* indicates monthly or quarterly data series

Labor force, million people, 2023:

The average for 2023 based on 178 countries was 20.4 million people. The highest value was in China: 781.1 million people and the lowest value was in Tonga: 0.04 million people. The indicator is available from 1991 to 2023. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Measure: million people; Source: The World Bank
Select indicator
* indicates monthly or quarterly data series


Countries Labor force, 2023 Global rank Available data
China 781.1 1 1991 - 2023
India 596.41 2 1991 - 2023
USA 170.72 3 1991 - 2023
Indonesia 142.69 4 1991 - 2023
Brazil 106.13 5 1991 - 2023
Pakistan 82.19 6 1991 - 2023
Nigeria 78.81 7 1991 - 2023
Russia 72.46 8 1991 - 2023
Bangladesh 71.44 9 1991 - 2023
Japan 69.21 10 1991 - 2023
Ethiopia 62.65 11 1991 - 2023
Mexico 59.93 12 1991 - 2023
Vietnam 55.97 13 1991 - 2023
Philippines 49.41 14 1991 - 2023
Germany 44.18 15 1991 - 2023
Thailand 40.82 16 1991 - 2023
DR Congo 37.51 17 1991 - 2023
Turkey 35.59 18 1991 - 2023
UK 35.19 19 1991 - 2023
Egypt 34.06 20 1991 - 2023
France 31.98 21 1991 - 2023
Tanzania 31.05 22 1991 - 2023
Iran 29.79 23 1991 - 2023
South Korea 29.7 24 1991 - 2023
South Africa 27.14 25 1991 - 2023
Colombia 26.29 26 1991 - 2023
Italy 25.79 27 1991 - 2023
Kenya 25.52 28 1991 - 2023
Spain 24.15 29 1991 - 2023
Burma 22.66 30 1991 - 2023
Canada 22.14 31 1991 - 2023
Argentina 21.53 32 1991 - 2023
Uganda 19.08 33 1991 - 2023
Peru 18.58 34 1991 - 2023
Poland 18.36 35 1991 - 2023
Malaysia 17.75 36 1991 - 2023
Madagascar 16.06 37 1991 - 2023
North Korea 15.97 38 1991 - 2023
Saudi Arabia 15.55 39 1991 - 2023
Angola 15.32 40 1991 - 2023
Ghana 14.84 41 1991 - 2023
Mozambique 14.68 42 1991 - 2023
Australia 14.5 43 1991 - 2023
Sudan 14.15 44 1991 - 2023
Uzbekistan 13.84 45 1991 - 2023
Algeria 13.55 46 1991 - 2023
Morocco 12.28 47 1991 - 2023
Cameroon 11.89 48 1991 - 2023
Ivory Coast 11.79 49 1991 - 2023
Iraq 11.74 50 1991 - 2023
Venezuela 11.42 51 1991 - 2023
Niger 10.19 52 1991 - 2023
Netherlands 10.02 53 1991 - 2023
Chile 9.96 54 1991 - 2023
Kazakhstan 9.81 55 1991 - 2023
Cambodia 9.23 56 1991 - 2023
Ecuador 8.82 57 1991 - 2023
Sri Lanka 8.71 58 1991 - 2023
Afghanistan 8.7 59 1991 - 2023
Burkina Faso 8.63 60 1991 - 2023
Nepal 8.57 61 1991 - 2023
Malawi 8.54 62 1991 - 2023
Mali 8.53 63 1991 - 2023
Romania 8.28 64 1991 - 2023
Yemen 7.59 65 1991 - 2023
Guatemala 7.44 66 1991 - 2023
UA Emirates 7.25 67 1991 - 2023
Zambia 7.17 68 1991 - 2023
Syria 6.35 69 1991 - 2023
Zimbabwe 6.32 70 1991 - 2023
Chad 6.21 71 1991 - 2023
Bolivia 6.07 72 1991 - 2023
Burundi 5.89 73 1991 - 2023
Sweden 5.84 74 1991 - 2023
Senegal 5.58 75 1991 - 2023
Azerbaijan 5.54 76 1991 - 2023
Czechia 5.5 77 1991 - 2023
Portugal 5.45 78 1991 - 2023
Belgium 5.42 79 1991 - 2023
Domin. Rep. 5.29 80 1991 - 2023
Rwanda 5.26 81 1991 - 2023
Haiti 5.22 82 1991 - 2023
Benin 5.15 83 1991 - 2023
Switzerland 5.01 84 1991 - 2023
Hungary 5 85 1991 - 2023
Belarus 4.95 86 1991 - 2023
Austria 4.83 87 1991 - 2023
Greece 4.67 88 1991 - 2023
Honduras 4.61 89 1991 - 2023
Israel 4.57 90 1991 - 2023
Guinea 4.46 91 1991 - 2023
Tunisia 4.37 92 1991 - 2023
Hong Kong 3.88 93 1991 - 2023
Singapore 3.62 94 1991 - 2023
Paraguay 3.46 95 1991 - 2023
Serbia 3.34 96 1991 - 2023
Somalia 3.34 97 1991 - 2023
Papua N.G. 3.25 98 1991 - 2023
Togo 3.24 99 1991 - 2023
Denmark 3.18 100 1991 - 2023
Laos 3.17 101 1991 - 2023
Nicaragua 3.17 102 1991 - 2023
Kyrgyzstan 3.14 103 1991 - 2023
Jordan 3.1 104 1991 - 2023
Bulgaria 3.09 105 1991 - 2023
New Zealand 3.07 106 1991 - 2023
Norway 3.01 107 1991 - 2023
Finland 2.88 108 1991 - 2023
El Salvador 2.84 109 1991 - 2023
Kuwait 2.83 110 1991 - 2023
Slovakia 2.81 111 1991 - 2023
Ireland 2.8 112 1991 - 2023
Sierra Leone 2.8 113 1991 - 2023
Tajikistan 2.72 114 1991 - 2023
Oman 2.58 115 1991 - 2023
Liberia 2.53 116 1991 - 2023
Libya 2.53 117 1991 - 2023
R. of Congo 2.48 118 1991 - 2023
Turkmenistan 2.42 119 1991 - 2023
Costa Rica 2.37 120 1991 - 2023
Panama 2.11 121 1991 - 2023
Qatar 2 122 1991 - 2023
Lebanon 1.92 123 1991 - 2023
C.A. Republic 1.85 124 1991 - 2023
Georgia 1.84 125 1991 - 2023
Uruguay 1.76 126 1991 - 2023
Croatia 1.74 127 1991 - 2023
Eritrea 1.67 128 1991 - 2023
Jamaica 1.57 129 1991 - 2023
Lithuania 1.52 130 1991 - 2023
Armenia 1.47 131 1991 - 2023
Moldova 1.43 132 1991 - 2023
Mongolia 1.41 133 1991 - 2023
Bosnia & Herz. 1.38 134 1991 - 2023
Albania 1.37 135 1991 - 2023
Mauritania 1.18 136 1991 - 2023
Puerto Rico 1.17 137 1991 - 2023
Namibia 1.11 138 1991 - 2023
Botswana 1.08 139 1991 - 2023
Slovenia 1.06 140 1991 - 2023
Lesotho 0.98 141 1991 - 2023
Gambia 0.97 142 1991 - 2023
Latvia 0.97 143 1991 - 2023
Bahrain 0.92 144 1991 - 2023
North Macedonia 0.8 145 1991 - 2023
Gabon 0.77 146 1991 - 2023
Estonia 0.76 147 1991 - 2023
Cyprus 0.74 148 1991 - 2023
G.-Bissau 0.73 149 1991 - 2023
Eq. Guinea 0.65 150 1991 - 2023
Tr.&Tobago 0.61 151 1991 - 2023
Mauritius 0.59 152 1991 - 2023
Bhutan 0.43 153 1991 - 2023
Solomon Isl. 0.42 154 1991 - 2023
Swaziland 0.42 155 1991 - 2023
Macao 0.4 156 1991 - 2023
Fiji 0.39 157 1991 - 2023
Luxembourg 0.35 158 1991 - 2023
Malta 0.31 159 1991 - 2023
Guyana 0.3 160 1991 - 2023
Montenegro 0.28 161 1991 - 2023
Maldives 0.27 162 1991 - 2023
Djibouti 0.26 163 1991 - 2023
Suriname 0.25 164 1991 - 2023
Comoros 0.24 165 1991 - 2023
Iceland 0.24 166 1991 - 2023
Bahamas 0.23 167 1991 - 2023
Brunei 0.23 168 1991 - 2023
Cape Verde 0.22 169 1991 - 2023
Belize 0.19 170 1991 - 2023
Barbados 0.14 171 1991 - 2023
Vanuatu 0.14 172 1991 - 2023
N. Caledonia 0.13 173 1991 - 2023
Saint Lucia 0.1 174 1991 - 2023
S.T.&Principe 0.08 175 1991 - 2023
Samoa 0.07 176 1991 - 2023
St. Vincent & ... 0.05 177 1991 - 2023
Tonga 0.04 178 1991 - 2023


New - World map: Labor force




Definition: Labor force comprises people ages 15 and older who supply labor for the production of goods and services during a specified period. It includes people who are currently employed and people who are unemployed but seeking work as well as first-time job-seekers. Not everyone who works is included, however. Unpaid workers, family workers, and students are often omitted, and some countries do not count members of the armed forces. Labor force size tends to vary during the year as seasonal workers enter and leave.
What makes up the labor force?

The labor force constitutes the proportion of a country’s pool of male and female workers aged 15 years and above who are employed and those currently unemployed but searching for a job. However, it does not include discouraged workers, retirees, and stay-at-home parents. This implies that the totality of the labor force in any country consists of employed and unemployed workers. While employed workers are the set of people who work either through paid or self-employment, the unemployed category consists of those without work, or those currently available for work, and those seeking employment.

Why does the labor force vary across countries?

Differences in the labor force across countries in the world are influenced by several factors. Traditionally, factors such as population size, statutory entry and retirement ages, official school-leaving age, number of working hours and working days, and labor market structure account for the disparity in the labor force of any country. Meanwhile, the existence of seasonal jobs also increases the rate of variation in the labor force from time to time. Countries with high seasonal employment opportunities may tend to have higher labor capacity at one time than other nations.

Furthermore, the economic conditions of countries also determine the number of employed and unemployed workers in the labor force. This is because during a recessionary era, industries tend to lay off workers, which raises the level of unemployment relative to the total population. Meanwhile, periods of an economic boom come with job opportunities that absorb workers.

In addition, geopolitical risks such as wars, conflicts, and terrorism also contribute to variations in the labor force among countries. For instance, countries with high geopolitical uncertainties are likely to have a small labor force since most employed workers may migrate to another nation for their safety, whereas those that are less confronted by geopolitical upheavals may have a large workforce.

If you are interested in global labor regulations and policies, you can visit the International Labour Organization page.



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781.10
596.41
170.72
142.69
106.13
82.19
78.81
72.46
71.44
69.21
62.65
59.93
55.97
49.41
44.18
40.82
37.51
35.59
35.19
34.06
31.98
31.05
29.79
29.70
27.14
26.29
25.79
25.52
24.15
22.66
22.14
21.53
19.08
18.58
18.36
17.75
16.06
15.97
15.55
15.32
14.84
14.68
14.50
14.15
13.84
13.55
12.28
11.89
11.79
11.74
11.42
10.19
10.02
9.96
9.81
9.23
8.82
8.71
8.70
8.63
8.57
8.54
8.53
8.28
7.59
7.44
7.25
7.17
6.35
6.32
6.21
6.07
5.89
5.84
5.58
5.54
5.50
5.45
5.42
5.29
5.26
5.22
5.15
5.01
5.00
4.95
4.83
4.67
4.61
4.57
4.46
4.37
3.88
3.62
3.46
3.34
3.34
3.25
3.24
3.18
3.17
3.17
3.14
3.10
3.09
3.07
3.01
2.88
2.84
2.83
2.81
2.80
2.80
2.72
2.58
2.53
2.53
2.48
2.42
2.37
2.11
2.00
1.92
1.85
1.84
1.76
1.74
1.67
1.57
1.52
1.47
1.43
1.41
1.38
1.37
1.18
1.17
1.11
1.08
1.06
0.98
0.97
0.97
0.92
0.80
0.77
0.76
0.74
0.73
0.65
0.61
0.59
0.43
0.42
0.42
0.40
0.39
0.35
0.31
0.30
0.28
0.27
0.26
0.25
0.24
0.24
0.23
0.23
0.22
0.19
0.14
0.14
0.13
0.10
0.08
0.07
0.05
0.04
0
195.3
390.6
585.8
781.1


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