Spain's registered unemployment increased by 19,517 from the previous month to 2.311 million in July 2026, marking the lowest July total since 2007. Market expectations were pointing to a 20,300-decline. The monthly rise was unusual, reflecting the fact that July has become less affected by seasonal patterns. Between 2010 and 2019, registered unemployment typically declined by an average of 45,467 in July, while since the labor market reform the average July decrease has narrowed to just 4,981. The increase was driven by higher unemployment in services (+8,211), construction (+2,433), and among first-time job seekers (+8,268), largely due to the ongoing extraordinary regularization process, which is allowing previously undocumented workers already living in Spain to register with public employment services for the first time. Separate Social Security data showed net employment increased by 79,567 in July, bringing total formal employment to 22.29 million. source: Ministerio de Empleo y Seguridad Social

Unemployment Change in Spain increased to 19.50 Thousand in July from -28.70 Thousand in June of 2026. Unemployment Change in Spain averaged 2.77 Thousand from 1960 until 2026, reaching an all time high of 461.00 Thousand in January of 2001 and a record low of -197.84 Thousand in July of 2021. This page provides the latest reported value for - Spain Unemployment Change - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news. Spain Unemployment Change - data, historical chart, forecasts and calendar of releases - was last updated on August of 2026.

Unemployment Change in Spain increased to 19.50 Thousand in July from -28.70 Thousand in June of 2026. Unemployment Change in Spain is expected to be 19.00 Thousand by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. In the long-term, the Spain Unemployment Change is projected to trend around -22.00 Thousand in 2027 and -16.00 Thousand in 2028, according to our econometric models.



Calendar GMT Reference Actual Previous Consensus TEForecast
2026-07-02 07:00 AM
Unemployment Change
Jun -28.7K -36.323K -40.8K -40K
2026-08-04 07:00 AM
Unemployment Change
Jul 19.5K -28.7K -20.3K -17.0K
2026-09-02 07:00 AM
Unemployment Change
Aug 19.5K 22.0K


Related Last Previous Unit Reference
Retirement Age Men 66.83 66.67 Years Dec 2026
Retirement Age Women 66.83 66.67 Years Dec 2026
Unemployed Persons 2311.50 2291.98 Thousand Jul 2026
Unemployment Change 19.50 -28.70 Thousand Jul 2026


Spain Unemployment Change
Unemployment Change in Spain measures the change in the number of unemployed compared to the previous month.
Actual Previous Highest Lowest Dates Unit Frequency
19.50 -28.70 461.00 -197.84 1960 - 2026 Thousand Monthly
Volumes, NSA

News Stream
Spain Unemployment Surprisingly Rises in July
Spain's registered unemployment increased by 19,517 from the previous month to 2.311 million in July 2026, marking the lowest July total since 2007. Market expectations were pointing to a 20,300-decline. The monthly rise was unusual, reflecting the fact that July has become less affected by seasonal patterns. Between 2010 and 2019, registered unemployment typically declined by an average of 45,467 in July, while since the labor market reform the average July decrease has narrowed to just 4,981. The increase was driven by higher unemployment in services (+8,211), construction (+2,433), and among first-time job seekers (+8,268), largely due to the ongoing extraordinary regularization process, which is allowing previously undocumented workers already living in Spain to register with public employment services for the first time. Separate Social Security data showed net employment increased by 79,567 in July, bringing total formal employment to 22.29 million.
2026-08-04
Spain Jobless Lowest Since Jan 2008
Spain’s registered unemployment fell by 28.739 thousand from the previous month to 2.291 million in June 2026, marking the first time the total has dropped below the 2.3 million threshold since January 2008. Still, the decline was softer than the market expectations of a 40.8 thousand drop. Notably, female unemployment decreased by 15.801 thousand, pushing the total number of jobless women below 1.4 million for the first time since August 2008. Youth unemployment dropped 5,155 to a record low of 159,800. Unemployment decreased across services (-28,498), industry (-2,829), construction (-1,326), and agriculture (-384), while those without prior employment increased by 4,298. Separately, data from the Social Security Ministry showed Spain added 92,531 net jobs in June, bringing total employment to 22.21 million. Regionally, unemployment fell across 11 autonomous communities, with Andalusia (-11,597), Galicia (-3,587) and Castilla y León (-2,895) posting the largest declines.
2026-07-02
Spain Jobless Falls Less Than Expected
The number of people registering as jobless in Spain fell by 36.323 thousand from the previous month to 2.321 million in May 2026, compared with market expectations of a 56.8 thousand decline. Unemployment decreased across all sectors, led by services with 29,829 fewer unemployed, followed by industry (-2,665), construction (-2,304) and agriculture (-1,628), while those without prior employment increased by only 98. Youth unemployment saw a drop of 4,738, reaching 164,955. Regionally, unemployment fell across all autonomous communities, with Andalusia (-9,125), Catalonia (-6,900) and Madrid (-3,834) posting the largest declines.
2026-06-02