- The number of registered unemployed in the region dropped 1.39% in May to 272,542 unemployed.
- Spain recorded the lowest level of unemployment in this month since 2007 with a reduction of 5.47% compared to May 2025
- This is the third largest fall in unemployment in absolute terms in the country and contributes to Spain reaching historical minimum levels of youth and female unemployment
Unemployment registered in the Community of Madrid in May 2026 fell by 1.39% compared to April with 3,834 fewer unemployed. The number of registered unemployed stands at 272,542, which means a year-on-year drop of 3.12%, with 8,767 fewer unemployed in the last year.
These figures represent the third largest fall in absolute terms in the country and contribute to Spain reaching historical low levels of youth and female unemployment.
By sex, of the total number of unemployed in the Community of Madrid in the fifth month of the year, 110,193 are men and 162,349 are women. By age, unemployment among young people under 25 years of age stands at 17,746 unemployed, while the group over 25 years of age has 254,796 unemployed.
Unemployment is falling in all economic sectors compared to the month of April. In Services in -3,119 people; in Industry in 270 people, in Construction in -236 people and in Agriculture in 86.
Unemployment continues to fall in the Autonomous Communities
The unemployment recorded in May 2026 fell in the 17 autonomous communities. In absolute terms, the greatest falls occur in Andalusia (-9,125 people), Catalonia (-6,900 people) and the Community of Madrid (-3,834 people).
In the whole of Spain, the number of unemployed persons registered in the offices of the State Public Employment Service (SEPE), at the end of May, has been reduced by 36,323 (-1.54%) persons in relation to the previous month.
The total registered unemployment stood at 2,320,721 people. With respect to the month of May 2025, unemployment has fallen by 134,162 people (-5.47%).
Unemployment is falling in all economic sectors compared to the month of April. In Services in 29,829 people (-1.74%), in Industry in 2,665 people (-1.46%), in Construction in 2,304 people (-1.42%) and in Agriculture in 1,628 (-2.26%). The collective No Previous Employment does not register a significant movement with just 98 more registered people (0.04%).
Regarding the sex variable, female unemployment decreased by 20,316 people (-1.43%) in relation to the month of April and stood at a total of 1,404,110 women. Male unemployment fell by 16,007 people (-1.72%) and the total stood at 916,611 unemployed men. Compared to May 2025, male unemployment fell by 51,851 (-5.35%) and female unemployment fell by 82,311 (-5.54%).
By age, unemployment among young people under 25 years of age fell in May by 4,738 people (-2.79%) compared to the previous month. The total is located at 164,955 people. It is the first time it has dropped from the level of 165,000 in a month of May.
New contracts and benefits
The total number of contracts registered during the month of May has been 1,323,719. Of this total, 572,061 employment contracts are of an indefinite nature and represent 43.22% of all contracts. The total number of beneficiaries existing at the end of April was 1,779,989. The average monthly investment per beneficiary person, not including the agricultural subsidy of Andalusia and Extremadura, in the month of April 2026 was 1,168.30, which means an increase over the same month of the previous year of 22.6 euros (2.0%).
The coverage of the unemployment protection system during the month of April was 80.90%. The total investment in benefit in April 2026 amounted to 2,040.9 million euros.