The number of unemployed persons in The United Kingdom increased to 1667.40 Thousand in February of 2026 from 1650.30 Thousand in January of 2026. Unemployed Persons in the United Kingdom averaged 1549.73 Thousand from 1971 until 2026, reaching an all time high of 3090.00 Thousand in July of 1986 and a record low of 422.60 Thousand in December of 1973. source: Office for National Statistics

Unemployed Persons in the United Kingdom is expected to be 1710.00 Thousand by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. In the long-term, the United Kingdom Unemployed Persons is projected to trend around 1810.00 Thousand in 2027, according to our econometric models.



Related Last Previous Unit Reference
Average Weekly Hours 31.70 31.80 Hours Feb 2026
Claimant Count Change 26.80 17.10 Thousand Mar 2026
Employed Persons 34328.00 34310.00 Thousand Feb 2026
Employment Change 25.00 84.00 Thousand Feb 2026
Employment Rate 75.00 75.10 percent Feb 2026
Full Time Employment 25584.00 25523.00 Thousand Feb 2026
Job Vacancies 711.00 721.00 Thousand Feb 2026
Labor Force Participation Rate 79.00 79.30 percent Feb 2026
Labour Costs 112.70 110.70 points Sep 2025
HMRC Payrolls Change -11.00 -5.66 Thousand Mar 2026
Part Time Employment 8743.00 8787.00 Thousand Feb 2026
Population 69.49 69.28 Million Dec 2025
Labour Productivity 99.00 99.60 points Dec 2025
Unemployed Persons 1667.40 1650.30 Thousand Feb 2026
Unemployment Rate 4.90 5.20 percent Feb 2026
Average Earnings incl. Bonus (3Mo/Yr) 3.80 4.10 percent Feb 2026
Average Weekly Wages 745.00 743.00 GBP/Week Feb 2026
Wages in Manufacturing 814.00 810.00 GBP/Week Feb 2026
Youth Unemployment Rate 14.30 14.50 percent Feb 2026


United Kingdom Unemployed Persons
The number of unemployed persons refers to the claimant count which is a full count of the number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) each month.
Actual Previous Highest Lowest Dates Unit Frequency
1667.40 1650.30 3090.00 422.60 1971 - 2026 Thousand Monthly
Volume, SA