Ireland’s Eastern and Midland region which includes Dublin had an employment rate of 80.8pc, the Southern region such as Cork recorded 78.8pc, while the Northern and Western region such as Galway and Donegal stood at 78.5pc.
When averaged together, those figures give Ireland a national rate of around 79.4pc, above both the EU average and the overall employment goal for the end of the decade for the EU.
The data was published by the EU statistical body Eurostat and covered people aged between 20 to 64 last year.
Across the European Union, the employment rate reached 75.8pc in 2024, the highest level on record but still slightly below the EU’s 2030 target of 78pc, it said.
Despite steady progress in recent years, less than half of the EU member states individual regions have yet achieved that level of employment in the workforce.
In total, 113 out of 243 regions across the EU met or exceeded the 78pc mark last year, accounting for just under half of all regions surveyed.
Ireland stands out as one of a small group of member states alongside the likes of Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden, where every region surpassed the EU-wide goal.
However, the strongest regional performances in Europe were recorded in Åland in Finland at 86.4pc, the Warsaw metropolitan area in Poland at 86.2pc, Utrecht in the Netherlands with 85.3pc and Prague closely following behind.
Ireland’s Eastern and Midland region, at 80.8pc, remains below those peaks but well within the upper tier of EU regional employment outcomes.
Eurostat noted that regions continuing to fall below the lower tier of employment rate which was set at the 73.5pc mark are largely concentrated in parts of southern Europe and some industrial or rural areas.
This pattern was particularly apparent in southern regions of Spain and Italy, much of Greece, and the more rural regions of France.
Ireland’s three-region consistency points to a relatively balanced labour market, with the high employment rates maintained across both urban and rural areas.
The EU’s employment target forms part of the European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan, which aims to achieve at least 78pc employment across the EU’s member states by 2030, it said.