Swedish Jobless Rate Highest Since 2021

Sweden’s unemployment rate rose to 9.4% in May 2026 from 8.7% in the same month a year earlier. The total number of unemployed people increased by 48,700 from May 2025 to 548,800, including 274,500 men and 274,300 women, corresponding to unemployment rates of 9% and 9.8%, respectively. Among people aged 15-24, 206,500 were unemployed, corresponding to a youth unemployment rate of 28%, of whom 173,000 were full-time students. The number of long-term unemployed, defined as those jobless for at least 27 weeks, reached 178,000, including 84,000 women and 94,000 men. The average total number of hours worked per week stood at 163.1 million. Meanwhile, employment among people aged 15-74 rose by 73,100 from a year earlier to 5.3 million, including 2.784 million men and 2.515 million women. The average total number of hours worked per week stood at 155.9 million. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the unemployment rate was 8.7%, while the youth unemployment stood at 24.4%.

Sweden’s unemployment rate fell to 8.7% in April 2026 from 8.9% in the same month a year earlier. The total number of unemployed people decreased by 12,400 from April 2025 to 500,100, including 227,000 women and 273,000 men, corresponding to unemployment rates of 8.3% and 9.2%, respectively. Among people aged 15-24, 179,000 were unemployed, corresponding to a youth unemployment rate of 26.5%, of whom 141,000 were full-time students. Meanwhile, employment among people aged 15-74 fell by 35,000 year-on-year to 5.23 million, including 2.514 million women and 2.712 million men. The number of long-term unemployed, defined as those jobless for at least 27 weeks, reached 181,000, including 80,000 women and 101,000 men. The average total number of hours worked per week stood at 155.9 million. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the unemployment rate was 8.6%, while youth unemployment stood at 24.4%.

Sweden’s unemployment rate climbed to 9.7% in March 2026 from 8.5% in the same month a year earlier. This also marked the highest unemployment rate since May last year, as the total number of unemployed people increased by 79,000 compared to March 2025, reaching 565,000, comprising 268,000 women and 296,000 men, and corresponding to unemployment rates of 9.6% and 9.9%, respectively. Among young people aged 15-24, 211,000 were unemployed, corresponding to a youth unemployment rate of 30.1%, of whom 163,000 were full-time students. The number of long-term unemployed, defined as those jobless for at least 27 weeks, reached 207,000, with 95,000 women and 113,000 men. Meanwhile, employment among people aged 15-74 fell by 10,000 to 5.23 million, including 2.521 million women and 2.709 million men. The average total number of hours worked per week was 172.3 million. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the unemployment rate was 8.7%, while youth unemployment stood at 24.2%.