# Economy and work in Wales One of the four nations of the United Kingdom. 3,175,181 people (mid-2025 estimate) in 20,783 square kilometres. 4 layers about economy and work for Wales, each at the level its publisher released it, with its own date and source. ## Median full-time pay Council level, Great Britain only, 2025. Source: ONS earnings survey. Published for councils, not as one figure for the whole of Wales. The map shows each one. [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/median-pay?place=W92000004) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/median-pay) · [Ranking](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/median-pay/wales) · https://openindex.co.uk/wales/economy#l-median-pay-full-time ## People claiming out-of-work benefits Wales: **65,615** (August 2026, nation level). Source: ONS via Nomis. Published 15 September 2026. In Wales, 65,615 people were claiming out-of-work benefits in August 2026. [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/claimants?place=W92000004) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/claimants) · https://openindex.co.uk/wales/economy#l-claimant-count ## Claimant rate Wales: **3.4%** (August 2026, nation level). Source: ONS via Nomis. Published 15 September 2026. In Wales, 3.4% of residents aged 16 to 64 were claiming out-of-work benefits in August 2026. For the UK as a whole, the figure was 3.9%. - Against United Kingdom: 13% lower (3.9%) - Against the UK: 13% lower (3.9%) [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/claimant-rate?place=W92000004) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/claimant-rate) · [Ranking](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/claimant-rate/wales) · https://openindex.co.uk/wales/economy#l-claimant-rate ## Employment rate Council level, Great Britain only, March 2026. Source: ONS population survey. Published for councils, not as one figure for the whole of Wales. The map shows each one. [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/employment?place=W92000004) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/employment) · [Ranking](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/employment/wales) · https://openindex.co.uk/wales/economy#l-employment-rate ## More on this place - [Overview](https://openindex.co.uk/wales) - [Housing](https://openindex.co.uk/wales/housing) (17) - [Crime](https://openindex.co.uk/wales/crime) (13) - [People](https://openindex.co.uk/wales/people) (24) - [Deprivation](https://openindex.co.uk/wales/deprivation) (2) - [Health](https://openindex.co.uk/wales/health) (4) - [Education](https://openindex.co.uk/wales/education) (2) - [Environment](https://openindex.co.uk/wales/environment) (6) - [Transport](https://openindex.co.uk/wales/transport) (4) - [Connectivity](https://openindex.co.uk/wales/connectivity) (5) - [Council tax](https://openindex.co.uk/wales/council-tax) (11) - [Elections](https://openindex.co.uk/wales/elections) (8) - [Local services](https://openindex.co.uk/wales/services) (3) - [Sources](https://openindex.co.uk/wales/sources) (26) The same figures as JSON: https://openindex.co.uk/v1/places/W92000004/data?family=economy ## How to cite Source: Open Index, openindex.co.uk. Link to this page, https://openindex.co.uk/wales/economy, or to one figure with its anchor, https://openindex.co.uk/wales/economy#l-median-pay-full-time. Open Index's own text and the figures it works out are licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Source data keeps its publishers' licences, named with each figure. Give each figure's period and source with it. Snapshot 2026.10.8, https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23508850. The HTML page: https://openindex.co.uk/wales/economy