Highest Unemployment in Afghanistan

Top 97 cities ranked by highest unemployment

Largest Cities Smallest Cities Most Dense Least Dense Highest Income Lowest Income Lowest Unemployment Highest Unemployment Lowest Poverty Highest Poverty Highest Rent Lowest Rent Most Educated Youngest Cities Oldest Cities Safest Cities Highest Crime Warmest Cities Coldest Cities Rainiest Cities Driest Cities

All Countries · Afghanistan

Highest Unemployment — Afghanistan

1 Rustāq 26 13.4%

2 Asadābād 34 13.4%

3 Aībak 32 13.4%

4 Fayzabad 01 13.4%

5 Lashkar Gāh 10 13.4%

6 Gereshk 10 13.4%

7 Farah 06 13.4%

8 Istālif 13 13.4%

9 Andkhōy 07 13.4%

10 Bahārak 01 13.4%

11 Nīlī 41 13.4%

12 Ghormach 02 13.4%

13 Shīnḏanḏ 11 13.4%

14 Paghmān 13 13.4%

15 Khān Neshīn 10 13.4%

16 Qarāwul 24 13.4%

17 Jurm 01 13.4%

18 Nahrīn 03 13.4%

19 Baraki Barak 17 13.4%

20 Ārt Khwājah 26 13.4%

21 Eslam Qaleh 11 13.4%

22 Karukh 11 13.4%

23 Mehtar Lām 35 13.4%

24 Kushk 11 13.4%

25 Shahrak 09 13.4%

26 Maymana 07 13.4%

27 Kabul 13 13.4%

28 Herāt 11 13.4%

29 Kandahār 23 13.4%

30 Mazār-e Sharīf 30 13.4%

31 Jalālābād 18 13.4%

32 Kunduz 24 13.4%

33 Ghazni 08 13.4%

34 Balkh 30 13.4%

35 Baghlān 03 13.4%

36 Gardez 36 13.4%

37 Khōst 37 13.4%

38 Āsmār 34 13.4%

39 Khanabad 24 13.4%

40 Bāzārak 42 13.4%

41 Bāzār-e Yakāwlang 05 13.4%

42 Khulm 30 13.4%

43 Taloqan 26 13.4%

44 Bāmyān 05 13.4%

45 Pul-e Khumrī 03 13.4%

46 Shibirghān 31 13.4%

47 Charikar 40 13.4%

48 Sar-e Pul 33 13.4%

49 Zaranj 19 13.4%

50 Qarchī Gak 30 13.4%

51 Rūdbār 19 13.4%

52 Farkhār 26 13.4%

53 Zindah Jān 11 13.4%

54 Anār Darah 06 13.4%

55 Tarinkot 39 13.4%

56 Imām Şāḩib 24 13.4%

57 Darzāb 31 13.4%

58 ‘Alāqahdārī Dīshū 10 13.4%

59 Tagāw-Bāy 33 13.4%

60 Markaz-e Ḩukūmat-e Darwēshān 10 13.4%

61 Qala i Naw 02 13.4%

62 Yangī Qal‘ah 26 13.4%

63 Chīchkah 24 13.4%

64 Dasht-e Archī 24 13.4%

65 Qal‘ah-ye Shahr 33 13.4%

66 Sidqābād 14 13.4%

67 Zaṟah Sharan 29 13.4%

68 Markaz-e Sayyidābād 27 13.4%

69 Tīr Pul 11 13.4%

70 Muhmand Dara 18 13.4%

71 Tagāb 14 13.4%

72 Dowlatābād 30 13.4%

73 Khandūd 01 13.4%

74 Uruzgān 39 13.4%

75 Sang-e Chārak 33 13.4%

76 Khāsh 19 13.4%

77 Markaz-e Woluswalī-ye Āchīn 18 13.4%

78 Jabal os Saraj 40 13.4%

79 Qarqīn 31 13.4%

80 Barakī 17 13.4%

81 Fayrōz Kōh 09 13.4%

82 Mīrābād 19 13.4%

83 Zarghūn Shahr 29 13.4%

84 Sangīn 10 13.4%

85 Panjāb 05 13.4%

86 Mīr Bachah Kōṯ 13 13.4%

87 Pul-e ‘Alam 17 13.4%

88 Chīras 33 13.4%

89 Ḩukūmatī Azrah 17 13.4%

90 Qarah Bāgh 11 13.4%

91 Ghōriyān 11 13.4%

92 Qalāt 28 13.4%

93 Ashkāsham 01 13.4%

94 Kuhsān 11 13.4%

95 Tukzār 33 13.4%

96 Chahār Burj 11 13.4%

97 Larkird 33 13.4%

Cities with the highest unemployment rates in Afghanistan face significant economic challenges. Rustāq has an unemployment rate of 13.4%. These communities often struggle with limited job opportunities, industry decline, or seasonal employment patterns.

High unemployment can have cascading effects on a community, including reduced consumer spending, lower tax revenues, and increased demand for social services. Understanding the causes — whether structural, cyclical, or seasonal — is important for developing effective solutions.

Many cities with high unemployment are actively working to diversify their economies, attract new industries, and invest in workforce development programs to help residents gain skills for in-demand occupations.

Did You Know?

1. In Rustāq, about 1 in 7 workers is looking for a job.
2. Seasonal economies (tourism, agriculture) can cause unemployment rates to fluctuate dramatically throughout the year.
3. Many high-unemployment cities have seen improvement through targeted economic development and workforce training programs.

Browse Rankings by Region

Afghanistan — By Region

Badakhshan Balkh Helmand Herat Kunduz Sar-e Pol Province Takhar

By Country

Afghanistan Albania Algeria Angola Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bangladesh Belarus Belgium Benin Bolivia Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Brazil Brunei Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad Chile China Colombia Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Cyprus Czechia Democratic Republic of the Congo Denmark Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Estonia Ethiopia Finland France Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Greece Guadeloupe Guatemala Guinea Guinea-Bissau Haiti Honduras Hong Kong Hungary India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Israel Italy Ivory Coast Jamaica Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Lithuania Luxembourg Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Mali Malta Mauritania Mauritius Mayotte Mexico Moldova Mongolia Morocco Mozambique Myanmar Namibia Nepal New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria North Korea North Macedonia Norway Oman Pakistan Palestinian Territory Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Republic of the Congo Reunion Romania Russia Rwanda Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Somalia South Africa South Korea South Sudan Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Sweden Switzerland Syria Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania Thailand The Netherlands Togo Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States Uruguay Uzbekistan Venezuela Vietnam Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe