Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Sunday, Oct 05, 2025

Saudi unemployment rises to 9.9% in Q3

Saudi unemployment rises to 9.9% in Q3

The unemployment rate of Saudi nationals in the third quarter of 2022 has risen to 9.9 percent, compared to 9.7 percent in the second quarter of this year, according to data released by the General Authority for Statistics.
The GASTAT report noted that the unemployment rate of the total population in Saudi Arabia remained unchanged at 5.8 percent in the third quarter.

This data comes as the labor force participation rate of Saudis increased by 0.7 percentage points to 52.5 percent, and the employment-to-population ratio of Saudis increased by 0.5 pp to 47.3 percent.

The GASTAT data noted that the unemployment rate among Saudi Arabian females rose to 20.5 percent in the third quarter, up 1.2 pp from last quarter, and down 1.4 pp from a year ago.

According to the report, the increase in the unemployment rate in the third quarter was accompanied by an expansion of Labor force participation that outpaced employment growth. 

Unemployment rates among Saudi Arabian males, however, fell to 4.3 percent in the third quarter, down 0.4 pp from the last quarter, and down to 1.6 pp compared to a year ago.

Among Saudi female youth, aged between 15 to 24, the unemployment rate fell by 2.6 pp to 27.9 percent, as labor participation rate rose to 1.4 pp to 20.2 percent and the employment-to-population ratio increased by 1.5 pp to 14.6 percent. 

The unemployment rate among Saudi male youth also dropped by 0.8 pp to 10.9 percent. 

“Among Saudi male youth, the unemployment rate fell, accompanied by a contraction in labor market participation and employment losses. The participation rate fell 1.3 pp to 37.6 percent, the employment-to-population ratio fell 0.8 pp to 33.5 percent and the unemployment rate fell 0.8 pp to 10.9 percent,” said GASTAT in the report. 

According to the report, 73.7 percent of unemployed Saudi females and 90.3 percent of unemployed Saudi males said that they would accept work for eight hours or more per day. 

“93.3 percent of unemployed Saudis would accept employment in private sector. Results of the survey showed that 58.4 percent of unemployed Saudi females and 42.6 percent of unemployed Saudi males would accept a maximum commuting time to work of one hour,” added GASTAT in the report. 

The report further noted that 75.2 percent of job seekers asked friends or relatives to procure a job, while 57.3 percent applied directly to employers. 

Newspaper advertisements and magazines were used by 50 percent of job seekers, followed by 48.2 percent who used the Jadarah platform. 44.5 percent and 8.1 percent of job seekers made use of two government platforms, TAQAT and Saad respectively. 
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
UK, Canada, and Australia Officially Recognise Palestine in Historic Shift
New Eye Drops Show Promise in Replacing Reading Glasses for Presbyopia
Dubai Property Boom Shows Strain as Flippers Get Buyer’s Remorse
Top AI Researchers Are Heading Back to China as U.S. Struggles to Keep Pace
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
UAE-US Stargate Project Poised to Make Abu Dhabi a Global AI Powerhouse
Trump and Starmer Clash Over UK Recognition of Palestinian State Amid State Visit
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Kuwait opens bidding for construction of three cities to ease housing crunch.
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Did the Houthis disrupt the internet in the Middle East? Submarine cables cut in the Red Sea
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Cristiano Ronaldo Makes Surprise Stop at New Hong Kong Museum
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
×