How many women and men are in the US labour force?
The share of each sex aged 15 and over who are working or looking for work. The gap narrowed for decades and has been roughly flat since.
Women
56.3
% of population aged 15+
Men
67.1
% of population aged 15+
Difference
10.8
percentage points higher for men
Figures for 2025, the most recent year in the series.
The shaded band is the gap, measured in % of population aged 15+. It was widest in 1990 at
19.1, narrowest in 2025 at
10.8, and stood at 10.8 in 2025.
Series runs 1990–2025, 36 years with both sexes reported.
What this number counts
Labour force participation rate: everyone aged 15 and over who is either employed or actively looking for work, as a percentage of the population of that sex aged 15 and over.
Looking for work counts. Someone unemployed and job-hunting is in the labour force; someone who has stopped looking is not.
What this number does not say
It does not measure unemployment. Both an employed person and a job-seeker count as participating. A falling rate can mean people stopped looking, which is not the same as people finding work.
It does not count unpaid work. Someone caring for children or relatives full time is outside the labour force by definition, however many hours they work.
Age structure moves it. The denominator is everyone 15 and over, so a population getting older pushes the rate down without anyone changing their behaviour.
It is a modelled ILO estimate, not a direct count. The International Labour Organization fills gaps between national surveys with a statistical model, so single-year movements are less meaningful than the shape of the series.
Source
World Bank World Development Indicators. Compiled by the World Bank from UN agencies, the ILO and national statistical sources. Indicators SL.TLF.CACT.FE.ZS · SL.TLF.CACT.MA.ZS.