Productivity: output per hour worked in United States
United States: Productivity: output per hour worked was 83.53 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in 2023. ▲ Rising
Productivity: output per hour worked in United States, 1950–2023
Source: Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in international-$ in 2021 prices per hour.
Analysis
United States recorded 83.53 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour for productivity: output per hour worked in 2023. That is the highest value across all 74 years on record.
The figure is up 1.9% on the previous year and up 12.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, productivity: output per hour worked in United States peaked at 83.53 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in 2023 and was at its lowest, 21.58 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour, in 1950.
That places United States 9th out of 130 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 24.18 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 21.58 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 27.3 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 1960s | 31.96 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 27.87 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 35.25 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 1970s | 39.68 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 35.99 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 42.2 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 1980s | 45.01 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 42.21 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 47.6 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 1990s | 52.31 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 48.25 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 57.53 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 2000s | 65.29 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 59.15 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 71.02 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 2010s | 74.91 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 72.94 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 77.74 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 2020s | 82.22 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 81.08 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 83.53 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 4 |
Countries ranked near United States
- 6 Netherlands 84.8 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
- 7 Luxembourg 84.76 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
- 8 Belgium 84.4 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
- 10 Germany 82.5 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
- 11 Sweden 80.74 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
- 12 France 77.67 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
More work & labour data for United States
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 56.3% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15+) 67.1% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 61.7% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) 50.4% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) 51.3% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) 50.8% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) 78.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15-6 73.7% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 69.0% (2025)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) 84.0% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is productivity: output per hour worked in United States?
- Productivity: output per hour worked in United States was 83.53 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in 2023, according to Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest productivity: output per hour worked recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 83.53 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in 2023.
- What is the lowest productivity: output per hour worked recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 21.58 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in 1950.
- How does United States rank for productivity: output per hour worked?
- United States ranks 9th out of 130 countries with data for 2023.
- Is productivity: output per hour worked rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is up 12.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United States data come from?
- The figures come from Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Productivity: output per hour worked. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Productivity is calculated as GDP divided by the total number of hours worked in the economy. This data is adjusted for inflation and differences in living costs between countries.