Labor force, total in Pakistan

Pakistan: Labor force, total was 85.16 million in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
85.16 million
Change on year
up 2.3%
World rank
7th
of 186 countries
All-time high
85.16 million
in 2025
All-time low
32.07 million
in 1990
Years of data
36
1990–2025

Labor force, total in Pakistan, 1990–2025

020.0M40.0M60.0M80.0M1990200720251990: 32.1M1991: 33.3M1992: 34.2M1993: 34.7M1994: 35.7M1995: 36.1M1996: 38.0M1997: 39.9M1998: 41.1M1999: 42.6M2000: 44.3M2001: 45.9M2002: 47.3M2003: 48.8M2004: 50.6M2005: 51.9M2006: 53.1M2007: 55.0M2008: 57.0M2009: 59.3M2010: 61.6M2011: 63.0M2012: 64.7M2013: 66.3M2014: 66.8M2015: 69.2M2016: 69.8M2017: 70.5M2018: 71.4M2019: 73.7M2020: 75.3M2021: 78.8M2022: 80.1M2023: 81.6M2024: 83.2M2025: 85.2M

Source: International Labour Organization (ILO), type: estimates based on external database.

Analysis

Pakistan recorded 85.16 million for labor force, total in 2025. That is the highest value across all 36 years on record.

That represents a change of up 2.3% on the previous year and up 23.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, labor force, total in Pakistan peaked at 85.16 million in 2025 and was at its lowest, 32.07 million, in 1990.

That places Pakistan 7th out of 186 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 36 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 36.76 million 32.07 million 42.61 million 10
2000s 51.31 million 44.28 million 59.31 million 10
2010s 67.71 million 61.63 million 73.73 million 10
2020s 80.70 million 75.33 million 85.16 million 6

Countries ranked near Pakistan

  1. 4 Indonesia 147.10 million compare
  2. 5 Nigeria 116.58 million compare
  3. 6 Brazil 108.32 million compare
  4. 8 Bangladesh 74.74 million compare
  5. 9 Russia 72.77 million compare
  6. 10 Japan 69.48 million compare

See the full ranking of 234 places →

More education data for Pakistan

All data for Pakistan →

Frequently asked questions

What is labor force, total in Pakistan?
Labor force, total in Pakistan was 85.16 million in 2025, according to International Labour Organization (ILO), type: estimates based on external database.
What is the highest labor force, total recorded in Pakistan?
The highest recorded value was 85.16 million in 2025.
What is the lowest labor force, total recorded in Pakistan?
The lowest recorded value was 32.07 million in 1990.
How does Pakistan rank for labor force, total?
Pakistan ranks 7th out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
Is labor force, total rising or falling in Pakistan?
Over the last ten years it is up 23.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Pakistan 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

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.