OECD monthly unemployment rate in Japan

The OECD harmonised unemployment rate in Japan was 2.4% in September 2026.

Monthly unemployment rate (OECD harmonised) % of the labour force aged 15 and over, seasonally adjusted Data: January 2000 to September 2026 Source: OECD

Japan, September 2026 2.4% % of the labour force aged 15 and over, seasonally adjusted

Change from August 2026 −0.1percentage points August 2026: 2.5%

Median of OECD (38 countries), September 2026 5.9% Middle value of 33 countries

Position in September 2026 36th of 36 See the full ranking

OECD monthly unemployment rate in Japan over time

From

Japan

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% of the labour force aged 15 and over, seasonally adjusted. Source: OECD Data Explorer. Gaps mean no published value; points are not joined across missing years.

Monthly unemployment rate (OECD harmonised) (% of the labour force aged 15 and over, seasonally adjusted), January 2017 to September 2026 – most recent 40 periods; the CSV has all of them
Period	Japan
September 2026	2.4%
August 2026	2.5%
July 2026	2.4%
June 2026	2.5%
May 2026	2.5%
April 2026	2.5%
March 2026	2.7%
February 2026	2.6%
January 2026	2.7%
December 2025	2.6%
November 2025	2.6%
October 2025	2.6%
September 2025	2.6%
August 2025	2.6%
July 2025	2.4%
June 2025	2.5%
May 2025	2.5%
April 2025	2.5%
March 2025	2.5%
February 2025	2.4%
January 2025	2.5%
December 2024	2.5%
November 2024	2.5%
October 2024	2.5%
September 2024	2.4%
August 2024	2.5%
July 2024	2.7%
June 2024	2.5%
May 2024	2.6%
April 2024	2.6%
March 2024	2.6%
February 2024	2.6%
January 2024	2.5%
December 2023	2.5%
November 2023	2.6%
October 2023	2.5%
September 2023	2.6%
August 2023	2.6%
July 2023	2.6%
June 2023	2.5%

A dash means no value was published for that period.

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In short

That is a change of −0.1 percentage points from 2.5% in August 2026.
Since November 2025, when it was 2.6%, the figure has changed by −0.2 percentage points.
Among the 36 countries with data for September 2026, Japan has the 36th highest value.

More for Japan

All statistics for Japan

Monthly unemployment rate (seasonally adjusted) 2.4% September 2026 · Eurostat Monthly youth unemployment 3.5% September 2026 · Eurostat ILO estimate of the unemployment rate 2.5% 2025 · ILOSTAT ILO estimate of youth unemployment 3.9% 2025 · ILOSTAT Labour force participation 63.4% 2025 · ILOSTAT Women's labour force participation 55.9% 2025 · ILOSTAT

Source and dates

Original producer: OECD, Infra-annual Labour Statistics
Distributed by: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
Dataset or series code: OECD.SDD.TPS,DSD_LFS@DF_IALFS_UNE_M,1.0 · dataset details · view at source
Selection: .UNE_LF_M...Y._T.Y_GE15..M
Observation period: January 2000 to September 2026 for Japan
Provider update: Not stated by the provider
Retrieved: 9 November 2026
Published here: 9 November 2026
Licence: CC BY 4.0
Attribution: Source: OECD Data Explorer, original data: OECD, Infra-annual Labour Statistics

How Japan compares in September 2026 Neighbouring positions among 36 countries with a value for September 2026.

33 Czechia 2.8%
34 Mexico 2.6%
35 South Korea 2.6%
36 Japan 2.4%

See all countries

What this measures

Unemployed people aged 15 and over as a share of the labour force, each month, seasonally adjusted, using OECD harmonised definitions based on ILO guidelines. Covers OECD members and selected other economies.

Population covered: Labour force aged 15 and over

Full source details and dates

CSV for Japan

The link always shows the latest published figures.