North East England Employment Rate

Employment, unemployment and population indicators for reading North East England property prices and rents in wider labour-market context.

Last updated 5 Jul 2026HPI April 2026Rents May 2026Sold prices April 2026
Employment rate
71.1%
Aged 16-64
Unemployment rate
5.4%
Economically active
Economic inactivity
25.1%
Aged 16-64
Resident population
2,760,678
ONS 2024
Feb 2026-Apr 2026 / ASHE 2025

North East England labour-market context

Employment data does not predict house prices by itself, but it helps frame affordability and local economic context.

Resident population
2,760,678
ONS 2024
Median resident annual pay
£35,989
North East England
Median resident weekly pay
£692
Full-time employees
Employment rate
71.1%
Aged 16-64
Unemployment rate
5.4%
Economically active
House price affordability4.5x earnings

Average house price compared with resident median annual pay.

Rent affordability26% of monthly earnings

Average monthly rent compared with estimated monthly earnings.

Labour market rates are from the ONS Annual Population Survey profile shown by Nomis. Where the local APS unemployment value is suppressed, the ONS model-based unemployment estimate is used. Earnings are ONS ASHE resident-analysis median full-time employee earnings. Annual pay is annualised from weekly pay for display context.

Wages and employment commentary · Last updated July 2026

North East England has a resident population of 2.76 million, according to the latest ONS and Nomis labour-market profile. That population context matters because it shows the scale of the regional labour force and the pool of households making decisions about housing, rents, and affordability.