What is the unemployment rate right now?
4.1% in October 2026, seasonally adjusted, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics jobs report. In September 2025 it was 4.4% (October 2025 was not collected because of the federal shutdown).
Unemployment rate: 4.1% in October 2026
Bureau of Labor Statistics, seasonally adjusted · +165,000 jobs in the month
Unemployment rate4.1%September 2025: 4.4%
Jobs added+165,000October 2026
Jobs in a year+885,000nonfarm payrolls
Record high14.8%April 2020
Unemployment rate by state
Seasonally adjusted, September 2026: state figures come out about two weeks after the national report.
| State | Rate | A year ago | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | 5.6% | 6.6% | −1.0 |
| California | 5.1% | 5.5% | −0.4 |
| Connecticut | 5.1% | 4.2% | +0.9 |
| Michigan | 5.0% | 4.9% | +0.1 |
| Oregon | 5.0% | 5.3% | −0.3 |
| Arizona | 4.9% | 4.4% | +0.5 |
| Washington | 4.8% | 4.7% | +0.1 |
| Kentucky | 4.7% | 4.5% | +0.2 |
| Nevada | 4.7% | 5.2% | −0.5 |
| New Mexico | 4.7% | 4.2% | +0.5 |
| Delaware | 4.6% | 5.2% | −0.6 |
| Illinois | 4.6% | 4.5% | +0.1 |
| Minnesota | 4.5% | 4.1% | +0.4 |
| Florida | 4.4% | 4.2% | +0.2 |
| Texas | 4.4% | 4.3% | +0.1 |
| Alaska | 4.3% | 4.7% | −0.4 |
| Massachusetts | 4.3% | 4.6% | −0.3 |
| New York | 4.3% | 4.6% | −0.3 |
| New Jersey | 4.2% | 5.5% | −1.3 |
| Oklahoma | 4.2% | 3.6% | +0.6 |
| Colorado | 4.1% | 3.8% | +0.3 |
| Louisiana | 4.0% | 4.2% | −0.2 |
| South Carolina | 4.0% | 4.7% | −0.7 |
| West Virginia | 4.0% | 4.5% | −0.5 |
| Arkansas | 3.9% | 4.2% | −0.3 |
| Maryland | 3.9% | 4.3% | −0.4 |
| Kansas | 3.8% | 3.8% | +0.0 |
| Idaho | 3.6% | 3.6% | +0.0 |
| Missouri | 3.6% | 3.9% | −0.3 |
| Pennsylvania | 3.6% | 4.4% | −0.8 |
| Rhode Island | 3.6% | 4.3% | −0.7 |
| Virginia | 3.6% | 3.4% | +0.2 |
| Alabama | 3.5% | 2.8% | +0.7 |
| Utah | 3.5% | 3.6% | −0.1 |
| Indiana | 3.4% | 3.7% | −0.3 |
| North Carolina | 3.4% | 3.9% | −0.5 |
| Ohio | 3.4% | 4.3% | −0.9 |
| Tennessee | 3.4% | 3.5% | −0.1 |
| Georgia | 3.3% | 3.4% | −0.1 |
| Maine | 3.3% | 3.3% | +0.0 |
| Mississippi | 3.3% | 3.7% | −0.4 |
| Iowa | 3.2% | 3.4% | −0.2 |
| Wisconsin | 3.2% | 3.1% | +0.1 |
| Montana | 3.1% | 3.5% | −0.4 |
| Wyoming | 3.0% | 3.4% | −0.4 |
| Nebraska | 2.9% | 2.9% | +0.0 |
| Hawaii | 2.8% | 2.1% | +0.7 |
| New Hampshire | 2.6% | 3.2% | −0.6 |
| Vermont | 2.6% | 2.6% | +0.0 |
| North Dakota | 2.2% | 2.6% | −0.4 |
| South Dakota | 2.0% | 2.1% | −0.1 |
U.S. unemployment rate since 1948
| Year | Average of the months |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 4.3% |
| 2024 | 4.0% |
| 2023 | 3.6% |
| 2022 | 3.7% |
| 2021 | 5.4% |
| 2020 | 8.1% |
| 2019 | 3.7% |
| 2018 | 3.9% |
| 2017 | 4.4% |
| 2016 | 4.9% |
| 2015 | 5.3% |
| 2014 | 6.2% |
| 2013 | 7.4% |
| 2012 | 8.1% |
| 2011 | 8.9% |
| 2010 | 9.6% |
| 2009 | 9.3% |
| 2008 | 5.8% |
| 2007 | 4.6% |
| 2006 | 4.6% |
| 2005 | 5.1% |
| 2004 | 5.5% |
| 2003 | 6.0% |
| 2002 | 5.8% |
| 2001 | 4.7% |
| 2000 | 4.0% |
| 1999 | 4.2% |
| 1998 | 4.5% |
| 1997 | 4.9% |
| 1996 | 5.4% |
| 1995 | 5.6% |
| 1994 | 6.1% |
| 1993 | 6.9% |
| 1992 | 7.5% |
| 1991 | 6.8% |
| 1990 | 5.6% |
| 1989 | 5.3% |
| 1988 | 5.5% |
| 1987 | 6.2% |
| 1986 | 7.0% |
| 1985 | 7.2% |
| 1984 | 7.5% |
| 1983 | 9.6% |
| 1982 | 9.7% |
| 1981 | 7.6% |
| 1980 | 7.2% |
| 1979 | 5.9% |
| 1978 | 6.1% |
| 1977 | 7.1% |
| 1976 | 7.7% |
| 1975 | 8.5% |
| 1974 | 5.6% |
| 1973 | 4.9% |
| 1972 | 5.6% |
| 1971 | 6.0% |
| 1970 | 5.0% |
| 1969 | 3.5% |
| 1968 | 3.6% |
| 1967 | 3.8% |
| 1966 | 3.8% |
| 1965 | 4.5% |
| 1964 | 5.2% |
| 1963 | 5.6% |
| 1962 | 5.6% |
| 1961 | 6.7% |
| 1960 | 5.5% |
| 1959 | 5.5% |
| 1958 | 6.8% |
| 1957 | 4.3% |
| 1956 | 4.1% |
| 1955 | 4.4% |
| 1954 | 5.6% |
| 1953 | 2.9% |
| 1952 | 3.0% |
| 1951 | 3.3% |
| 1950 | 5.2% |
| 1949 | 6.0% |
| 1948 | 3.8% |
Average of the seasonally adjusted monthly rates; BLS’s official yearly averages use unadjusted data and can differ by 0.1 point. 2025 averages eleven months because October 2025 was not collected.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey and Local Area Unemployment Statistics, data through October 2026.
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Citation
insytesBI. (2026). Unemployment rate: 4.1% in October 2026. Data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey and Local Area Unemployment Statistics, October 2026. https://www.insytesbi.com/economy/unemployment-rate/Link
<a href="https://www.insytesbi.com/economy/unemployment-rate/">Unemployment rate: 4.1% in October 2026</a>Frequently asked questions
How many jobs were added in October 2026?
+165,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in the first estimate, which BLS revises over the next two months. Over the past 12 months the count changed by +885,000.
Which state has the highest unemployment rate?
District of Columbia at 5.6% in September 2026. The lowest is South Dakota at 2.0%.
What was the highest unemployment rate in U.S. history?
Since monthly records began in 1948, the peak was 14.8% in April 2020 and the low 2.5% in May 1953.
Who counts as unemployed?
People without a job who looked for one in the past four weeks and could start. People who stopped looking are not counted, which is why the rate can fall while fewer people work.