Sweden’s unemployment rate rose to 8.5% in August 2026 from 8.4% in the same period a year earlier. The total number of unemployed people increased by 19.3 thousand from August 2025 to 505.2 thousand, which consists of 251 thousand unemployed women and 255 thousand unemployed men, corresponding to 8.9% and 8.2%, respectively. Among people aged 15-24, 144 thousand were unemployed, corresponding to a youth unemployment rate of 18.4%. The number of long-term unemployed, defined as those jobless for at least 27 weeks, fell by 36 thousand to 168 thousand, with women accounting for 73,000 and men 95,000. Meanwhile, employment among people aged 15-74 rose by 102.6 thousand from a year earlier to 5.4 million, including 2.58 million women, up 61,000, and 2.85 million men. The average total number of hours worked per week stood at 128.7 million. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the unemployment rate was 8.7%, while the youth unemployment stood at 23.8%. source: Statistics Sweden

Unemployment Rate in Sweden increased to 8.50 percent in August from 7.80 percent in July of 2026. Unemployment Rate in Sweden averaged 6.36 percent from 1980 until 2026, reaching an all time high of 10.50 percent in June of 1997 and a record low of 1.30 percent in July of 1989. This page provides the latest reported value for - Sweden Unemployment Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news. Sweden Unemployment Rate - data, historical chart, forecasts and calendar of releases - was last updated on October of 2026.

Unemployment Rate in Sweden increased to 8.50 percent in August from 7.80 percent in July of 2026. Unemployment Rate in Sweden is expected to be 8.60 percent by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. In the long-term, the Sweden Unemployment Rate is projected to trend around 8.90 percent in 2027 and 8.50 percent in 2028, according to our econometric models.



Calendar GMT Reference Actual Previous Consensus TEForecast
2026-08-21 06:00 AM
Unemployment Rate
Jul 7.8% 9.9% 9.5%
2026-09-16 06:00 AM
Unemployment Rate
Aug 8.5% 7.8% 8.2%
2026-10-16 06:00 AM
Unemployment Rate
Sep 8.5% 8.60%


Related Last Previous Unit Reference
Average Weekly Hours 23.80 19.00 Hours Aug 2026
Employed Persons 5423.00 5507.00 Thousand Aug 2026
Employment Rate 70.90 72.00 percent Aug 2026
Job Vacancies 587.00 580.00 Hundred Aug 2026
Job Vacancy Rate 2.20 2.10 percent Jun 2026
Labor Force Participation Rate 77.50 78.10 percent Aug 2026
Labour Costs 171.90 172.80 points Jul 2026
Unemployed Persons 505.20 467.70 Thousand Aug 2026
Unemployment Rate 8.50 7.80 percent Aug 2026
Wages 211.70 215.80 SEK/Hour Jul 2026
Wages in Manufacturing 229.30 235.00 SEK/Hour Jul 2026


Sweden Unemployment Rate
In Sweden, 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
8.50 7.80 10.50 1.30 1980 - 2026 percent Monthly
NSA

News Stream
Swedish Jobless Rate Rises to 8.5%
Sweden’s unemployment rate rose to 8.5% in August 2026 from 8.4% in the same period a year earlier. The total number of unemployed people increased by 19.3 thousand from August 2025 to 505.2 thousand, which consists of 251 thousand unemployed women and 255 thousand unemployed men, corresponding to 8.9% and 8.2%, respectively. Among people aged 15-24, 144 thousand were unemployed, corresponding to a youth unemployment rate of 18.4%. The number of long-term unemployed, defined as those jobless for at least 27 weeks, fell by 36 thousand to 168 thousand, with women accounting for 73,000 and men 95,000. Meanwhile, employment among people aged 15-74 rose by 102.6 thousand from a year earlier to 5.4 million, including 2.58 million women, up 61,000, and 2.85 million men. The average total number of hours worked per week stood at 128.7 million. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the unemployment rate was 8.7%, while the youth unemployment stood at 23.8%.
2026-09-16
Swedish Jobless Rate Falls to 20-Month Low
Sweden’s unemployment rate fell to 7.8% in July 2026 from 8.0% in the same period a year earlier, marking the lowest level since November 2024. The total number of unemployed people declined by 6,400 from July 2025 to 467,700, which consists of 238,000 unemployed women and 230,000 unemployed men, corresponding to 8.3% and 7.4%, respectively. Among people aged 15-24, 138,000 were unemployed, corresponding to a youth unemployment rate of 16.1%. The number of long-term unemployed, defined as those jobless for at least 27 weeks, reached 144,000, including 65,000 thousand women and 80,000 men. Meanwhile, employment among people aged 15-74 rose by 69,100 from a year earlier to 5.5 million, including 2.639 million employed women and 2.868 employed men. The average total number of hours worked per week stood at 104.4 million. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the unemployment rate was 8.7%, while the youth unemployment stood at 24.4%.
2026-08-21
Swedish Jobless Rate Jumps to 17-Month High
Sweden’s unemployment rate jumped to 9.9% in June 2026 from 9.4% in the same month a year earlier, marking the highest level since January 2025. The total number of unemployed people climbed by 42.7 thousand from June 2025 to 591,500, which consists of 261,000 women and 331,000 men, corresponding to 9.1% and 10.6%, respectively. Among people aged 15-24, 280,000 were unemployed, corresponding to a youth unemployment rate of 31.4%, of whom 149,000 were full-time students. The number of long-term unemployed, defined as those jobless for at least 27 weeks, reached 157,000, including 53,000 women and 104,000 men. Meanwhile, employment among people aged 15-74 rose by 98,800 from a year earlier to 5.4 million, including 2.796 million men and 2.602 million women. The average total number of hours worked per week stood at 165.7 million. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the unemployment rate was 8.7%, while the youth unemployment stood at 24.9%.
2026-07-24