The most recent official data concerning the number of jobs is from 2020, when there were 122,605 jobs in Espoo. In 2022, the estimated number of jobs in Espoo was 130,000. Between January and November 2022, there were approximately 113,000 jobs in companies in Espoo based on man-years.
15,141 unemployed jobseekers at the end of 2023
At the end of 2023, the share of unemployed people in the labour force in Espoo was 9.8 per cent, i.e. 1.1 percentage points higher than the year before. In Finland as a whole, the figure was 11.2 per cent. At the end of 2023, there were 15,141 unemployed people in Espoo. The figure was 16.0 per cent (2,092 people) higher than one year earlier.
Unemployed people of foreign origin accounted for 18.2 % of the labour force of foreign origin at the end of 2024
In comparison with the year before, the share of the unemployed in the labour force increased by 1.4 percentage points among people of foreign origin. The employment rate of 20–64-year-old people of foreign origin was 59.7 per cent at the end of 2024. In comparison with the year before, the employment rate of people of foreign origin decreased by 1.5 percentage points. At the end of 2023, the occupational group of professionals accounted for 29.5 per cent of employed people of foreign origin.
Unemployment continued to rise in August, while growth in long-term unemployment has slowed during the current year
At the end of August 2026, there were a total of 19,435 unemployed people in Espoo, and the unemployment rate was 11.5 percent. The unemployment rate for Finland as a whole was 12.0 percent. In Espoo, 2,018 unemployed people were under the age of 25, and 5,990 were aged 50 or over. Women accounted for 49.0 percent of all unemployed people. The number of long-term unemployed people (those who had been continuously unemployed for more than one year) was 7,998, representing 41.2 percent of all unemployed people. There were 653 job vacancies within Espoo Employment Services.
Unemployment has increased continuously since March 2023. Compared with the situation seven years earlier, when the COVID-19 pandemic had not affected the unemployment figures, the unemployment rate in August 2026 was 3.6 percentage points higher and the number of unemployed people was 8,153 higher. Since the unemployment peak in spring 2020, unemployment has not returned to its pre-pandemic level at any point.
Compared with the situation one year earlier, the number of unemployed people in Espoo at the end of August was 6.9 percent higher (an increase of 1,253 people), and the unemployment rate was 0.5 percentage points higher. In Finland as a whole, the number of unemployed people was 5.9 percent higher than one year earlier. In Espoo, the number of unemployed people under the age of 25 was 19.4 percent higher (an increase of 328 people) than one year earlier. The number of long-term unemployed people was 2.9 percent higher (an increase of 223 people) than one year earlier. Compared with the previous year, the number of job vacancies declined from November 2022 to May of the current year. It then increased slightly for three consecutive months. At the end of August, the number of job vacancies remained low, at 653. This was 11 vacancies (1.7 percent) more than one year earlier.
There is a great deal of seasonal variation in the unemployment figures. The number of unemployed people is always highest in June and July. One of the reasons behind this is that new people enter the labour market when students graduate at the end of the school year.
The figures are based on the employment service statistics of the Ministry of Employment and the Economy. The unemployment figures include both unemployed and laid-off people.
Contact information Information Services Manager Petri Lintunen Tel. +358 43 8265211 petri.lintunen@espoo.fi
In Espoo, there were 126,820 jobs in 2019 and approximately 135,000 jobs in 2021
According to the latest information from the business register, there were approximately 20,500 companies in Espoo in the first half of 2021. Excluding limited liability housing companies and agricultural, forestry and fishing industry companies, there were approximately 14,700 companies at the end of 2019.
The most recent official data concerning the number of jobs is from 2019, when there were 126,820 jobs in Espoo. The situation after 2019 can be examined, for example, based on the Labour Force Survey by Statistics Finland. However, there is a great deal of random variation in the survey figures even for the largest cities. For this reason, the figures for Espoo should also be considered a rough indication of the development. The Labour Force Survey is commonly used to monitor employment and the development of the job situation at both the national and the regional level. According to the official figures and those based on the Labour Force Survey, the estimated number of jobs in Espoo was approximately 135,000 in 2021.
Commerce, the software and consultancy sector, education and social welfare services were the largest providers of employment in Espoo in 2018.
The number of jobs in companies can be examined in real time but still rather reliably through the indicator for the number of staff. Between January and November 2021, there were approximately 117,000 jobs in companies based on man-years (Statistics Finland, tailored trend indicator service).
The employment rate of 20–64-year-olds of foreign origin is 59.7%
At the end of 2024, the employment rate of 20–64-year-olds in Espoo was 74.7%. Employment rate refers to the percentage of employed people among the population of the same age. The employment rate of people aged 20–64 was 80.7% among those of Finnish origin and 59.7% among those of foreign origin. Compared to the previous year, the employment rate decreased by 0.4 percentage points among people of Finnish origin and decreased by 1.5 percentage points among people of foreign origin. A person whose both parents or only known parent were born abroad is considered to be a person of foreign origin. A person’s background country is primarily the country of birth of their biological mother and secondarily the country of birth of their father. If neither parent’s country of birth is known, the person’s background country is their own country of birth.
The employment rate of 20–64-year-olds of foreign origin varies greatly according to the background continent: at the end of 2024, the employment rate was 63.3% (13,791 employed individuals) among people of European origin, 62.0% (11,304) among people of Asian origin, 60.8% (1 071) among people of American origin, 54.6% (3,405) among people of African origin and 47.6% (3,397) among people of Middle Eastern origin. There were 779 employed people whose background country is unknown.
The unemployed account for 18.2% of the labour force of foreign origin
At the end of 2024, 10.4% of the labour force in Espoo were unemployed. The share of the unemployed was 7.7% among the labour force of Finnish origin and 18.2% among the labour force of foreign origin. Compared to the previous year, the share of unemployed people increased by 0.8 percentage points among the labour force of Finnish origin and increased by 1.4 percentage points among the labour force of foreign origin.
At the end of 2024, the share of unemployed people in the labour force was 13.4% (1 744 unemployed individuals) among people of Asian origin, 15.2% (192) among those of American origin, 16.9% (2,805) among those of European origin, 22.6% (992) among those of African origin and 32.1% (1 603) among those of Middle Eastern origin. There were 177 unemployed people whose background country is unknown.
Professionals are the largest occupational group among people of foreign origin
At the end of 2023, professionals formed the largest occupational group among employed people of both Finnish and foreign origin. However, the percentage was smaller among those of foreign origin (29.5%) than among those of Finnish origin (39.3%). The second-largest occupational group among people of foreign origin was service and sales workers (19.9% of employed people of foreign origin), and the third-largest category was ‘other occupational groups’ (13.5%), which includes, for example, cleaners and warehouse workers.
Source: Statistics Finland
Contact information Research Sanna Jaatinen Tel. +358 40 5904260 sanna.jaatinen@espoo.fi