RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s unemployment rate fell to 6.4 percent during the first quarter of 2026, with unemployment among Saudi women declining to 9 percent, according to the latest Labor Force Survey released by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT).

The report showed that the Saudi unemployment rate decreased by 0.8 percentage points compared with the fourth quarter of 2025. Female unemployment recorded the strongest quarterly improvement, falling by 1.3 percentage points.

Figure from GASTAT’s report showing the drops in unemployment rate among Saudis aged 25-54.

Among Saudi men, the unemployment rate dropped to 4.9 percent, representing a quarterly decline of 0.7 percentage points. Their labor force participation rate reached 64.2 percent, while the employment-to-population ratio stood at 61.0 percent.

Across the Kingdom, the overall unemployment rate for both Saudis and non-Saudis declined to 3.1 percent, down 0.4 percentage points from the previous quarter. The overall labor force participation rate reached 67.2 percent.

The Saudi labor force participation rate stood at 49 percent, a decrease of 0.5 percentage points from the previous quarter, while the employment-to-population ratio recorded 45.8 percent, reflecting a slight decline of 0.1 percentage point.

Figure from GASTAT’s report showing the changes in unemployment rate among Saudis aged 55 and over.

The survey also highlighted continued improvements in youth employment. Unemployment among Saudi women aged 15 to 24 fell by 2 percentage points to 20.4 percent, while the rate for Saudi men in the same age group declined by 1.2 percentage points to 13.8 percent.

Among Saudis aged 25 to 54, the unemployment rate stood at 5.1 percent. The employment-to-population ratio for this age group reached 63.3 percent, while labor force participation was 66.7 percent.

According to GASTAT, unemployed Saudis used an average of three active job-search methods. The most common approach was submitting applications directly to employers, used by 74.6 percent of job seekers. This was followed by the Unified National Employment Platform (Jadarat) at 55.2 percent and professional social networking platforms at 48.5 percent.

Figure from GASTAT’s report showing the changes in unemployment rate among Saudis aged 15-24

The survey further found that 95.8 percent of unemployed Saudis said they would accept employment in the private sector.

In terms of commuting and working conditions, 60.4 percent of unemployed Saudi women and 45.3 percent of unemployed Saudi men said they would accept a commute of up to one hour. Meanwhile, 68.2 percent of women and 82.8 percent of men indicated they were willing to work eight hours or more per day.