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Hours per Employed Person

26

28

30

32

34

36

38

40

42

44

46

48

50

52

54

Click on a country for details.

Average Workweek by Country 2024

Around the world, the average workweek can range from less than 40 hours in length to close to 50 hours. High-income and/or developed countries with a cultural emphasis on work/life balance and adequate leisure/family time generally have shorter official workweeks (some as short as four days) and more vacation days. These countries also trend toward more generous overtime compensation, more worker-friendly regulations, more favorable parental leave laws, and an increased chance of landing on the list of the world's happiest countries. By contrast, countries with longer workweeks, fewer worker protections, and reduced amenities often rank as hard-working countries, but also tend to have a populace that is less happy and possibly overworked.

The International Labour Organization (ILO) tracks a wide number of labor statistics, including hours actually worked per week by both employees and employed people. While these two terms would be interchangeable in most cases, they have different meanings with regard to labor statistics. Employees are people serving either full-time or part-time in a traditional employment arrangement. Employed people, by comparison, include not only the aforementioned traditional employees but also self-employed individuals.

Countries with the Longest Workweeks (in hours — ILO 2022):

Country
Hours per Employed Person
Mauritania54
Egypt53
Gambia51
Burkina Faso50
Qatar50
Lesotho50
Bangladesh49
Kenya48
Lebanon48
Mongolia48

Average Workweek by Country

As the Economic History Association points out, determining the average hours worked per workweek in a given country compared to another can be a challenging task due to differing philosophies on what activities qualify as work and who is considered a worker. However, with enough data to compile and consider, trends do emerge.

As a rule, more high-income countries such as Germany and France enjoy shorter workweeks than do middle-income and developing countries. It is likely that work weeks in the low-income and least-developed countries are the longest of all, at least for those people who can find work, but reputable data are often difficult to obtain.

Countries with the Shortest Workweeks (in hours — ILO 2022):

Country profiles: OECD Countries with the shortest workweeks

The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) is a group of 38 mostly European countries with a high quality of life that collectively comprised more than 60% of the global Gross Domestic Product in 2021. OECD countries are often at the forefront of quality-of-life and worker efficiency innovations, and often blend short workweeks with high productivity.

Denmark

Another OECD country among those with the shortest workweeks in the world is Denmark, which also ranks as one of the happiest countries in the world. Located in Northern Europe, Denmark is known for creating the concept of "hygge," pronounced "hoo-gah," which the country's tourism portal describes as "creating a warm atmosphere and enjoying the good things in life with good people." A July 2021 government report stated that Denmark is seeking to address a shortage of workers in fields including education, health care, IT, computer science, and engineering, as well as skilled positions including business professionals, bookkeepers, machinists, construction workers, and foodservice professionals.

Norway

Norway, another OECD country with a short workweek (and one of the world's best Human Development Index scores), is also seeking tech professionals such as software engineers and hardware developers, as well as engineers who specialize in the energy sector (oil & gas, wind, hydropower). Norway is also known to have the safest drivers in the world, which could serve as a comfort to professional drivers seeking to relocate.

Germany

Germany boasts one of the largest economies in Europe—and one of the lowest unemployment rates. While Germany has far fewer worker shortages compared to many of its European neighbors, professionals including software developers, electrical engineers and fitters, mechanical engineers, medical professionals, IT professionals, and economists have a good chance of finding work.

Netherlands

Another of the world's happiest countries, Netherlands has a profile quite similar to Germany's. Netherlands has quite low unemployment and is seeking workers in many of the same fields, with an arguably greater emphasis on civil engineers and ICT professionals.

Iceland

Iceland is often considered the most peaceful country on Earth. The country's job market is small—the total population is roughly 340,000 people—and is in particular need of workers in the healthcare, construction, IT, and tourism industries.

Country profiles: Countries with the longest workweeks

Cambodia

Among the countries with the longest workweeks, the prevailing trend is that most, if not all, are economies that have yet to fully mature. Cambodia, for example, is still reliant upon foreign aid. However, World Bank points out that Cambodia's 80% rate of employment is higher than the average for East Asian countries (63%). World Bank further estimates that the Cambodian economy can continue to expand if the country diversifies its exports, better supports small businesses, improves integration between industries (for instance, by utilizing domestically produced fabrics in the garment industry instead of importing them), and emphasizes training to develop a more skilled workforce. All of these concerns could be classified as the growing pains of a still-developing economy, but one that also has promise.

Myanmar

Myanmar is in the process of evolving from an agricultural economy to one centered around industry and service. World Bank has determined that one major hurdle in this process is that the quality of jobs available has not yet fully caught up with this transformation.

Bangladesh

Bangladesh has one of the fastest-growing economies in the world and is quickly approaching middle-income country status, with more and more people rising above the poverty level. However, work hours are still long.

Singapore

Singapore has long workweeks but is also one of the freest economies and most prosperous nations in the world. In contrast to many countries with long workweeks, Singapore has a highly developed economy.

Malaysia

Another promising story, Malaysia's economy is growing quickly and ranks among the most competitive in the world. Malaysia may soon become a high-income country.

Note: "Hours per employee" includes full and part-time employees in traditional employment agreements, while "hours per employed person" also includes self-employed workers. All data were downloaded from the International Labour Organization statistics portal (ILOSTAT), most recently updated on 18 Sep. 2022. Each country's data is taken from its most recent available year and displays actual hours worked.

Download Table Data

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Country
Hours per Employed Person
Data Year
Hours per Employee
Data Year
Mauritania542017
Egypt532015402020
Gambia512012502018
Burkina Faso502018
Qatar502015492014
Lesotho502019
Bangladesh492017512017
Kenya482019472019
Lebanon482019472019
Mongolia482021432021
Myanmar472020452020
Jordan472020482020
Botswana472020462020
Guyana472019432019
Iran462020432020
Sri Lanka462019442019
Cambodia462019492019
Tunisia462014
Serbia462021392021
Eswatini462016482016
Macau462015
Mexico452021442021
Turkey452021442021
Tanzania452020542020
Peru452015
Malaysia452015442020
Namibia452018
Samoa452017452017
Thailand442019422020
Colombia442021462021
South Korea442015382021
Nepal442017
Guatemala442019462016
Senegal442018512019
Benin442018
Togo442017
Singapore442015
Jamaica442020422014
Montenegro442020432020
Brunei442020452020
Seychelles442016402020
Afghanistan432021392021
Saudi Arabia432020
Yemen432014442010
Liberia432016492017
Palestine432015382021
Georgia432020432020
South Africa422021
Iraq422021302021
Algeria422014
Mozambique422015442015
Zambia422020452020
Dominican Republic422021392021
Laos422017412017
Nicaragua422014
Costa Rica422021422021
Bosnia and Herzegovina422021422021
Albania422019432019
Belize422019402020
Chile412021382021
Israel412017342020
Paraguay412021412021
Guinea Bissau412018
North Macedonia412021382021
Cayman Islands412014422015
Palau412014432014
Romania402015402021
Zimbabwe402019442019
Hungary402015382021
Slovakia402015372021
Croatia402015382021
Armenia402020392020
Timor Leste402013382016
Mauritius402019382019
Cape Verde402015442019
Saint Lucia402021382021
Indonesia392021392021
Brazil392021392021
Russia392020362020
Japan392015372020
Uganda392017462017
Ukraine392015402019
Venezuela392017392020
Bolivia392021402021
Greece392015382021
Portugal392015382021
Belarus392020352020
Kyrgyzstan392020372020
Montserrat392020382020
Nigeria382019
Spain382015352021
Poland382015392021
Honduras382020432020
Panama382014402021
Moldova382015392021
Lithuania382015392021
Malta382015372021
United Kingdom372015332020
Italy372015352021
Mali372014472020
Rwanda372020312020
Burundi372020
New Zealand372014
Uruguay372021442018
Luxembourg372015362021
Canada362021
Madagascar362015422015
Niger362014402017
Tonga362018362018
Germany352015342021
Chad352018
Ecuador352021382020
Switzerland352015362021
Ghana342015412017
Malawi342013322013
Norway342015332021
Djibouti322017
Kazakhstan312015382017
Somalia312019
Micronesia302014392014
Australia292020322020
United States372021
Pakistan492021
Ethiopia422021
Philippines362020
DR Congo422012
France352021
Argentina342021
Ivory Coast402019
Netherlands302021
Belgium342021
Sweden352021
Azerbaijan342021
Sierra Leone452018
Austria332021
Hong Kong442016
Bulgaria392021
El Salvador452021
Denmark342021
Finland352021
Ireland352021
Slovenia392021
Latvia392021
Estonia372021
Cyprus382021
Comoros442014
Bhutan482020
Solomon Islands422013
Maldives482019
Iceland362021
Vanuatu372019
Aruba402010
Marshall Islands402019
Cook Islands372019
Nauru402013
Tuvalu382016
showing: 156 rows

What country has the longest average work week?

People employed by others in Mauritania have the longest work week, 54 hours. Tanzania has the longest work week, 54 hours, when including data from self-employed people with employees.

What country has the shortest average work week?

Australia has short work weeks of 29 hours.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources