Can I get unemployment benefits if I don't buy social security at work?

You can't. According to Baidu's legal information query, the employer failed to pay the unemployment insurance premium to the employees, which made the employees eligible to receive unemployment insurance premium, and they could claim compensation from the employer. Unemployment benefit refers to the basic living expenses paid by unemployment insurance agencies to eligible unemployed people according to law, and it is a temporary compensation for unemployed people to lose their wage income during unemployment.