72.7% of people aged 20-64 are employed in the third quarter 2025
In the third quarter 2025, the employment rate of 20-64-year-olds in Belgium is 72.7% and the ILO unemployment rate of people aged 15-64 is estimated at 6.5%. This is what emerged from the results for the third quarter 2025 of the Labour Force Survey (LFS) published by Statbel, the Belgian statistical office.
In the coalition agreement, Belgium has set itself the objective of an employment rate of 80% by 2029. In Flanders, 76.5% of people aged 20-64 are employed in the third quarter 2025. The employment rate amounts to 68.6% in Wallonia and 64.9% in Brussels. The ILO unemployment rate is estimated at 4.5% in Flanders, 7.9% in Wallonia and 13.1% in Brussels.
You will find more details below, with the evolutions per gender, age group, region and level of education.
72.7% of people aged 20-64 are employed
In the third quarter 2025, the employment rate of people aged 20 to 64 is estimated at 72.7%, compared to 73.3% in the second quarter 2025. In absolute terms, this means that in the third quarter 2025, about 4,924,000 people aged 20 to 64 were in work in Belgium. If we look at the population aged 15 and over, this is 5,146,000 employed people.
Men’s employment rate remains virtually stable at 76.4%. Among women, there is a decrease: 69.0% of women aged 20-64 are working (Chart 1).
In terms of age, we see that the upward trend among 55-64-year-olds did not continue in the third quarter 2025 (Chart 2). The employment rate among people aged 20-54 and people aged 55-64 amounts to 75.8% and 62.1% respectively in the third quarter 2025.
The employment rate in Flanders is estimated at 76.5% in the third quarter 2025, which is a decrease compared to the previous quarters (Chart 3). In Wallonia and Brussels, the figure remains quite stable compared to the previous quarter. The employment rate is estimated at 68.6% in Wallonia and at 64.9% in Brussels.
The employment rate of low-, medium- and highly-skilled people amounts to 48.4%, 67.5% and 85.4% respectively (Chart 4).
The unemployment rate amounts to 6.5%
The ILO unemployment rate is estimated at 6.5% in the third quarter 2025, compared to 5.9% in the second quarter 2025. It is not unusual for the unemployment rate to rise in the third quarter, as this is the period when school leavers enter the labour market.
As the unemployment rate is rising mainly among women, the gap between men and women is narrowing. The unemployment rate of men amounts to 6.8% versus 6.1% among women (Chart 5).
In absolute terms, there were about 351,000 ILO unemployed aged 15 years and over in the third quarter 2025: 156,000 women and 195,000 men.
The unemployment rate of young people (15-24 years old), which often peaks in a third quarter as recent graduates actively look for work, rises from 14.5% to 19.8% between the second and the third quarter 2025 (Chart 6). In the 25-49 age group, 5.6% of the labour force is ILO unemployed compared to an estimated unemployment rate of 5.2% in the previous quarter. The unemployment rate of people aged 50 and over goes from 4.9% to 4.0%.
By region, the unemployment rate in Brussels rose from 11.9% to 13.1%, in Flanders from 3.8% to 4.5%, and in Wallonia the figure remained virtually stable: from 7.8% to 7.9%.
The unemployment rate of low-, medium- and highly-skilled people amounts to 15.5%, 6.7% and 4.1% respectively (Chart 8).
Transitions on the labour market
Based on the panel data available to the Labour Force Survey, we can also observe shifts or transitions in the labour market status of individuals. So we see that the people who were inactive in the third quarter 2024 were slightly more likely to be in work or actively seeking work one year later. More information can be found here.
Methodological note
The reported figures are estimations based on a sample survey. They are based on an effective sample of 24,500 persons (respondents) between 15 and 89 years old in the third quarter 2025. This represents about 11,000 respondents in Flanders, 10,000 in Wallonia and 3,500 in Brussels.
The Labour Force Survey is a continuous survey, which means that the sample is evenly spread over the 52 (reference) weeks of the year. The selected respondents answer a questionnaire mainly related to their activity in the course of a given reference week. The data presented here reflect the averages for the quarter.
As the LFS questionnaire has changed since the first quarter 2021, as have the ILO definitions on employment and unemployment, the charts presented here start from the first quarter 2021.
As for all results based on a sample, one has to take into account a certain degree of uncertainty regarding the estimated figures (). This uncertainty stems, on the one hand, from sampling errors, which are random fluctuations due to the fact that the results are based on a sample. Had a different sample been drawn, the results could have been slightly different. The degree of uncertainty due to sampling errors is usually expressed by means of confidence intervals. The confidence intervals for the employment and unemployment rates are available in annexes 1 and 2.
We recommend to analyse the trends over several quarters, based on the reasoning that certain random sampling fluctuations are less visible in this way.
In addition to sampling errors, results based on a survey are also inevitably subject to non-sampling errors. These can have various causes, such as interviewer effects, coverage errors and non-response bias. These types of errors are much more difficult to measure and quantify and must be evaluated on the basis of quality reports and information about the survey methodology.
In this context, we refer to the quality issues that came to light in early 2025 and were discussed following the publication of the figures for the fourth quarter 2024. Over the past few quarters, various measures have been taken to improve the quality of the survey. On this page, we provide an update on the status of these quality-enhancing initiatives.
Although these measures are aimed at improving quality, such operational interventions have an impact on fieldwork and can therefore also influence the results. This is why we are currently adopting and recommending a rather cautious approach to interpreting and describing quarterly developments.
Definitions
The survey is harmonised at European level. The definitions regarding employment and unemployment that are mentioned (see tab “documents”) are those of the International Labour Office (ILO) to allow international comparison.
The employment rate of people aged 20-64 is the share of persons employed in the total population aged 20 to 64.
The unemployment rate of people aged 15-64 is the share of unemployed people in the labour force (employed + unemployed) aged 15 to 64.
Low-skilled people are people who have at most a lower secondary education diploma. Medium-skilled people are people who obtained a diploma of upper secondary education but not of higher education. Highly-skilled people obtained a diploma of higher education.
Annex 1: Confidence intervals for the employment rate of people aged 20-64 (Q3 2025)
| Estimate Q3 2025 | Confidence interval | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Lower limit | Upper limit | ||
| Belgium | 72.7% | 71.9% | 73.5% |
| Men | 76.4% | 75.4% | 77.4% |
| Women | 69.0% | 67.8% | 70.1% |
| Brussels-Capital Region | 64.9% | 62.8% | 67.0% |
| Flemish Region | 76.5% | 75.4% | 77.6% |
| Walloon Region | 68.6% | 67.3% | 69.9% |
| 20-54 years old | 75.8% | 74.9% | 76.7% |
| 55-64 years old | 62.1% | 60.4% | 63.8% |
| Low-skilled people | 48.4% | 45.9% | 50.9% |
| Medium-skilled people | 67.5% | 66.1% | 68.8% |
| Highly-skilled people | 85.4% | 84.4% | 86.3% |
Annex 2: Confidence intervals for the unemployment rate of people aged 15-64 (Q3 2025)
| Estimate Q3 2025 | Confidence interval | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Lower limit | Upper limit | ||
| Belgium | 6.5% | 6.0% | 6.9% |
| Men | 6.8% | 6.1% | 7.5% |
| Women | 6.1% | 5.5% | 6.7% |
| Brussels-Capital Region | 13.1% | 11.2% | 15.0% |
| Flemish Region | 4.5% | 4.0% | 5.1% |
| Walloon Region | 7.9% | 7.0% | 8.7% |
| 15-24 years old | 19.8% | 16.9% | 22.7% |
| 25-49 years old | 5.6% | 5.1% | 6.2% |
| 50-64 years old | 4.0% | 3.3% | 4.7% |
| Low-skilled people | 15.5% | 13.3% | 17.7% |
| Medium-skilled people | 6.7% | 5.9% | 7.4% |
| Highly-skilled people | 4.1% | 3.5% | 4.6% |
Employment rate, unemployment rate and activity rate by gender for Belgium and the regions, last 4 quarters
Access to latest statisticsEmployment rate and unemployment rate
Labour force survey (LFS)
Purpose and short description
The Labour Force Survey (LFS) is a household sample survey, conducted throughout the year. It is based on the responses of approximately 110,000 persons aged 15-89. Its main objective is to classify the population of 15-89 years into three groups (employed, unemployed and inactive persons on the labous market) and to provide descriptive and explanatory data on every category. This survey is also carried out in the other EU Member States and is coordinated by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. In Belgium, the LFS is organised by Statbel. The objective is to obtain comparable information at European level, in particular as regards employment and unemployment rates as defined by the International Labour Office (ILO), but also to collect and disseminate data that are otherwise not available, for example about the mobility of workers, the reasons for working part-time, the various forms of part-time employment, the occupation, the educational level of the working age population, ... .
Survey population
Members of private households aged 15-89.
Sample frame
Demographic data from the National Register.
Data collection method and sample size
Data are collected through face-to-face interviews for the first wave of the survey. Since 2017, there have been three (shorter) follow-up waves to which households respond online or by telephone.
Households with only inactive persons older than 64 can also be interviewed by telephone.
Every year, around 34,000 households take part in this survey.
Response rate
On average, the response rate in the first wave of the survey is around 68% and in the follow-up waves between 90% and 95%.
Periodicity
Quarterly
Release calendar
Results availability: around 3 months after the end of the reference period.
Forms
- Labour Force Survey 2025 (PDF, 1 Mb)
Definitions regarding employment and unemployment
The survey is harmonised at European level. The definitions regarding employment and unemployment that are mentioned are those of the International Labour Office (ILO) to allow international comparison.
- People with a job (employed people) comprise all people who during the reference week performed some work ‘for wage or salary’ or ‘for profit’ regardless of the duration (even if this was only one hour), or who had a job but were temporarily absent. For example, one can be temporarily absent for holidays, illness, technical or economic reasons (temporary unemployment),....
Family workers are also included in the category ‘employed’.
Since 2021, people who have been temporarily unemployed for an uninterrupted period of more than three months are counted as unemployed or inactive, and no longer as employed.
- The unemployed comprise all people who:
(a) during the reference week were without work, i.e. were not in paid employment or self-employment;
(b) were available for work, i.e. were available for paid employment or self-employment within two weeks after the reference week;
(c) were actively seeking work, i.e. had taken specific steps during the last four weeks including the reference week to seek paid employment or self-employment, or who had found a job to start within a maximum period of three months.
Please note: The ILO unemployment figures are unrelated to any possible registration with the VDAB, Actiris, FOREM or the ADG, or to the receipt of unemployment benefits from ONEM (National Employment Office). As a result, they cannot be compared with administrative unemployment figures.
- The labour force is made up of the employed and the unemployed.
- The economically inactive population comprises all people who were not considered as employed or unemployed.
- The employment rate represents employed persons as a percentage of the same age population.
- The employment rate as part of the Europe 2020 Strategy represents the share of persons employed in the population aged 20 to 64.
- The unemployment rate represents the share of unemployed people in the labour force (employed + unemployed) within a given age group.
- The economic activity rate represents the share of the labour force (employed + unemployed) in the total population within a given age group.
The above indicators (employment rate, unemployment rate and economic activity rate) are the most important indicators for international comparisons of the labour market evolution.
Low-skilled people are people who have at best a lower secondary education diploma. Medium-skilled people have obtained an upper secondary education diploma, but no higher education diploma. High-skilled people have a higher education diploma.
Metadata
Survey methodology
- Modifications to the Labour Force Survey (LFS) in 2021
- LFS: Methodological improvements to the Labour Force Survey 2017 (PDF, 99 Kb)
- LFS: Presentation of the survey until 2016 (NL-FR)
- LFS: Presentation of the survey from 2017 (NL-FR)
- Note on the occasion of the publication of the data of Q4 2024 and the annual 2024 results (.pdf)