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Countries Ranked by Labour force size in 1990

Labour force size for each country in 1990, ranked from highest to lowest. Source: The World Bank (CC BY 4.0).

Summary

In 1990, China ranks #1 with 639.91 million people. That is 2.1 times India in second place (307.9 million people). The top five are China, India, United States, Indonesia and Russian Federation. Together the top 10 account for 63.8% of the total across the 187 countries listed. The median across all 187 is 2.36 million people; São Tomé and Principe is last at 16,668 people.

#1
China · 639.91 million people
Median
2.36 million people
Coverage
187 countries
Data year
1990
Last updated
2026-11-14
Top 10: Labour force sizeBar chart of the top 10: 1. China 639.91 million; 2. India 307.9 million; 3. United States 127.82 million; 4. Indonesia 78.08 million; 5. Russian Federation 76.88 million; 6. Japan 64.17 million; 7. Brazil 62.23 million; 8. Nigeria 43.43 million; 9. Germany 38.77 million; 10. Bangladesh 36.31 million.China639.91 millionIndia307.9 millionUnited States127.82 millionIndonesia78.08 millionRussian Federation76.88 millionJapan64.17 millionBrazil62.23 millionNigeria43.43 millionGermany38.77 millionBangladesh36.31 million
Top 10: Labour force size (people). Bar chart of the top 10: 1. China 639.91 million; 2. India 307.9 million; 3. United States 127.82 million; 4. Indonesia 78.08 million; 5. Russian Federation 76.88 million; 6. Japan 64.17 million; 7. Brazil 62.23 million; 8. Nigeria 43.43 million; 9. Germany 38.77 million; 10. Bangladesh 36.31 million.
Share of the total: Labour force sizeChina 27.7%; India 13.3%; United States 5.5%; Indonesia 3.4%; Russian Federation 3.3%; All others 46.8%28%13%47%

China 27.7%India 13.3%United States 5.5%Indonesia 3.4%Russian Federation 3.3%All others 46.8%

Share of the total: Labour force size, as a share of 187 countries. China 27.7%; India 13.3%; United States 5.5%; Indonesia 3.4%; Russian Federation 3.3%; All others 46.8%.

Full ranking

Countries Ranked by Labour force size in 1990, 1990
RankCountryLabour force size (people)
1China639,910,000
2India307,900,000
3United States127,820,000
4Indonesia78,081,000
5Russian Federation76,883,000
6Japan64,169,000
7Brazil62,226,000
8Nigeria43,426,000
9Germany38,774,000
10Bangladesh36,309,000
11Pakistan32,066,000
12Viet Nam31,496,000
13Mexico29,346,000
14United Kingdom28,872,000
15Thailand28,835,000
16France25,871,000
17Ukraine24,279,000
18Italy23,725,000
19Philippines22,438,000
20Ethiopia20,949,000
21Türkiye20,355,000
22Korea, Rep.18,881,000
23Poland17,482,000
24Myanmar17,336,000
25Egypt, Arab Rep.16,098,000
26Spain15,544,000
27Iran, Islamic Rep.15,384,000
28South Africa14,740,000
29Congo, Dem. Rep.14,731,000
30Canada14,657,000
31Colombia13,886,000
32Argentina13,465,000
33Korea, Dem. People's Rep.12,643,000
34Tanzania12,146,000
35Romania8,912,400
36Australia8,500,700
37Kenya8,489,400
38Kazakhstan8,193,100
39Netherlands8,097,900
40Peru7,882,100
41Venezuela, RB7,857,800
42Morocco7,469,800
43Uzbekistan6,909,000
44Sri Lanka6,778,300
45Algeria6,716,800
46Uganda6,667,100
47Malaysia6,301,000
48Ghana6,157,100
49Mozambique5,981,700
50Sudan5,939,100
51Madagascar5,624,900
52Cameroon5,015,700
53Czechia5,000,600
54Chile4,956,400
55Angola4,924,600
56Nepal4,743,300
57Portugal4,740,100
58Sweden4,708,100
59Belarus4,646,300
60Cuba4,287,300
61Hungary4,265,600
62Malawi4,202,700
63Côte d'Ivoire4,176,200
64Greece4,153,800
65Iraq4,090,300
66Burkina Faso4,077,500
67Ecuador4,044,000
68Belgium3,938,200
69Serbia3,754,400
70Switzerland3,600,000
71Zimbabwe3,590,000
72Austria3,525,000
73Bulgaria3,491,600
74Niger3,476,200
75Mali3,433,000
76Syrian Arab Republic3,428,700
77Cambodia3,321,200
78Azerbaijan3,301,100
79Guatemala3,265,700
80Saudi Arabia3,115,200
81Yemen, Rep.3,006,000
82Afghanistan2,974,200
83Bolivia2,937,000
84Denmark2,869,600
85Hong Kong SAR, China2,841,300
86Georgia2,708,000
87Haiti2,660,300
88Finland2,604,800
89Slovak Republic2,595,100
90Burundi2,581,900
91Tunisia2,548,000
92Dominican Republic2,483,700
93Zambia2,397,200
94Rwanda2,364,200
95Guinea2,325,800
96Chad2,284,100
97Croatia2,212,100
98Norway2,116,200
99Senegal2,107,600
100Benin2,052,300

Showing the top 100 of 187. Premium downloads the full list as CSV or JSON.

About the top 10

#3 United States

United States ranks #3 on this list with 127.82 million people.

Capital
Washington, D.C.
Continent
North America
Income group
High income
Population
341.78 million people (2025)
GDP
US$30.77 trillion (2025)
GDP per person
US$90,027 (2025)
Life expectancy
78.9 years (2024)
Urban population
80.2% of population (2025)

Largest cities: New York metropolitan area, New York City, Chicago.

Also ranks #1 in gdp (current us$) · #1 in health expenditure per capita · #1 in imports of goods and services.

Full country profile Weather in New York (Purr Weather)

Profile facts: World Bank (CC BY 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0); weather links go to Purr Weather, another ChowChow Labs site.

Related rankings

Source and method

Labour force size for each country in 1990, ranked from highest to lowest.

Source: The World Bank, indicator SL.TLF.TOTL.IN. Licence: CC BY 4.0. Retrieved: 2026-11-14.

The World Bank: Labor force, total: International Labour Organization (ILO), type: estimates based on external database (via World Development Indicators)

Original data provider, as recorded by the World Bank: International Labour Organization (ILO), type: estimates based on external database; United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Population Division; Staff estimates, World Bank (WB).

Values are shown as published. Provider terms: The World Bank. All licences: Sources & licences.