Iran vs South Africa: Labor force, total

Iran
29.52 million
in 2025
South Africa
26.73 million
in 2025
Iran rank
24th
South Africa rank
26th

Labor force, total over time

  • Iran
  • South Africa
010.0M20.0M30.0M199020072025

How they compare

Iran currently reports 29.52 million against 26.73 million in South Africa, a difference of 2.79 million.

That makes Iran's figure about 1.1 times South Africa's.

The two have swapped places 2 times across 36 shared years of data; in 1990 it was Iran ahead.

Globally, Iran ranks 24th and South Africa ranks 26th of 186 countries.

Individual pages

About this data

Indicator
Labor force, total
Source
International Labour Organization (ILO), type: estimates based on external database
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
234 places, 8,410 data points, 1990–2025
Last refreshed

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.