France vs United Kingdom: Annual working hours vs. productivity
France
1,487 hours per worker
in 2023
United Kingdom
1,523 hours per worker
in 2023
France rank
119th
United Kingdom rank
116th
Annual working hours vs. productivity over time
- France
- United Kingdom
How they compare
United Kingdom currently reports 1,523 hours per worker against 1,487 hours per worker in France, a difference of 36 hours per worker.
The two have swapped places 5 times across 74 shared years of data; in 1950 it was France ahead.
France ranks 119th and United Kingdom ranks 116th of 129 countries.
Across the 8 decades both report, France averaged higher in 4 and United Kingdom in 4.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | France | United Kingdom | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 2,277 hours per worker | 1,995 hours per worker | 281.82 hours per worker | France |
| 1960s | 2,136 hours per worker | 1,847 hours per worker | 289.26 hours per worker | France |
| 1970s | 1,890 hours per worker | 1,698 hours per worker | 192.81 hours per worker | France |
| 1980s | 1,667 hours per worker | 1,622 hours per worker | 45.04 hours per worker | France |
| 1990s | 1,590 hours per worker | 1,593 hours per worker | 2.95 hours per worker | United Kingdom |
| 2000s | 1,516 hours per worker | 1,547 hours per worker | 30.33 hours per worker | United Kingdom |
| 2010s | 1,511 hours per worker | 1,537 hours per worker | 25.16 hours per worker | United Kingdom |
| 2020s | 1,460 hours per worker | 1,483 hours per worker | 23.64 hours per worker | United Kingdom |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher annual working hours vs. productivity, France or United Kingdom?
- United Kingdom, at 1,523 hours per worker against 1,487 hours per worker in France as of 2023.
- What is the difference in annual working hours vs. productivity between France and United Kingdom?
- 36 hours per worker, with United Kingdom ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for France and United Kingdom?
- 74 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2023.
- How do France and United Kingdom rank globally for annual working hours vs. productivity?
- France ranks 119th and United Kingdom ranks 116th of 129 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Annual working hours vs. productivity. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
This is the average sum of hours worked by employees and self-employed people during each year in a country.