The Countries With the Most—And Least—Paid Time Off, Mapped

Everyone needs time off from work or the busy day-to-day responsibilities that need to get done. That's why unplugging and taking a vacation is so important. Maybe you dream of a warm beach, a hike in the woods, or exploring a new city as part of taking some time off.

That's easy to do if you have mandated vacation time or a specific set of days off each year at your job. It's more difficult when you don't get paid many vacation days. It also can be tough if you live in a country that doesn't mandate employers to give you time off.

Some countries are more generous than others when it comes to mandated PTO and public holidays, and you might be surprised by which countries have the least government days off. See if there are any surprises on the list, according to 2025 data from Resume.io and reported by Visual Capitalist.

Middle East Countries Rank High

Countries in the Middle East dominate the top of the list of countries with the most paid vacation days. Iran is in first place with 53 paid vacation days, followed by second-place Yemen with 45 days, and third-place Bahrain with 44 days. Also in third place with a tie of 44 days is the Asian country Bhutan.

One reason for Iran being at the top of the list is its six-day workweek. Giving workers extra time off helps to ease the long workweek. Another factor for Middle Eastern countries is religious holidays. Iran, for example, has around 22 to 25 religious holidays according to the Islamic calendar.

The countries with the most paid vacation days include:

United States Is Among the Worst for PTO

The United States is among the worst locations in the world when it comes to ensuring paid time off for workers. The country ranks second with 10 days off, behind first-place Micronesia.

One of the reasons for the low ranking for the U.S. is because only 10 days are mandated federal holidays. Instead, the country relies more on employers to decide on their paid vacation.

According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of days a worker may have off depends on several factors including how long someone has worked for a company. Based on data, 31% of workers who have been with a company for a year have five to nine days off while an additional 31% have 10 to 14 days off after that amount of service. Workers who have been with a company for more than 20 years are more likely to have additional time off, with 33% qualifying for at least 24 days of vacation.

The size of a company can also be a factor, with companies employing more people offering more time off. Companies with more than 500 workers give 91% of their workers paid time off. That percentage is only 71% for companies with one to 49 workers.

The countries with the least number of paid holidays include: