In a sign of the profound changes reshaping Saudi Arabia’s labor market, Saudi women emerged as a key factor in keeping unemployment stable at the end of 2025, helped by higher economic participation and growing job opportunities across a range of vital sectors.
The labor force participation rate for Saudi women rose by 0.8 percentage point to 34.5 percent in the fourth quarter of last year, underlining the success of empowerment programs and reforms linked to Vision 2030.
The gains have strengthened the presence of Saudi women in the labor market not only in terms of numbers, but also in their contribution to greater balance and sustainability in employment, supporting the stability of economic indicators and improving labor market efficiency over the longer term.
According to the latest indicators released on Tuesday by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT), the Saudi labor market ended 2025 on a strong note, reflecting the scale of the economic transformation under way in the Kingdom.
Fourth-quarter results showed continued improvement in employment indicators, lower unemployment and higher participation rates, pointing to the success of empowerment programs and structural reforms tied to Vision 2030.
Based on Labor Force Survey estimates, the overall unemployment rate for Saudis and non-Saudis stood at 3.5 percent in the fourth quarter of last year, up 0.1 percentage point from the third quarter of the same year and unchanged from the fourth quarter of 2024.
The overall labor force participation rate for Saudis and non-Saudis reached 67.4 percent, rising 0.5 percentage point from the third quarter and 1 percentage point year on year.
Among Saudis, the unemployment rate stood at 7.2 percent in the fourth quarter of last year, down 0.3 percentage point from the third quarter of the same year but up 0.2 percentage point from the corresponding period of 2024.
The employment-to-population ratio for Saudis rose by 0.6 percentage point from the third quarter to 45.9 percent, although it was down 1.6 percentage points from a year earlier.
Saudi labor force participation increased by 0.5 percentage point in the final quarter of 2025 from the third quarter to 49.5 percent, while recording a year-on-year decline of 1.6 percentage points compared with the same period in 2024.
Labor market indicators for the fourth quarter also showed that the participation rate of Saudi women in the labor force rose by 0.8 percentage point to 34.5 percent, while the employment-to-population ratio for Saudi women increased by 1.3 percentage points to 31 percent.
The unemployment rate among Saudi women fell by 1.8 percentage points to 10.3 percent compared with the third quarter of 2025.
For Saudi men, the labor force participation rate rose by 0.4 percentage point to 64.7 percent, while the employment-to-population ratio was unchanged at 61.1 percent. The unemployment rate among Saudi men rose to 5.6 percent compared with the third quarter of 2025.
