Labor force, total in Poland

Poland: Labor force, total was 18.17 million in 2025. ▲ Rising

Latest (2025)
18.17 million
Change on year
down 0.5%
World rank
38th
of 186 countries
All-time high
18.53 million
in 2017
All-time low
17.10 million
in 2000
Years of data
36
1990–2025

Labor force, total in Poland, 1990–2025

05.0M10.0M15.0M20.0M1990200720251990: 17.5M1991: 17.7M1992: 17.7M1993: 17.7M1994: 17.6M1995: 17.5M1996: 17.4M1997: 17.3M1998: 17.4M1999: 17.3M2000: 17.1M2001: 17.5M2002: 17.3M2003: 17.3M2004: 17.3M2005: 17.5M2006: 17.4M2007: 17.4M2008: 17.6M2009: 17.9M2010: 18.1M2011: 18.2M2012: 18.3M2013: 18.3M2014: 18.4M2015: 18.4M2016: 18.5M2017: 18.5M2018: 18.5M2019: 18.5M2020: 18.2M2021: 18.4M2022: 18.4M2023: 18.4M2024: 18.3M2025: 18.2M

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

Analysis

Poland recorded 18.17 million for labor force, total in 2025.

That represents a change of down 0.5% on the previous year and down 1.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, labor force, total in Poland peaked at 18.53 million in 2017 and was at its lowest, 17.10 million, in 2000.

That places Poland 38th out of 186 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.

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

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 17.52 million 17.32 million 17.74 million 10
2000s 17.42 million 17.10 million 17.89 million 10
2010s 18.38 million 18.14 million 18.53 million 10
2020s 18.30 million 18.17 million 18.45 million 6

Countries ranked near Poland

  1. 35 Peru 19.24 million compare
  2. 36 Malaysia 18.72 million compare
  3. 37 Saudi Arabia 18.38 million compare
  4. 39 North Korea 17.70 million compare
  5. 40 Madagascar 17.09 million compare
  6. 41 Angola 16.32 million compare

See the full ranking of 234 places →

More education data for Poland

All data for Poland →

Frequently asked questions

What is labor force, total in Poland?
Labor force, total in Poland was 18.17 million in 2025, according to International Labour Organization (ILO), type: estimates based on external database.
What is the highest labor force, total recorded in Poland?
The highest recorded value was 18.53 million in 2017.
What is the lowest labor force, total recorded in Poland?
The lowest recorded value was 17.10 million in 2000.
How does Poland rank for labor force, total?
Poland ranks 38th out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
Is labor force, total rising or falling in Poland?
Over the last ten years it is down 1.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Poland 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.

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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.