According to the Labour Force Survey, in 2025 the number of employed persons was 2 869 500, the number of unemployed persons was 272 400, and the number of people outside the labour force was 2 464 200.
Compared to the previous year, the number of employed persons decreased by 28 000, and the number of people outside the labour force decreased by 5 300, while the number of unemployed persons remained almost the same. The employment rate decreased by 0.2 percentage points (p.p.) and amounted to 51.2%. The unemployment rate increased by 0.1 p.p. and was 8.7%, while the share of people outside the labour force was 44.0%, which is 0.2 p.p. higher than in 2024.
The number of formally employed persons in 2025 amounted to 2 541 000, which is 7 800 lower than in the previous year, while the number of informally employed persons decreased by 20 200, amounted to 328 500.
The overall informal employment rate was 11.4% and decreased by 0.6 p.p. compared to the previous year. The informal employment rate outside agriculture was 6.2% (a decrease of 0.1 p.p.), while the informal employment rate in agriculture amounted to 49.7%, being a decline of 1.2 p.p. year-on-year.
The total number of youth population aged 15–24 decreased slightly (by 0.1%) and totaled 670 700. The youth employment rate was 24.2%, representing a decrease of 0.7 p. p., while the unemployment rate stood at 23.4%, an increase of 0.4 p.p. The youth inactivity rate reached 68.4%, increasing by 0.8 p. p.
The NEET rate (ages 15–24) amounted to 13.0%, which represents an increase of 0.1 p.p., while the NEET rate for those aged 15–29 was 15.1% (an increase of 0.2 p.p.).
Table 1 Basic indicators of labour market trends of persons aged 15 and over, 2025
| 2025 | Changes relative to the previous year | |
|---|---|---|
| % | p. p. | |
| Activity rate | 56.0 | -0.2 |
| Employment rate | 51.2 | -0.2 |
| Rate of informal employment (total) | 11.4 | -0.6 |
| Rate of informal employment, excl. agriculture | 6.2 | -0.1 |
| Rate of informal employment in agriculture | 49.7 | -1.2 |
| Unemployment rate | 8.7 | 0.1 |
| Longterm unemployment rate | 3.4 | 0.0 |
| Out of labour force rate | 44.0 | 0.2 |
| NEET rate (15-24) | 13.0 | 0.1 |
| NEET rate (15-29) | 15.1 | 0.2 |
Table 2. Population aged 15 and over, by working status, 2025
| 2025 | Changes relative to the previous year | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| (in thousand) | (in thousand) | % | |
| Total population | 5606.1 | -32.7 | -0.6 |
| Active population | 3141.9 | -27.3 | -0.9 |
| Employed | 2869.5 | -28.0 | -1.0 |
| Formally employed | 2541.0 | -7.8 | -0.3 |
| Formally employed, excl. agriculture | 2368.4 | 2.3 | 0.1 |
| Formally employed in agriculture | 172.6 | -10.0 | -5.5 |
| Informally employed | 328.5 | -20.2 | -5.8 |
| Informally employed, excl. agriculture | 157.8 | -1.7 | -1.1 |
| Informally employed in agriculture | 170.7 | -18.5 | -9.8 |
| Unemployed | 272.4 | 0.6 | 0.2 |
| Out of labour force | 2464.2 | -5.3 | -0.2 |
More tables for this topic:
During the 2025, 50 436 households, i.e. 112 640 persons aged 15 and over, were interviewed.
Rounding rules
The results of the Labor Force Survey are published rounded to thousands, with one decimal place. Total values (summaries) do not always agree with the sum of the individual data, given that the ratings given in statistical publications are calculated using unrounded numbers (which gives more accurate data).
Methodological notes
Labour Force Survey (LFS) is the most complex and internationally comparable instrument for labour trends monitoring, registering demographic and socio–economic characteristics of population aged 15 and over.
The main aim of the survey is to obtaining data on three main, mutually exclusive, contingents of population: employed persons, unemployed persons and outside labour force population.
Active population (labour force) is an additional aggregated category and it includes all employed and unemployed persons.
Activity rate presents the percentage share of active population (employed and unemployed) in the total referent population (aged 15 and over, i.e. in the indicated age group).
Employed persons are the persons (aged 15-89) who, in the reference week, performed a paid job for at least one hour (in cash or in kind), including unpaid family workers, as well as persons who had a job, but were temporarily absent from work in that week.
Employment rate is the percentage share of employed persons in the total population (aged 15 and over, i.e. in the indicated age group).
Formal employment includes persons who have a formal and legal employment contract, persons who are founders of registered companies or entrepreneur shops or perform independently an activity based on registration in relevant government institutions.
Informal employment is considered to be work in unregistered companies, work in registered companies without an employment contract, as well as the work of unpaid family workers.
Informal employment rate is the share of informally employed persons in total employment.
Unemployed persons are the persons (aged 15-74) who, in the reference week, did no work for remuneration, who undertook active steps to find a job during four-week period ending with the reference week and who were able to start working in two-week time after the referent week.
Unemployment rate presents the percentage share of unemployed population in the labour force / active population (employed and unemployed).
Long-term unemployment represents active job search for more than a year, and refers exclusively to the period of unemployment - from the moment of termination of the last employment to the moment of the survey. Any active job search while the person was still employed is not taken into account, but only the duration of unemployment.
The long-term unemployment rate represents the share of persons unemployed for more than a year in the labor force (employed and unemployed).
Outside the labour force population includes all persons aged 89 and persons between 15 and 89 years who were not employed or unemployed in the referent week according to the definitions of employment and unemployment.
Outside the labour force rate presents the percentage share of outside the labour force population in the total referent population (aged 15 and over, i.e. in the indicated age group).
NEET rate – refers to the share of persons aged 15 to 24 (or 15 - 29) neither employed, nor in education, training, in the total population of that age.
More detailed description of the Survey methodology can be found at the link Methodology
The Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia has not had data for the AP Kosovo and Metohija since 1999, so they are not included in the total data for the Republic of Serbia.