In 2024, 80.5% of Buckinghamshire’s working age population were in employment compared to 75.7% nationally. Conversely, Buckinghamshire’s unemployment rate was lower than the national average (3.4%* versus 4.0%). Buckinghamshire has a lower economic inactivity rate than the national average (15.6% versus 21.1%), with a higher proportion of this group being students than is the case nationally.

Buckinghamshire has one of least ‘self-contained’ labour markets in England. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, around a third of working residents travelled out of the county for work whilst 28% of all those working within the Buckinghamshire economy travelled into the county from elsewhere. In total, pre-Covid, 34,000 Buckinghamshire residents usually worked in London.

Home working has risen as a result of the pandemic, and therefore there is reduced travel to workplaces (particularly offices) both within and out of the County.

Structurally, Buckinghamshire’s economy is dominated by the service sector, which provides 85% of all local employee jobs. At a broad sectoral level, the health sector provides the most jobs within the County (many of which are part-time), followed by the: education; professional, scientific and technical; retail; accommodation and food services; and wholesale sectors. The wholesale sector provides twice as many jobs locally than nationally. Local wholesale specialisms include: the wholesale of pharmaceutical goods, machinery and equipment, computers and software. Other sectors providing more jobs locally than nationally include information and communication; construction; education; arts, entertainment and recreation; accommodation and food services; retail and motor trades.

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Source: BRES 2023 (ONS)