Approximately 1.883 million people are unemployed in the UK. This figure comes from the latest official data covering October to December 2025, released just yesterday by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Latest Figures

The ONS reports the unemployment rate rose to 5.2% for people aged 16 and over, up 0.2 percentage points from the previous quarter and 0.8 points higher than a year ago.

This marks the highest level in nearly five years , nearing January 2021 pandemic peaks, with the absolute number of unemployed individuals hitting 1,883,000 (with a margin of error of ±98,000).

Meanwhile, the employment rate for ages 16-64 dipped slightly to 75.0% , and economic inactivity fell to 20.8% (9.042 million people).

Key Metric (Oct-Dec 2025)ValueChange from Prior QuarterChange from Year Ago
Unemployment (thousands, 16+)1,883 ±98+94 ±109+331 ±139
Unemployment rate (16+)5.2% ±0.3+0.2 ±0.3+0.8 ±0.4
Employment rate (16-64)75.0% ±0.4-0.1 ±0.40.0 ±0.7
Economic inactivity (thousands, 16-64)9,042 ±181-38 ±157-241 ±263
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Why the Rise?

Experts point to softening job markets, with payrolled employment dropping for 10 of the last 14 months—especially in retail and hospitality (over 120,000 fewer jobs since January 2025).

Hiring has slowed dramatically, down 16% from pre-pandemic levels, creating a 2.6 unemployed people per vacancy ratio—the highest in a decade outside COVID.

Wage growth is decelerating too, fueling talks of Bank of England rate cuts this spring from the current 3.75%, as inflation eases.

Broader Context

This uptick bucks earlier stability; for instance, November 2025 saw 1.683 million unemployed at 5.1%.

If trends hold into early 2026, figures could climb further amid economic headwinds—though ONS notes revisions are common.

TL;DR at bottom: 1.883 million unemployed at 5.2% rate as of late 2025; jobs market cooling fast.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.