In December 2025, Colombia created 603,000 new jobs, lowering the unemployment rate to 8.0%, a drop of 1.1 percentage points from 2024. Yet, 55.5% of workers, or about 13.45 million people, remain in informal employment. Experts note progress but warn of ongoing structural challenges in the labor market.
The National Administrative Department of Statistics (Dane) reported that by December 2025, the occupied population reached 24.2 million people, with 2.1 million unemployed, equivalent to an 8.0% national rate. This figure shows annual improvement, as unemployment in December 2024 was 9.1%. The addition of 603,000 jobs marks a 2.6% year-over-year increase, driven mainly by manufacturing industries, which contributed 2.2 percentage points, and sectors like public administration, education, and health, each adding 0.5 points.
Despite these gains, labor informality remains a dominant issue. Of the employed, 13.45 million work informally, an increase of 52,000 people from the previous year, while 10.7 million hold formal jobs. Andi president Bruce Mac Master stated: “While there was job creation, important challenges persist, such as high labor informality and the need to create more and better employment opportunities.”
By sector, agriculture, livestock, and fishing lead with 85% informality, followed by lodging and food services at 76.2%. In cities, Sincelejo has 67.9%, while Bogotá records the lowest at 35%. Dane director Piedad Urdinola noted: “The cities with the highest proportion of informally occupied population for October-December 2025 are Sincelejo (67.9%), followed by Valledupar (66%) and Cúcuta (63.6%).”
Davibank economist Valentina Guio remarked: “Despite the improvement in informality, with an annual average of 55.7%, participation and occupation levels remain below pre-pandemic records.” Annually, the participation rate was 64.3% and occupation 58.6%. The highest unemployment rates were in Quibdó (23.1%) and Cartagena (14.1%).
