EconomyCanada edition
Canada's modelled unemployment rate rose to 6.91% in 2025, the highest of six major economies
The ILO modelled estimate puts unemployment in Canada at 6.91% of the labour force in 2025, up 0.56 percentage points from 2024 and above the five other economies in this comparison.
- 20246.35%
- 20256.91%
What the 2025 figure shows
Canada's unemployment rate went up between 2024 and 2025 on the ILO modelled estimate. The rate was 6.91% of the labour force in 2025. In 2024 the same measure was 6.35%.
Sources for this paragraph (2)
- F1 Canada · Unemployment rate · 6.91% · 2025 · World Bank
- F2 Canada · Unemployment rate · 6.35% · 2024 · World Bank
That is a rise of 0.56 percentage points over one year. The figure is an annual modelled estimate, so it describes the year as a whole rather than any single month.
Sources for this paragraph (2)
- F3 Change from previous period · 0.56pp · 2025 · World Bank
- F1 Canada · Unemployment rate · 6.91% · 2025 · World Bank
How Canada compares on the same measure
All six figures here come from the same ILO modelled estimate for 2025, so they can be set side by side. Canada was at 6.91%. The United Kingdom was at 4.75%, the United States at 4.2% and Australia at 4.09%.
Sources for this paragraph (4)
- F1 Canada · Unemployment rate · 6.91% · 2025 · World Bank
- F5 UK · Unemployment rate · 4.75% · 2025 · World Bank
- F8 U.S. · Unemployment rate · 4.2% · 2025 · World Bank
- F4 Australia · Unemployment rate · 4.09% · 2025 · World Bank
The two Asian economies in the list were lower again. South Korea was at 2.68% and Japan at 2.45%. Canada had the highest rate of the six.
Sources for this paragraph (3)
- F7 South Korea · Unemployment rate · 2.68% · 2025 · World Bank
- F6 Japan · Unemployment rate · 2.45% · 2025 · World Bank
- F1 Canada · Unemployment rate · 6.91% · 2025 · World Bank
These figures show where each country stood. They do not explain why Canada's rate is higher than the others.
Sources for this paragraph (6)
- F1 Canada · Unemployment rate · 6.91% · 2025 · World Bank
- F4 Australia · Unemployment rate · 4.09% · 2025 · World Bank
- F5 UK · Unemployment rate · 4.75% · 2025 · World Bank
- F6 Japan · Unemployment rate · 2.45% · 2025 · World Bank
- F7 South Korea · Unemployment rate · 2.68% · 2025 · World Bank
- F8 U.S. · Unemployment rate · 4.2% · 2025 · World Bank
What this means for people in Canada
For people living in Canada, the plain reading is that the share of the labour force counted as unemployed was larger in 2025 than in 2024, by 0.56 percentage points. The data stops there. It does not show which regions, age groups or industries saw the change.
Sources for this paragraph (3)
- F1 Canada · Unemployment rate · 6.91% · 2025 · World Bank
- F2 Canada · Unemployment rate · 6.35% · 2024 · World Bank
- F3 Change from previous period · 0.56pp · 2025 · World Bank
Other official figures for the same year give some context. Canada's GDP grew by 1.74% in 2025, and its population grew by 0.94%. These numbers sit alongside the unemployment estimate, but the data provided does not show whether or how they are connected to it.
Sources for this paragraph (3)
- C18 Canada · GDP growth · 1.74% · 2025 · World Bank
- C22 Canada · Population growth · 0.94% · 2025 · World Bank
- F1 Canada · Unemployment rate · 6.91% · 2025 · World Bank
What the data cannot tell us
The 6.91% figure is a modelled estimate built to make countries comparable. It is not a direct count, and it can differ from national survey results.
Sources for this paragraph (1)
- F1 Canada · Unemployment rate · 6.91% · 2025 · World Bank
Statistics Canada's monthly survey gave a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 6.5% for September 2026. That is a different statistic with a different method and period, so it should not be read as a rise or fall from the 2025 modelled estimate.
Sources for this paragraph (2)
- C16 Canada · Unemployment rate · 6.5% · 2026-09 · Statistics Canada
- F1 Canada · Unemployment rate · 6.91% · 2025 · World Bank
The facts here do not include a 2026 annual modelled estimate. Whether the 2025 rise continued, held or reversed is not yet known on this measure.
Sources for this paragraph (1)
- F1 Canada · Unemployment rate · 6.91% · 2025 · World Bank
Scenarios to watch
- Scenario, not a forecast If the next ILO modelled estimate for 2026 comes in above 6.91%, it would mark a second year of increase on this measure.
- Scenario, not a forecast If that estimate comes in below 6.91%, it would reverse part of the 2025 increase, though it would need to fall further to return to the 2024 level of 6.35%.
- Scenario, not a forecast If other economies' rates move while Canada's holds steady, Canada's position in the comparison could change even without any shift in its own figure.
What to check next
- The ILO modelled unemployment estimate for 2026, when it is published
- Statistics Canada's monthly Labour Force Survey, read on its own terms as a separate measure
- Annual GDP growth for 2026 from official Canadian sources
- Updated 2025 and 2026 modelled estimates for Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States, Japan and South Korea
Verified data used in this report
| Indicator | Value | Period | Sources | Accessed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F1 | Canada · Unemployment rate | 6.91% | 2025 | World Bank | |
| F2 | Canada · Unemployment rate | 6.35% | 2024 | World Bank | |
| F3 | Change from previous period | 0.56pp | 2025 | World Bank | |
| F4 | Australia · Unemployment rate | 4.09% | 2025 | World Bank | |
| F5 | UK · Unemployment rate | 4.75% | 2025 | World Bank | |
| F6 | Japan · Unemployment rate | 2.45% | 2025 | World Bank | |
| F7 | South Korea · Unemployment rate | 2.68% | 2025 | World Bank | |
| F8 | U.S. · Unemployment rate | 4.2% | 2025 | World Bank | |
| C11 | Canada · Consumer price inflation | 3.09% | 2026-09 | Statistics Canada | |
| C12 | Canada · Food price inflation | 2.18% | 2026-09 | Statistics Canada | |
| C13 | Canada · New home prices | -2.04% | 2026-09 | Statistics Canada | |
| C14 | Canada · Central bank policy rate | 2.25% | 2026-09 | Bank of Canada | |
| C15 | Canada · Housing cost inflation | 1.75% | 2026-09 | Statistics Canada | |
| C16 | Canada · Unemployment rate | 6.5% | 2026-09 | Statistics Canada | |
| C17 | Canada · Wage growth | 3.68% | 2026-08 | Statistics Canada | |
| C18 | Canada · GDP growth | 1.74% | 2025 | World Bank | |
| C20 | Canada · Fertility rate | 1.25 | 2024 | World Bank | |
| C21 | Canada · Share of population aged 65+ | 20.26% | 2025 | World Bank | |
| C22 | Canada · Population growth | 0.94% | 2025 | World Bank |
Sources
How this report was checked
- Data: the newest reference period cited is 2026-09.
- Figures were collected from the source on
- Written by an AI model (claude-opus-5-5) using only the official figures listed in this report.
- Automatic checks passed: every number matches a cited figure, every paragraph names its evidence, and there is no investment advice or copied source text.
- A separate quality-check model raised concerns, and the report was rewritten once to address them.
- No person reviewed this report before publication. Automatic checks confirm the numbers, not every interpretation.
- The report has been regenerated 1 time(s); see the update history.
Update history
- 2026-10-27 07:02 UTC — created
- 2026-10-29 14:00 UTC — regenerated
- 2026-10-29 14:00 UTC — approved+published