India: record growth, jobs hard to find
The Indian economy grows faster than any other large economy, but young graduates struggle to find a salaried job. Youth unemployment, informal work, women at work: what the official labour force survey says since 2018.
Scope: India, population aged 15 and over, Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) processed by the International Labour Organization, yearly data from 2018 to the latest published year.
Key points
- Very strong growth. India’s GDP grew 8.0% over a year on average in the latest four known quarters (Q3 2025 – Q2 2026). GDP per person, at constant prices, rose 34% over 2018 – 2025.
- Young people left out. Unemployment of 15-24 year-olds reaches 17.7% in 2025, about 4 times that of the whole labour force (4.5%). It had fallen from 26.2% in 2018 to 15.5% in 2023, then rose again.
- Mostly informal jobs. 87% of people in work are in informal jobs in 2025, without a written contract or social protection. Only 25% of employed people are wage earners.
- More women at work, mostly on farms and in the family. Women’s participation rose from 21% in 2018 to 34% in 2025. The number of unpaid family workers rose from 41 million to 69 million, and agriculture still employs 42% of workers.
- Many young women left out of everything. 40% of women aged 15 to 24 are neither in employment, nor in education or training in 2025, against 12% of men.
How to read these figures
The figures come from the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) of India’s Ministry of Statistics, processed by the International Labour Organization under its international definitions: a person is unemployed if they did not work in the reference week, are looking for work and available. These rates therefore differ from India’s official figures, which mainly use the usual status over the year. Earlier national surveys (up to 2012) use another method and are not drawn.
Informal employment covers workers without a written contract, paid leave or social protection, including the self-employed and family workers of unregistered businesses. In 2025 the survey was redesigned (new sample, monthly results): part of the gap between 2024 and 2025 may come from this change. Quarterly growth comes from the OECD, which flags the Indian series as estimated.
1. Growth among the fastest in the world
Outside the pandemic, India’s GDP grows fast. In quarter Q2 2026, growth reaches 8.1% over a year. GDP per person remains modest: $2,523 in 2025, in constant 2015 dollars.
GDP growth, compared with the same quarter of the previous year
OECD, from India’s national accounts. The 2020 trough is the pandemic.
Source:OECD
Show the chart data
| Period | GDP growth |
|---|---|
| Q1 2012 | 4.0% |
| Q2 2012 | 3.7% |
| Q3 2012 | 6.6% |
| Q4 2012 | 5.9% |
| Q1 2013 | 5.7% |
| Q2 2013 | 5.7% |
| Q3 2013 | 6.2% |
| Q4 2013 | 7.0% |
| Q1 2014 | 6.7% |
| Q2 2014 | 7.5% |
| Q3 2014 | 7.7% |
| Q4 2014 | 7.0% |
| Q1 2015 | 7.5% |
| Q2 2015 | 7.4% |
| Q3 2015 | 7.4% |
| Q4 2015 | 8.0% |
| Q1 2016 | 9.1% |
| Q2 2016 | 8.9% |
| Q3 2016 | 9.2% |
| Q4 2016 | 8.5% |
| Q1 2017 | 6.5% |
| Q2 2017 | 6.6% |
| Q3 2017 | 6.0% |
| Q4 2017 | 6.6% |
| Q1 2018 | 7.9% |
| Q2 2018 | 7.3% |
| Q3 2018 | 6.9% |
| Q4 2018 | 6.4% |
| Q1 2019 | 5.3% |
| Q2 2019 | 5.0% |
| Q3 2019 | 4.5% |
| Q4 2019 | 3.4% |
| Q1 2020 | 2.6% |
| Q2 2020 | −22.9% |
| Q3 2020 | −5.0% |
| Q4 2020 | 1.7% |
| Q1 2021 | 2.8% |
| Q2 2021 | 23.1% |
| Q3 2021 | 11.1% |
| Q4 2021 | 4.2% |
| Q1 2022 | 4.0% |
| Q2 2022 | 16.3% |
| Q3 2022 | 5.0% |
| Q4 2022 | 8.8% |
| Q1 2023 | 7.8% |
| Q2 2023 | 7.5% |
| Q3 2023 | 8.3% |
| Q4 2023 | 6.1% |
| Q1 2024 | 7.5% |
| Q2 2024 | 7.8% |
| Q3 2024 | 7.2% |
| Q4 2024 | 6.9% |
| Q1 2025 | 6.9% |
| Q2 2025 | 7.2% |
| Q3 2025 | 7.9% |
| Q4 2025 | 7.8% |
| Q1 2026 | 8.4% |
| Q2 2026 | 8.1% |
2. Youth unemployment
Overall unemployment has fallen since 2018 (7.7%), but youth unemployment remains high, among young women (19.1%) as among young men (17.2%).
Unemployment rate: 15-24 and all aged 15 and over
ILO definition. Latest year: 2025.
- All
- 15-24 year-olds
Source:International Labour Organization (ILOSTAT)
Show the chart data
| Period | 15-24 year-olds | All |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 26.2% | 7.7% |
| 2019 | 22.7% | 6.5% |
| 2020 | 24.5% | 7.9% |
| 2021 | 20.7% | 6.4% |
| 2022 | 17.9% | 4.8% |
| 2023 | 15.5% | 4.2% |
| 2024 | 15.6% | 4.2% |
| 2025 | 17.7% | 4.5% |
Unemployment of 15-24 year-olds, women and men
As a percentage of each group’s labour force.
- Men
- Women
Source:International Labour Organization (ILOSTAT)
Show the chart data
| Period | Women | Men |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 26.2% | 26.2% |
| 2019 | 23.1% | 22.6% |
| 2020 | 25.5% | 24.3% |
| 2021 | 20.1% | 20.8% |
| 2022 | 19.3% | 17.5% |
| 2023 | 15.6% | 15.4% |
| 2024 | 17.2% | 15.0% |
| 2025 | 19.1% | 17.2% |
Young people aged 15 to 24 not in employment, education or training
As a percentage of the group’s population. Women in 2018: 48%.
- Men
- Women
Source:International Labour Organization (ILOSTAT)
Show the chart data
| Period | Women | Men |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 48.1% | 15.3% |
| 2019 | 47.6% | 16.0% |
| 2020 | 45.7% | 17.7% |
| 2021 | 43.5% | 13.7% |
| 2022 | 41.8% | 11.2% |
| 2023 | 38.1% | 10.2% |
| 2024 | 39.0% | 10.3% |
| 2025 | 39.7% | 12.2% |
3. Which jobs?
India had 477 million people in work in 2025, against 347 million in 2018. The added jobs are mostly in farming, self-employment or family work: agriculture went from 143 million to 198 million workers, while manufacturing accounts for only 12% of employment.
People in work by sector
In millions. Market services: trade, transport, hospitality, finance, business services; non-market services: administration, education, health.
- Non-market services
- Market services
- Mining, energy, water
- Construction
- Manufacturing
- Agriculture
Source:International Labour Organization (ILOSTAT)
Show the chart data
| Period | Agriculture | Manufacturing | Construction | Mining, energy, water | Market services | Non-market services |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 143 million | 43 million | 41 million | 4 million | 78 million | 38 million |
| 2019 | 154 million | 47 million | 46 million | 4 million | 88 million | 41 million |
| 2020 | 173 million | 44 million | 44 million | 4 million | 83 million | 39 million |
| 2021 | 179 million | 47 million | 49 million | 4 million | 89 million | 39 million |
| 2022 | 191 million | 52 million | 60 million | 4 million | 96 million | 42 million |
| 2023 | 205 million | 57 million | 57 million | 4 million | 104 million | 45 million |
| 2024 | 204 million | 58 million | 61 million | 4 million | 109 million | 47 million |
| 2025 | 198 million | 60 million | 56 million | 5 million | 110 million | 48 million |
People in work by status
In millions. Employees, own-account workers, unpaid family workers, employers.
- Employers
- Family workers
- Own-account
- Employees
Source:International Labour Organization (ILOSTAT)
Show the chart data
| Period | Employees | Own-account | Family workers | Employers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 87 million | 207 million | 41 million | 7 million |
| 2019 | 97 million | 221 million | 48 million | 8 million |
| 2020 | 83 million | 216 million | 58 million | 8 million |
| 2021 | 93 million | 234 million | 61 million | 8 million |
| 2022 | 101 million | 259 million | 66 million | 13 million |
| 2023 | 111 million | 259 million | 79 million | 16 million |
| 2024 | 117 million | 266 million | 77 million | 16 million |
| 2025 | 121 million | 263 million | 69 million | 17 million |
Share of informal employment
As a percentage of total employment and of women’s employment.
- Women
- All
Source:International Labour Organization (ILOSTAT)
Show the chart data
| Period | All | Women |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 88.5% | 89.7% |
| 2019 | 88.8% | 90.6% |
| 2020 | 89.3% | 91.3% |
| 2021 | 88.7% | 91.1% |
| 2022 | 88.9% | 91.1% |
| 2023 | 88.6% | 91.9% |
| 2024 | 88.1% | 91.6% |
| 2025 | 87.2% | 90.2% |
4. Women and work
Women’s labour force participation has risen sharply since 2018, but remains far below men’s (77%). The rise came mostly in agriculture and unpaid family work.
Labour force participation rate, aged 15 and over, women and men
Share of the population in work or unemployed.
- Men
- Women
Source:International Labour Organization (ILOSTAT)
Show the chart data
| Period | Women | Men |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 20.7% | 73.9% |
| 2019 | 24.0% | 74.6% |
| 2020 | 26.2% | 74.3% |
| 2021 | 27.0% | 75.1% |
| 2022 | 28.3% | 76.1% |
| 2023 | 35.1% | 76.4% |
| 2024 | 34.4% | 77.5% |
| 2025 | 34.0% | 77.1% |
What we know, what we don’t
What the figures establish
- GDP growth is very strong, but salaried employment remains a minority.
- Youth unemployment remains several times that of the whole labour force.
- Women work more than in 2018, mostly in agriculture and family work.
What they don’t tell
- The earnings and quality of the jobs created: these series count people, not wages.
- The causes of the gap between growth and jobs: these series do not measure the effect of industrial or education policies.
- Differences between states and between cities and countryside: this dossier only reads the national total.
Sources
Series downloaded from their producers on Nov 12, 2026, the snapshot date. Only published periods are used: no projection.
- International Labour Organization (ILOSTAT) Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) micro data processed by the ILO: unemployment, participation, informality, NEET, employment by sector and status
- OECD Key Economic Indicators: GDP growth, same quarter of the previous year (India: national accounts, MoSPI)
- World Bank GDP per capita, constant 2015 US$ (NY.GDP.PCAP.KD)