India’s September unemployment rate holds at 5.0%
India’s unemployment rate stayed at 5.0% in September 2026, while the urban rate edged up to 6.9%.
AI-generated representative illustration of India’s monthly employment and unemployment statistics; the people shown are not survey participants. Image: MyNilgiris / OpenAI.
Summary: India’s unemployment rate for people aged 15 and above remained at 5.0% in September 2026, unchanged from August, according to the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS).
Urban unemployment edged up to 6.9%. Rural unemployment stood at 4.2%, lower than the 4.6% recorded in September 2025.
Key figures
- Overall unemployment rate: 5.0%, unchanged from August.
- Urban unemployment rate: 6.9%.
- Rural unemployment rate: 4.2%.
- Labour-force participation rate: 55.5%, compared with 55.6% in August.
What the figure means: The 5.0% rate is not a share of the entire population. It estimates the proportion of the labour force—people working or seeking work—who were without work and available for it under the PLFS Current Weekly Status approach.
Image disclosure: The workers, job seekers and abstract statistical charts are an AI-generated representative illustration created by MyNilgiris/OpenAI. The people shown are not survey participants.
Verified sources:
Method note: These are survey-based estimates and may be revised in later releases.
