Ireland’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate stood at 5.0% in September 2026, unchanged from the previous two months and slightly higher than the 4.9% recorded in September 2025. The total number of unemployed people rose by 900 compared with August and by 5,800 year-on-year, reaching 149,500.
By gender, the unemployment rate for women remained stable at 5.2% relative to August, though the number of unemployed women fell by 300 to 72,800. In contrast, the unemployment rate for men inched up to 4.9% from 4.8%, with the number of unemployed men increasing by 1,200 to 76,700.
Among young people aged 15–24, the unemployment rate ticked up to 12.5% from 12.4% in August. For those aged 25–74, the rate was unchanged at 4.0%.
