In January 2026, about 45.5 million people living in Germany were employed. Destatis’ provisional figures show the seasonally adjusted employment figure fell by 14 000 compared with December 2025. From May to December 2025 the monthly drop averaged 12 000 workers from the preceding month.
Without seasonal adjustment, employment fell by 369 000 (‑0.8 %) from December 2025 to January 2026 – a larger decline than the January average for 2023‑2025 (‑332 000, ‑0.7 %). On a year‑on‑year basis, employment was down 88 000 (‑0.2 %) in January 2026 versus January 2025. October and November 2025 saw a 0.1 % YoY decline, and December 2025 a 0.2 % decline, indicating an ongoing downward trend since August 2025.
According to the Labour Force Survey, 1.86 million people were unemployed in January 2026. That is 195 000 more or 11.7 % higher than in January 2025. The unemployment rate rose to 4.2 %, a 0.5‑percentage‑point increase from 3.7 % in January 2025.
Seasonally adjusted, the unemployment count for January 2026 was 1.75 million, 6 000 more than the December figure (a 0.4 % rise). The adjusted unemployment rate remained steady at 4.0 %, according to the Federal Statistical Office.