Lorraine Williamson
Spain’s unemployment rate has climbed back above 10%, after the country lost more than 170,000 jobs in the first three months of 2026. The latest unemployment figures in Spain show a sharp first-quarter slowdown, especially in services. Yet the wider labour market is more mixed than the headline suggests.
Spain’s unemployment rate rose to 10.83% in the first quarter of 2026, according to the latest Encuesta de Población Activa from the National Statistics Institute.
A total of 231,500 more people were counted as unemployed between January and March. That brought the total number of unemployed people to 2.7 million. At the same time, employment fell by 170,300, leaving 22.29 million people in work.
The rise was larger than expected. Reuters reported that analysts had forecast a lower rate of around 9.8%.
Services take the biggest hit
The sharpest losses came in the services sector, where the end of the Christmas and winter tourism period often weighs on employment.
Reuters said the rise in unemployment was driven mainly by job losses in services. El País also reported declines across areas including commerce, transport and information and communications.
This seasonal pattern is familiar in Spain. The first quarter often brings weaker jobs data after temporary holiday contracts end.
Even so, this year’s increase in unemployment is the largest first-quarter rise since 2013, according to Europa Press and RTVE.
Women and temporary workers hit harder
The downturn was not shared evenly.
According to the EPA figures reported by Europa Press, unemployment rose more among women than men. Women accounted for 137,000 of the increase in unemployment, compared with 94,500 men.
Temporary workers were also hit hard. Around 85,400 temporary jobs disappeared in the quarter, while permanent employment also fell, though by a smaller amount.
That matters because Spain has spent recent years trying to reduce its dependence on short-term contracts. The latest figures show the labour market remains vulnerable when seasonal demand weakens.
Still low by first-quarter standards
There is one important caveat. Despite the quarterly jump, Spain’s first-quarter unemployment rate remains the lowest for that period since 2008, according to Reuters.
The active population also reached a new high, with around 25 million people either working or looking for work. El País noted that employment, when adjusted for seasonal effects, remains at record levels.
In other words, Spain has not simply gone from boom to bust. It is seeing a sharper seasonal correction after ending 2025 with unusually strong employment.
Why it matters for households
For workers, the figures come at a difficult moment.
Spain has seen strong job creation in recent years, but housing costs, food prices and travel costs remain under pressure. A weaker first quarter may therefore feel worse for households already stretched by rent, mortgages or everyday bills.
The impact also varies sharply by region. Andalucía continues to have one of the highest unemployment rates in Spain, while provinces such as Huesca reported some of the lowest rates in the country.
A warning sign, not a collapse
The latest data gives Spain’s government both a problem and a defence.
The problem is clear: the country lost jobs, unemployment rose sharply, and the increase was worse than expected.
The defence is also real: employment remains high by recent historical standards, and Spain’s labour force is still expanding.
The next test will come in spring and early summer. If tourism, construction and services hiring rebound strongly, this may look like a harsh seasonal dip. If not, the return to double-digit unemployment will become harder to dismiss.