Finland continues to boast the highest unemployment rate in the European Union, recording a rate of 10.5% in June 2026, according to new data from Eurostat.
Spain also recorded a double-digit unemployment rate for the month, of 10.1%, while France (8.2%), Greece (8.0%), and Sweden (8.7%) all recorded higher-than-average rates for the month.
The lowest unemployment rates were recorded in Bulgaria and Cyprus, both at 3.0%, followed by Poland (3.1%), Czechia (3.3%) and Malta (3.5%).
Unemployment rate
The euro area unemployment rate remained unchanged at 6.3% in June 2026, while the European Union rate held steady at 6.0%, Eurostat noted.
An estimated 13.3 million people were unemployed across the EU during the month, including 11.1 million in the euro area. Compared with May, the number of unemployed people increased by 79,000 across the EU and by 71,000 in the euro area. On an annual basis, unemployment rose by 112,000 in the EU and by 43,000 in the euro area.
Youth unemployment
Youth unemployment across the EU increased marginally during the month, with the unemployment rate for people under the age of 25 rising to 15.5% from 15.4% in May, with 2.99 million young people unemployed.
In the euro area, youth unemployment fell slightly to 14.8% from 14.9%, with 2.35 million unemployed people under 25.
Spain continued to have one of the highest youth unemployment rates in the EU, of 23.4%. Sweden recorded a rate of 24.9%, while France stood at 21.1% and Italy at 18.4%.
By gender, the unemployment rate for women across the EU fell to 6.1% in June from 6.2% the previous month, Eurostat added, while the rate for men increased to 5.9% (from 5.8%). In the euro area, meanwhile, female unemployment remained unchanged at 6.4%, while male unemployment edged up to 6.2% from 6.1%. Read more here.
Seasonally Adjusted Unemployment – June 2026
| Country/Region | Unemployment Rate (%) | Unemployed Persons (000s) |
|---|---|---|
| Euro area | 6.3 | 11,130 |
| European Union | 6.0 | 13,317 |
| Belgium | 6.3 | 345 |
| Bulgaria | 3.0 | 92 |
| Czechia | 3.3 | 178 |
| Denmark | 6.5 | 217 |
| Germany | 3.9 | 1,696 |
| Estonia | 6.6 | 49 |
| Ireland | 5.0 | 145 |
| Greece | 8.0 | 382 |
| Spain | 10.1 | 2,553 |
| France | 8.2 | 2,635 |
| Croatia | 4.3 | 76 |
| Italy | 5.7 | 1,458 |
| Cyprus | 3.0 | 16 |
| Latvia | 6.8 | 64 |
| Lithuania | 6.9 | 110 |
| Luxembourg | 7.1 | 25 |
| Hungary | 4.5 | 217 |
| Malta | 3.5 | 12 |
| Netherlands | 3.8 | 393 |
| Austria | 5.7 | 270 |
| Poland | 3.1 | 551 |
| Portugal | 5.6 | 317 |
| Romania | 6.3 | 512 |
| Slovenia | 3.8 | 39 |
| Slovakia | 5.8 | 161 |
| Finland | 10.5 | 303 |
| Sweden | 8.7 | n/a |
Figures are seasonally adjusted. Unemployed persons are shown in thousands. Sweden’s number of unemployed persons was not provided in the source data.
