Labor force, total in Italy
Italy: Labor force, total was 25.66 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Labor force, total in Italy, 1990–2025
Source: International Labour Organization (ILO), type: estimates based on external database.
Analysis
Italy recorded 25.66 million for labor force, total in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.4% on the previous year and up 1.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, labor force, total in Italy peaked at 25.81 million in 2023 and was at its lowest, 22.75 million, in 1995.
Italy ranks 27th of 186 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 36 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 23.25 million | 22.75 million | 24.07 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 24.20 million | 23.34 million | 24.90 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 25.33 million | 24.68 million | 25.78 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 25.43 million | 24.98 million | 25.81 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Italy
More education data for Italy
- Population ages 15-64 63.2% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 11.7% (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 11 years (2025)
- School enrollment, primary 103.6% (2023)
- Primary education, teachers 250,961 (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, female 103.0% (2023)
- School enrollment, primary, male 104.1% (2023)
- Labor force, female 42.6% (2025)
- School enrollment, primary (gross), gender parity index 0.9992 GPI (2020)
Frequently asked questions
- What is labor force, total in Italy?
- Labor force, total in Italy was 25.66 million in 2025, according to International Labour Organization (ILO), type: estimates based on external database.
- What is the highest labor force, total recorded in Italy?
- The highest recorded value was 25.81 million in 2023.
- What is the lowest labor force, total recorded in Italy?
- The lowest recorded value was 22.75 million in 1995.
- How does Italy rank for labor force, total?
- Italy ranks 27th out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
- Is labor force, total rising or falling in Italy?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Italy data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization (ILO), type: estimates based on external database, published as part of Labor force, total. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 36 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
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.