Germany's Unadjusted Jobless Count Dips Just Below 3 Million in September

Germany's jobless count has slipped back under 3 million. The economic improvement is not yet reaching the labour market, agency chair Andrea Nahles said, in translation. Registered unemployment fell by 67,000 to 2,994,000 in September, and the jobless rate eased by 0.1 percentage points to 6.4 percent. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the same count rose by 12,000 from August. Both statements are true at once, and the gap between them is the story. For Metaintro readers who are job hunting in Germany or weighing a move there, the more useful numbers are the vacancy figures, which industries show more openings than a year ago and how many people compete for each opening. Here is what the primary data shows.

What Did the Federal Employment Agency Report for September?

The headline figures come from the agency's own press release number 37, published on September 30. The unemployment rate dropped by 0.1 percentage points to 6.4 percent as the count fell to 2,994,000.

The number of unemployed people is 40,000 higher than in September of last year, and the rate is 0.1 percentage points higher than a year earlier.

Underemployment, a wider measure, adds people in labour market programmes and those briefly unable to work. That figure stood at 3,615,000, which is 25,000 more than a year before, although it eased by 7,000 from August after seasonal adjustment. September marked the start of the autumn revival, but a start without momentum, in Nahles's words at the monthly press conference in Nuremberg, given here in translation.

Why Did Unemployment Fall and Rise in the Same Month?

The two numbers are the same count with and without seasonal adjustment, and the agency publishes both, the raw count and the seasonally adjusted change. Seasonally adjusted figures allow comparison across consecutive months without regular seasonal effects, while unadjusted results present the actual development in the reference month.

The adjusted count rose by 12,000 from August even as the raw count fell. In adjusted terms the jobless figure grew by 12,000 to 3.01 million, against the increase of 1,000 that analysts polled by Reuters had predicted.

The unadjusted rate fell from 6.5 percent in August to 6.4 percent in September.

The economic improvement is not yet reaching the labour market, labour office head Andrea Nahles said, according to the Reuters jobs report.

How Long Had the Jobless Count Been Above 3 Million?

The raw count has moved around the 3 million line since the spring. It stood at 3,008,000 in April, then below the line at 2,950,000 in May and 2,936,000 in June.

Unemployment rose by 71,000 to 3,007,000 in July as the summer break began, and it rose by 54,000 to 3,061,000 in August. September's figure ends a run of two months in a row above 3 million.

After seasonal adjustment the count rose by 6,000 in July, by 4,000 in August and by 12,000 in September. German unemployment has risen by some 500,000 over the last four years, and the latest numbers have only paused that trend, not ended it, in ING's assessment.

Where Are Employers Still Adding Job Openings?

This is the part of the data most useful to a job seeker. Employers had 660,000 job vacancies registered with the agency in September, which is 30,000 more than a year earlier. Demand for workers remains weak.

The agency's job index, known as the BA-X, tracks both the stock of registered openings and new ones coming in. It rose by 1 point to 104 points in September and sits 6 points above its level a year ago.

A growing number of industries show at least a slight rise in openings on the year, even though overall demand remains weak. In percentage terms, the strongest gains in job listings sent to the agency came from:

• The public sector, which ranked first for growth in listed openings compared with last year, in the agency's statement on the index.
• Finance and insurance, which came next in the ranking.
• Energy and water supply, followed by manufacturing, which complete the list of leading sectors.

Manufacturing on that list is worth a second look, because German industry faces severe structural challenges, in ING's assessment. A rise in listed openings is not the same as net job growth, but manufacturing is among the sectors listing more openings than a year earlier. Anyone weighing a move into skilled industrial work can read about Germany's skilled worker shortage.

How Many Openings Exist Beyond Those Registered With the Agency?

Not every vacancy reaches the agency, and the IAB job vacancy survey, run four times a year by the IAB research institute, counts the whole market, including openings not reported to the employment agencies. The second quarter 2026 reading draws on answers from 8,529 employers across all sectors.

Germany had 1.02 million open positions in the second quarter. That was 129,800, or about 11 percent, fewer than in the previous quarter, and 35,000 fewer than a year earlier. Outside the Covid lockdowns of 2020, demand for workers had not been this low since 2016.

Location matters. Western Germany had 820,400 open positions and eastern Germany 203,000. About 81 percent of positions were available to fill immediately, meaning they were already vacant when employers answered.

How Many Job Seekers Are Competing for Each Opening?

Competition has stiffened, and across Germany there were on average 291 registered unemployed people for every 100 open positions in the second quarter, which is 14 more than a year earlier and 27 more than in the first quarter.

The ratio is lower in the west, at 279 in western Germany against 339 in eastern Germany for every 100 open positions. The higher this figure, the easier it is for employers to fill roles and the harder it is for job seekers to find a new one.

The weak market also shows up in applications, and the average number of applications for each new hire subject to social insurance, excluding apprenticeships, rose from 9 in 2022 to 16 in 2025.

Why Do Employers Judge Most Applications Unsuitable?

The same survey asked employers how many applications were actually suitable. Of the 16 applications for each hire in 2025, only about 4, or 28 percent, were in principle suitable for the advertised job from the employer's point of view. This share reflects the employer's view only.

The low share of suitable applications may point to a poor match between the skills on offer and what employers need. Poor fit is partly a result of economic transformation, when knowledge goes out of date quickly, and it could also come from sharper competition for fewer openings, which may push job seekers to apply for roles that fit them less well.

The share of suitable applications changes with the level of the role. For specialist and expert jobs, which usually require a degree or a master craftsman or technician qualification, the share of suitable applications averages 23 percent, lower than for helper or skilled worker roles. The most applications arrive in IT and natural science service occupations, and the fewest in personal service occupations.

It looks as if the gradual worsening of the labour market has paused, according to the ING Think analysis.

What Is Happening to Overall Employment?

Unemployment is only half of the picture. Roughly 45.41 million people living in Germany were in work in August, with the seasonally adjusted figure down by 29,000 from July. Compared with August 2025, employment was down by 235,000, or 0.5 percent, continuing a downward year on year trend seen since January 2025.

Jobs that carry social insurance contributions also fell, by 12,000 after seasonal adjustment from June to July on agency estimates, and at 34.68 million they were 84,000 lower than a year earlier. The number of people in marginally paid work, known as mini jobs, stood at 7.61 million in July, 50,000 fewer than a year before. Of those, 4.09 million held only a mini job and 3.52 million held one as a second job.

Under the International Labour Organization definition, 1.86 million people were unemployed in August (4.3 percent), and after adjustment the rate held at 4.0 percent, a level last seen in June 2016. These survey figures differ from registered unemployment as published by the agency under the German Social Code.

How Many Workers Are on Short-Time Work or Benefits?

Short-time work, known as Kurzarbeit, is flagged in advance, because companies must notify the agency of an expected loss of working hours before it begins. Between September 1 and September 24, employers notified the agency of planned cyclical short-time work for 18,000 people.

Data on actual payments runs only to July, when preliminary estimates show cyclical short-time pay went to 118,000 employees, which was 13,000 fewer than in June and about 69,000 fewer than a year earlier. Over the longer term, that level remains somewhat elevated.

An estimated 1,082,000 people received unemployment benefit in September, which is 85,000 more than a year earlier. The number of people able to work who were entitled to basic income support was an estimated 3,704,000 in September, a fall of 145,000 from September 2025. That put 6.8 percent of working-age people living in Germany in need of support.

What Does ING Expect Next?

A cyclical stabilisation should be in the making, ING's Carsten Brzeski wrote. Experimental indicators such as hiring rates and online job offers suggest the worsening of the labour market has at least come to a halt, and traditional indicators show hiring plans in industry bottoming out with a slight improvement in services, he added.

The structural trends are likely to continue, Brzeski added. The high level of bankruptcies suggests any cyclical improvement could be easily derailed, cost-cutting announcements across the automotive industry will only show up in labour market statistics with a delay, and AI disruption could add to this, in his assessment. Germany's economy grew more than expected in the first half of the year but lost steam in the third quarter, Reuters reported.

The rise in unemployment in recent years, combined with job insecurity, offers little room for higher wage demands, in Brzeski's assessment. Workers weighing a pay request can set this against earlier signals from Germany's job market.

What This Means for Job Seekers, and What Should You Do Next?

The dip below 3 million came as the autumn revival started without momentum. The adjusted count rose in July, August and September, and demand for workers remains weak. But a weak market is not a closed one. Registered vacancies are up 30,000 on last year, and the job index is 6 points above last year. The hard part is standing out, since employers judged almost three in four applications unsuitable for the role in 2025.

Here is what we would do:

• Follow the sectors that are adding openings. The public sector, finance and insurance, energy and water, and manufacturing lead the percentage growth in listed vacancies. If your skills transfer, aim there first.
• Apply narrowly, not widely. With 16 applications for each hire in 2025, put your time into roles that match your qualifications rather than a long list of near misses.
• Weigh location. Western Germany had 279 unemployed people for every 100 openings in the second quarter, against 339 in the east, so if you are open to a move or a longer commute, include western regions in your search.
• Search beyond the agency. The agency's register held 660,000 vacancies in September, while the employer survey counted 1.02 million in the second quarter, and the employer survey also counts openings not reported to the agency.
• Keep your skills current. Poor fit is partly a result of knowledge going out of date quickly during economic transformation, so a recent course or certificate is worth listing near the top of your CV.

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People Also Asked

Q: Did German unemployment really fall below 3 million in September?

A: Yes, on the raw count it fell by 67,000 to 2,994,000, but after seasonal adjustment it rose by 12,000, so the adjusted count moved up rather than down.

Q: What was Germany's unemployment rate in September?

A: The registered unemployment rate was 6.4 percent in September, down 0.1 points from 6.5 percent in August.

Q: Which sectors in Germany are adding job openings?

A: The public sector showed the strongest percentage rise in openings reported to the agency compared with last year, followed by finance and insurance, energy and water, and manufacturing.

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