Sweden’s unemployment rate rose to 9.4% in May 2026, up from 8.7% in May 2025. The number of unemployed increased by 48,700 over the year, reaching 548,800 people. This total comprised 274,500 men and 274,300 women, corresponding to unemployment rates of 9.0% and 9.8%, respectively.
Among people aged 15–24, 206,500 were unemployed, resulting in a youth unemployment rate of 28%. Of these, 173,000 were full-time students. The number of long-term unemployed—defined as those without work for at least 27 weeks—rose to 178,000, including 94,000 men and 84,000 women.
The average total number of hours worked per week was 163.1 million. Employment among people aged 15–74 increased by 73,100 compared with a year earlier, reaching 5.3 million people, of whom 2.784 million were men and 2.515 million were women. The average total number of hours worked per week was 155.9 million.
On a seasonally adjusted basis, the overall unemployment rate stood at 8.7%, while the youth unemployment rate was 24.4%.
