Data / Rankings / Employment rate of recent graduates / EU countries

EU countries by employment rate of recent graduates

Malta had the highest employment rate of recent graduates of 27 EU countries in 2020, at 91.7%. Greece had the lowest, at 54.9%. The median was 80.5% and the figure for the European Union (27) was 78.7%. Source: Eurostat, European Commission.

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Highest91.7Malta
Lowest54.9Greece
Median80.527 EU countries
European Union (27)78.7History

Map of EU countries, 2020

Austria: 88.4 %Belgium: 82.9 %Bulgaria: 78.8 %Cyprus: 78.4 %Czechia: 87.3 %Germany: 89.6 %Denmark: 83.6 %Estonia: 79.7 %Spain: 69.6 %Finland: 81.5 %France: 74.9 %Greece: 54.9 %Croatia: 75.8 %Hungary: 82.3 %Ireland: 79.5 %Italy: 57 %Lithuania: 74.5 %Luxembourg: 80.5 %Latvia: 79.1 %Malta: 91.7 %Netherlands: 89.3 %Poland: 83 %Portugal: 76 %Romania: 76.7 %Sweden: 86.4 %Slovenia: 82.8 %Slovakia: 82.8 %
  • Under 76
  • 76 to 79
  • 79 to 83
  • 83 to 86
  • 86 and over
%, 2020. Source: Eurostat, Employment rate of people aged 20 to 34 not in education or training, 1 to 3 years after completing upper secondary or tertiary education (edat_lfse_24). Boundaries: Natural Earth (public domain).

All EU countries, 2020

Malta: 91.7 %Malta91.7Germany: 89.6 %Germany89.6Netherlands: 89.3 %Netherlands89.3Austria: 88.4 %Austria88.4Czechia: 87.3 %Czechia87.3Sweden: 86.4 %Sweden86.4Denmark: 83.6 %Denmark83.6Poland: 83 %Poland83Belgium: 82.9 %Belgium82.9Slovakia: 82.8 %Slovakia82.8Slovenia: 82.8 %Slovenia82.8Hungary: 82.3 %Hungary82.3Finland: 81.5 %Finland81.5Luxembourg: 80.5 %Luxembourg80.5Estonia: 79.7 %Estonia79.7Ireland: 79.5 %Ireland79.5Latvia: 79.1 %Latvia79.1Bulgaria: 78.8 %Bulgaria78.8Cyprus: 78.4 %Cyprus78.4Romania: 76.7 %Romania76.7Portugal: 76 %Portugal76Croatia: 75.8 %Croatia75.8France: 74.9 %France74.9Lithuania: 74.5 %Lithuania74.5Spain: 69.6 %Spain69.6Italy: 57 %Italy57Greece: 54.9 %Greece54.9Malta: 91.7 %Malta91.7Germany: 89.6 %Germany89.6Netherlands: 89.3 %Netherlands89.3Austria: 88.4 %Austria88.4Czechia: 87.3 %Czechia87.3Sweden: 86.4 %Sweden86.4Denmark: 83.6 %Denmark83.6Poland: 83 %Poland83Belgium: 82.9 %Belgium82.9Slovakia: 82.8 %Slovakia82.8Slovenia: 82.8 %Slovenia82.8Hungary: 82.3 %Hungary82.3Finland: 81.5 %Finland81.5Luxembourg: 80.5 %Luxembourg80.5Estonia: 79.7 %Estonia79.7Ireland: 79.5 %Ireland79.5Latvia: 79.1 %Latvia79.1Bulgaria: 78.8 %Bulgaria78.8Cyprus: 78.4 %Cyprus78.4Romania: 76.7 %Romania76.7Portugal: 76 %Portugal76Croatia: 75.8 %Croatia75.8France: 74.9 %France74.9Lithuania: 74.5 %Lithuania74.5Spain: 69.6 %Spain69.6Italy: 57 %Italy57Greece: 54.9 %Greece54.9
%. Source: Eurostat, Employment rate of people aged 20 to 34 not in education or training, 1 to 3 years after completing upper secondary or tertiary education (edat_lfse_24). Retrieved 2026-10-18.

Full ranking

RankEU countries2020 (%)Change on 2019
1Malta91.7-1.6 pts
2Germany Series break89.6-3.1 pts
3Netherlands89.3-2.6 pts
4Austria88.4-0.6 pts
5Czechia87.30 pts
6Sweden86.4-2.3 pts
7Denmark83.6-1.5 pts
8Poland83-1.5 pts
9Belgium82.9-0.6 pts
10Slovakia82.8-1.1 pts
10Slovenia82.8-3.2 pts
12Hungary82.3-3.3 pts
13Finland81.5-2.9 pts
14Luxembourg80.5-8.9 pts
15Estonia79.7-2.6 pts
16Ireland79.5-5 pts
17Latvia79.1-5 pts
18Bulgaria78.8-2 pts
19Cyprus78.4-2.4 pts
20Romania76.7+0.6 pts
21Portugal76-4.5 pts
22Croatia75.8+0.5 pts
23France74.9-0.8 pts
24Lithuania74.5-5.6 pts
25Spain69.6-3.4 pts
26Italy57-1.8 pts
27Greece54.9-4.5 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Employed people aged 20 to 34 who completed upper secondary or tertiary education (ISCED 2011 levels 3 to 8) one to three years before the survey and are no longer in education or training, as a percentage of all people in that group.

The indicator of the EU target that 82% of recent graduates should be employed by 2030. From the EU labour force survey. Eurostat flags series breaks (most in 2021, under the new framework regulation for social statistics); they are stored as status break.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the EU countries are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

Eurostat. Employment rate of people aged 20 to 34 not in education or training, 1 to 3 years after completing upper secondary or tertiary education (edat_lfse_24). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_24/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-18.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

Eurostat, European Commission. (2026). Employment rate of people aged 20 to 34 not in education or training, 1 to 3 years after completing upper secondary or tertiary education (edat_lfse_24) (EU countries by employment rate of recent graduates, 2020) [Data set]. Retrieved October 18, 2026, from https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_24/default/table

MLA 9

Employment rate of people aged 20 to 34 not in education or training, 1 to 3 years after completing upper secondary or tertiary education (edat_lfse_24), EU countries by employment rate of recent graduates, 2020. Eurostat, European Commission, 10 Sept. 2026, https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_24/default/table. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/recent-graduates-employment-rate/eu-countries?period=2020. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

Eurostat, European Commission. 2026. Employment rate of people aged 20 to 34 not in education or training, 1 to 3 years after completing upper secondary or tertiary education (edat_lfse_24). EU countries by employment rate of recent graduates, 2020. Dataset. Accessed October 18, 2026. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_24/default/table. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/recent-graduates-employment-rate/eu-countries?period=2020.

Harvard

Eurostat, European Commission (2026) Employment rate of people aged 20 to 34 not in education or training, 1 to 3 years after completing upper secondary or tertiary education (edat_lfse_24), EU countries by employment rate of recent graduates, 2020 [Dataset]. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_24/default/table, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/recent-graduates-employment-rate/eu-countries?period=2020 (Accessed: 18 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{eurostat_eu_countries_by_employment_2020,
  author = {{Eurostat, European Commission}},
  title = {{Employment rate of people aged 20 to 34 not in education or training, 1 to 3 years after completing upper secondary or tertiary education (edat\_lfse\_24): EU countries by employment rate of recent graduates, 2020}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_24/default/table},
  urldate = {2026-10-18},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/recent-graduates-employment-rate/eu-countries?period=2020. Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Employment rate of people aged 20 to 34 not in education or training, 1 to 3 years after completing upper secondary or tertiary education (edat\_lfse\_24). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat\_lfse\_24/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-18.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - Eurostat, European Commission
TI  - Employment rate of people aged 20 to 34 not in education or training, 1 to 3 years after completing upper secondary or tertiary education (edat_lfse_24): EU countries by employment rate of recent graduates, 2020
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/10
PB  - Eurostat, European Commission
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_24/default/table
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/recent-graduates-employment-rate/eu-countries?period=2020
Y2  - 2026/10/18
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/recent-graduates-employment-rate/eu-countries?period=2020.
N1  - Publisher attribution: Eurostat. Employment rate of people aged 20 to 34 not in education or training, 1 to 3 years after completing upper secondary or tertiary education (edat_lfse_24). https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/edat_lfse_24/default/table. Retrieved 2026-10-18.
ER  -
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Questions

Which EU country has the highest employment rate of recent graduates?

Malta, with 91.7% in 2020, according to Eurostat, European Commission.

Which EU country has the lowest employment rate of recent graduates?

Greece, with 54.9% in 2020.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: Eurostat, European Commission, Employment rate of people aged 20 to 34 not in education or training, 1 to 3 years after completing upper secondary or tertiary education (edat_lfse_24). Retrieved 2026-10-18.

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