.4% in August, while the rate for those aged 25-74 remained unchanged at 4.0%. source: Central Statistics Office Ireland

Unemployment Rate in Ireland remained unchanged at 5 percent in September. Unemployment Rate in Ireland averaged 9.79 percent from 1983 until 2026, reaching an all time high of 17.30 percent in December of 1985 and a record low of 3.90 percent in October of 2000. This page provides the latest reported value for - Ireland Unemployment Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news. Ireland Unemployment Rate - data, historical chart, forecasts and calendar of releases - was last updated on October of 2026.

Unemployment Rate in Ireland remained unchanged at 5 percent in September. Unemployment Rate in Ireland is expected to be 5.10 percent by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. In the long-term, the Ireland Unemployment Rate is projected to trend around 5.20 percent in 2027, according to our econometric models.



Calendar GMT Reference Actual Previous Consensus TEForecast
2026-09-02 10:00 AM
Unemployment Rate
Aug 5.0% 5.0% 5.1%
2026-09-30 10:00 AM
Unemployment Rate
Sep 5% 5% 5.10%
2026-11-04 11:00 AM
Unemployment Rate
Oct 5%


Related Last Previous Unit Reference
Average Hourly Earnings 31.96 32.93 EUR Jun 2026
Average Weekly Hours 32.80 32.30 Hours Jun 2026
Employed Persons 2839.30 2794.50 Thousand Jun 2026
Employment Rate 74.30 73.30 percent Jun 2026
Full Time Employment 2249.60 2233.00 Thousand Jun 2026
Initial Jobless Claims 17567.00 25248.00 Persons Aug 2026
Job Vacancy Rate 1.30 1.20 percent Jun 2026
Labor Force Participation Rate 66.00 65.00 percent Jun 2026
Part Time Employment 589.60 561.50 Thousand Jun 2026
Unemployed Persons 149.50 148.60 Thousand Sep 2026
Unemployment Change -1200.00 2900.00 Persons Aug 2026
Unemployment Rate 5.00 5.00 percent Sep 2026
Average Weekly Earnings YoY 3.90 3.40 percent Jun 2026
Wages 1046.88 1064.59 EUR/Week Jun 2026
Wages in Manufacturing 1165.43 1247.00 EUR/Week Jun 2026
Youth Unemployment Rate 12.50 12.40 percent Sep 2026


Ireland Unemployment Rate
In Ireland, the unemployment rate measures the number of people actively looking for a job as a percentage of the labour force.
Actual Previous Highest Lowest Dates Unit Frequency
5.00 5.00 17.30 3.90 1983 - 2026 percent Monthly
SA

News Stream
Ireland Jobless Rate Steady at 5%
Ireland’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to 5.0% in September 2026, matching the rate recorded in the previous two months and slightly above 4.9% in the same month last year. The total number of unemployed people increased by 900 from the previous month and by 5,800 from a year earlier, reaching 149,500. By gender, the unemployment rate for women held steady at 5.2% from August, while the number of unemployed women decreased by 300 to 72,800. For men, the unemployment rate edged up to 4.9% from 4.8%, with the number of unemployed men rising by 1,200 to 76,700. Meanwhile, the youth unemployment rate among those aged 15-24 edged up to 12.5% from 12.4% in August, while the rate for those aged 25-74 remained unchanged at 4.0%.
2026-09-30
Ireland Jobless Rate Holds at 5%
Ireland’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to 5.0% in August 2026, matching the rate in the previous month and slightly exceeding the 4.9% recorded a year earlier. The total number of unemployed people decreased by 1,200 from the previous month but increased by 1,900 from a year earlier, reaching 147,100. By gender, the unemployment rate for females edged down to 5.1% from 5.2% in July, with the number of unemployed women falling by 1,300 to 72,500. For males, the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.8%, with the number of unemployed men inching up by 100 to 74,600. Meanwhile, youth unemployment among those aged 15–24 ticked down to 12.3% in August from 12.4% in July, while the rate for those aged 25–74 also dropped to 3.9% from 4.0%.
2026-09-02
Irish Jobless Rate Highest Since 2021
Ireland’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to 5.1% in July 2026 from 5.0% in the previous month and was also slightly higher than the 5.0% recorded a year earlier, marking the highest reading since December 2021. The total number of unemployed people increased by 2,800 from the previous month and by 2,600 from a year earlier, reaching 149,900. By gender, the unemployment rate for females edged up to 5.3% from 5.2% in June, with the number of unemployed women rising by 1,800 to 74,300. For males, the jobless rate also ticked up to 4.9% from 4.8%, while the number of unemployed men increased by 1,100 to 75,600. Meanwhile, the youth unemployment rate (ages 15–24) climbed to 12.3% from 11.8% in June, while the rate for those aged 25–74 edged up to 4.1% from 4.0% over the last three months.
2026-08-06