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%.

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%.

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%.