The Live Register is used to provide a monthly series of the numbers of people (with some exceptions) registering for Jobseekers Benefit (JB) or Jobseekers Allowance (JA) or for various other statutory entitlements at local offices of the Department of Social Protection. Information is published in the form of a monthly release titled the Live Register. Data is also held on the CSO StatBank and also published in the CSO's Statistical Yearbook.

The Live Register is not designed to measure unemployment. It includes part-time workers (those who work up to three days per week), seasonal and casual workers entitled to JB and JA. Unemployment is measured by the QNHS (see above).

The Live Register series offers users data at a detailed geographic level, including county and individual Local office level. These are not data that can be obtained elsewhere and also explains why the series is so widely used.