Working age population

Published

Last updated 21 May 2024 - see all updates

This page corrects mistakes in a previous version. See details.

1. Main facts and figures

  • at the time of the 2021 Census, 62.9% (37.5 million) of the overall population of England and Wales was of ‘working age’ (between 16 and 64 years old) – nearly two-thirds of the overall population (59.5 million)

  • 80.7% (30.2 million) of working age people were from white ethnic groups, 10.1% (3.7 million) were Asian, 4.4% (1.6 million) were black, 2.5% (0.9 million) had mixed ethnicity, and 2.3% (0.8 million) were from the ‘other’ ethnic group

  • out of the 19 ethnic groups, 71.8% (26.9 million) of the working age population identified as white British – 89.3% (1.6 million) in Wales and 70.8% (25.2 million) in England

  • after white British, the ethnic groups making up the largest percentages of the working age population were white ‘other’ (7.7%, 2.8 million), black (4.4%, 1.6 million), Indian (3.4%, 1.2 million), black African (2.8%, 1.0 million) and Pakistani (2.7%, 1.0 million)

  • 49.2% (0.2 million) of people from the mixed white and Asian ethnic group and 48.9% (0.1 million) of people from mixed white and black African group were of working age – the lowest percentages out of all ethnic groups

2. Things you need to know

What the data measures

The data measures the size of the working age population of England and Wales, by ethnicity and sex.

Percentages have been rounded to 1 decimal place, so some totals may not add up to 100%.

Read more about the 2021 Census.

Not included in the data

The data does not include households that did not answer the question about ethnicity.

97% of people completed the Census.

The data has been adjusted to take into account people and households who were not counted or counted incorrectly.

The ethnic groups used in the data

This data uses the standardised list of 19 ethnic groups that were developed for the 2021 Census.

The ethnic groups used in the 2021 Census were slightly different from the 2011 Census ethnic groups.

For the 2021 Census:

  • the ‘Roma’ group was added under the ‘white’ ethnic group
  • people could write their own response under the ‘black African’ ethnic group

Methodology

Read the detailed methodology document for this data.

You can find confidence intervals for the data in the interactive tools showing the quality and quality assurance.

The percentage of people of working age (16 to 64 years old) in each ethnic group is affected by the overall age profile of that group. For example, 43.7% of people from the mixed ethnic group are aged under 15 years, a much higher percentage than any other ethnic group.

In the data file

See download the data for additional regional and local authority data, including:

  • the percentage of each ethnic group in the total population by region and local authority

  • the percentage of each ethnic group of a particular age in the total ethnic group population by regions and local authority

The data download file also includes breakdowns of the working age population by ethnicity and sex.

3. Working age population by ethnicity

Location:
England and Wales
Time period:
2021
Source:
England and Wales 2021 Census
Percentage and number of people of working age (aged 16 to 64 years) by ethnicity
Ethnicity % Number
All 62.9 37,502,985
Asian 10.1 3,787,330
Bangladeshi 1.1 428,365
Chinese 0.9 342,455
Indian 3.4 1,293,785
Pakistani 2.7 1,024,625
Asian other 1.9 698,100
Black 4.4 1,657,235
Black African 2.8 1,048,285
Black Caribbean 1.2 448,185
Black other 0.4 160,765
Mixed 2.5 920,415
White and Asian 0.6 240,095
White and black African 0.3 122,135
White and black Caribbean 0.8 290,965
Mixed other 0.7 267,220
White 80.7 30,258,110
White British 71.8 26,918,480
Gypsy or Irish traveller 0.8 318,465
White Irish 0.1 42,165
Roma 0.2 80,455
White other 7.7 2,898,545
Other 2.3 879,895
Arab 0.6 221,325
Any other ethnic background 1.8 658,570

Download table data for ‘Working age population by ethnicity’ (CSV) Source data for ‘Working age population by ethnicity’ (CSV)

Summary of Working age population Working age population by ethnicity Summary

The data shows that:

  • according to the 2021 Census, the total population of England and Wales was 59.5 million, and nearly two-thirds of people (37.5 million) were of ‘working age’ (aged 16 to 64 years)

  • 80.7% (30.2 million) of working age people were white, 10.1% (3.7 million) were Asian, 4.4% (1.6 million) were black, 2.5% (0.9 million) had mixed ethnicity, and 2.3% (0.8 million) were from the ‘other’ ethnic group

  • out of all 19 ethnic groups, 71.8% (26.9 million) of working age people identified as white British

  • after white British, the ethnic groups making up the largest percentage of the working age population were white ‘other’ (7.7%, 2.8 million), Indian (3.4%, 1.2 million), Pakistani (2.7%, 1.0 million), and black African (2.8%, 1.0 million)

  • the ethnic groups making up the smallest percentage of the working age population were white Irish (0.1%, 42,165), white Roma (0.2%, 80,455), and mixed white and black African (0.3%, 0.1 million)

4. Ethnic groups by working age

Location:
England and Wales
Time period:
2021
Source:
England and Wales 2021 Census
Percentage and number of people who are of working age (aged 16 to 64 years), by ethnicity
Ethnicity % Number
All 62.9 37,502,985
Asian 68.7 3,787,330
Bangladeshi 66.4 428,365
Chinese 76.9 342,455
Indian 69.4 1,293,785
Pakistani 64.5 1,024,625
Asian other 71.8 698,100
Black 68.8 1,657,235
Black African 70.4 1,048,285
Black Caribbean 71.9 448,185
Black other 54.0 160,765
Mixed 53.6 920,415
White and Asian 49.2 240,095
White and black African 48.9 122,135
White and black Caribbean 56.7 290,965
Mixed other 57.2 267,220
White 62.1 30,258,110
White British 60.7 26,918,480
Gypsy or Irish traveller 62.8 318,465
White Irish 62.3 42,165
Roma 79.7 80,455
White other 79.0 2,898,545
Other 70.1 879,895
Arab 66.7 221,325
Any other ethnic background 71.3 658,570

Download table data for ‘Ethnic groups by working age’ (CSV) Source data for ‘Ethnic groups by working age’ (CSV)

Summary of Working age population Ethnic groups by working age Summary

The data shows that:

  • according to the 2021 Census, 62.9% (37.5 million) of the population of England and Wales was of working age (aged 16 to 64 years)

  • 60.7% of white British people were of working age, slightly lower than the national average

  • 79.7% of people from the white Roma ethnic group were of working age – the highest percentage out of the 19 ethnic groups, followed by white ‘other’ (79.0%) and the Chinese ethnic group (76.9%)

  • 48.9% of people from the mixed white and black African ethnic group were of working age – the lowest percentage out of the 19 ethnic groups, followed by the mixed white and Asian ethnic group (49.2%)

5. Working age population by ethnicity and country (England, Wales)

Location:
England and Wales
Time period:
2021
Source:
England and Wales 2021 Census
Percentage of people of working age (aged 16 to 64 years), by ethnicity and country
England Wales
Ethnicity England value England Number Wales value Wales Number
All 63.0 35,605,650 61.1 1,897,205
Asian 10.5 3,723,690 3.4 63,685
Bangladeshi 1.2 418,065 0.5 10,330
Chinese 0.9 331,555 0.6 10,865
Indian 3.6 1,278,515 0.8 15,300
Pakistani 2.8 1,012,950 0.6 11,710
Asian other 1.9 682,605 0.8 15,480
Black 4.6 1,638,060 1.0 19,185
Black African 2.9 1,034,115 0.7 14,200
Black Caribbean 1.3 445,400 0.1 2,780
Black other 0.4 158,545 0.1 2,205
Mixed 2.5 893,905 1.4 26,445
White and Asian 0.7 232,940 0.4 7,170
White and black African 0.3 118,285 0.2 3,780
White and black Caribbean 0.8 282,765 0.4 8,180
Mixed other 0.7 259,915 0.4 7,315
White 80.0 28,488,295 93.3 1,769,650
White British 70.8 25,224,635 89.3 1,693,860
Gypsy or Irish traveller 0.9 310,260 0.4 8,200
White Irish 0.1 40,030 0.1 2,085
Roma 0.2 79,010 0.1 1,305
White other 8.0 2,834,360 3.4 64,200
Other 2.4 861,700 1.0 18,240
Arab 0.6 213,840 0.4 7,505
Any other ethnic background 1.8 647,860 0.6 10,735

Download table data for ‘Working age population by ethnicity and country (England, Wales)’ (CSV) Source data for ‘Working age population by ethnicity and country (England, Wales)’ (CSV)

Summary of Working age population Working age population by ethnicity and country (England, Wales) Summary

The data shows that:

  • according to the 2021 Census, 63.0% of people in England and 61.1% of people in Wales were of working age

  • white British people made up 89.3% of the working age population in Wales, compared with 70.8% in England

  • the Asian ethnic group made up 10.5% of the working age population in England, and 3.4% in Wales – the next highest percentage

  • people from black ethnic groups made up 4.6% of the working age population in England and 1.0% in Wales

  • out of the 19 ethnic groups, the white Roma and white Irish ethnic groups made up the smallest percentages of the working age population – the white Roma ethnic group made up 0.2% in England and 0.1% in Wales, and white Irish people made up 0.1% in England and 0.1% in Wales

6. Ethnic groups by working age and country (England, Wales)

Location:
England and Wales
Time period:
2021
Source:
England and Wales 2021 Census
Percentage and number of people within each ethnic group who are of working age (aged 16 to 64 years), by country
England Wales
Ethnicity England value England Number Wales value Wales Number
All 63.0 35,605,650 61.1 1,897,205
Asian 68.6 3,723,690 71.9 63,685
Bangladeshi 66.4 418,065 68.1 10,330
Chinese 76.9 331,555 75.8 10,865
Indian 69.4 1,278,515 72.8 15,300
Pakistani 64.5 1,012,950 67.0 11,710
Asian other 71.7 682,605 75.4 15,480
Black 68.8 1,638,060 71.2 19,185
Black African 70.4 1,034,115 71.9 14,200
Black Caribbean 71.9 445,400 82.0 2,780
Black other 54.0 158,545 58.1 2,205
Mixed 53.6 893,905 55.1 26,445
White and Asian 49.1 232,940 51.6 7,170
White and black African 49.0 118,285 47.8 3,780
White and black Caribbean 56.6 282,765 60.0 8,180
Mixed other 57.2 259,915 58.1 7,315
White 62.2 28,488,295 60.7 1,769,650
White British 60.7 25,224,635 60.2 1,693,860
Gypsy or Irish traveller 62.8 310,260 62.4 8,200
White Irish 62.4 40,030 62.6 2,085
Roma 79.7 79,010 85.9 1,305
White other 79.1 2,834,360 77.4 64,200
Other 70.1 861,700 69.7 18,240
Arab 66.8 213,840 65.4 7,505
Any other ethnic background 71.3 647,860 73.1 10,735

Download table data for ‘Ethnic groups by working age and country (England, Wales)’ (CSV) Source data for ‘Ethnic groups by working age and country (England, Wales)’ (CSV)

Summary of Working age population Ethnic groups by working age and country (England, Wales) Summary

The data shows that:

  • according to the 2021 Census, 82.0% of people from black Caribbean ethnic group in Wales were of working age, compared with 71.9% in England

  • in both England and Wales, the white Roma (79.7% and 85.9%), white ‘other’ (79.1% and 77.4%), and Chinese (76.9% and 75.8%) ethnic groups had the highest percentages of people who were of working age out of all ethnic groups

  • in both England and Wales, the mixed white and Asian (49.1% and 51.6%), and the mixed white and black African (49.0% and 47.8%) ethnic groups had the lowest percentages of people who were of working age

7. Data sources

Source

Type of data

Survey data

Type of statistic

National Statistics

Publisher

Office for National Statistics

Publication frequency

10 years

Purpose of data source

The Census takes place every 10 years. Census data gives the government the information it needs to plan and run public services. It is also used as a benchmark for other statistical estimates, and can help illustrate differences between various groups in the population.

8. Download the data

Census Population data by Working Age_(National) - Spreadsheet (csv) 156 KB

This file contains the following: Measure, year, Geography, Geography_type, Geography_code, Age Groups (Below working age, working age and Above working age),Ethnicity, Ethnicity_type, sex, Value1(% of total age group population) Value2 (% of total ethnic group population)

Census Population data by Working Age_(National and Regional) - Spreadsheet (csv) 886 KB

This file contains the following: Measure, year, Geography, Geography_type, Geography_code, Age Groups (Below working age, working age and Above working age),Ethnicity, Ethnicity_type, sex, Value1(% of total age group population) Value2 (% of total ethnic group population)

Census Population data by Working Age_(National and Local Authority) - Spreadsheet (csv) 24 MB

This file contains the following: Measure, year, Geography, Geography_type, Geography_code, Age Groups (Below working age, working age and Above working age),Ethnicity, Ethnicity_type, sex, Value1(% of total age group population) Value2 (% of total ethnic group population)

Publication release date: 31 March 2023

Updated: 21 May 2024

full page history
  1. Figures for the working age population in Wales and England were transposed in the Main facts and figures section. This has been corrected.
  2. Updated with the latest available data.

From: Office for National Statistics

Previous edition:
  1. Edition published on 27 April 2020
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