The Job Market Right Now
4.2% of the US labor force is unemployed (September 2026), and there are 1.0 unemployed people for every open job (August 2026).
Is it hard to find a job right now?
One way to measure it: how many unemployed people there are for each open job. In August 2026 it was 1.0, against 1.1 a year earlier. The easiest month since these records began in December 2000 was March 2022 at 0.5; the hardest was July 2009 at 6.5.
Higher means more people competing for each open job. This is a national average: your field can be very different.
Underemployment rate (U-6)
Also counts people working part time who want full-time work, and people who want a job but have stopped looking.
People unemployed
Without a job, available for work, and looked for one in the last four weeks.
Job openings
Open positions on the last business day of the month. This number comes out a month later than the others.
Unemployed people per job opening
Under 1 means more open jobs than people looking for one.
Where unemployment is highest and lowest
Highest, by kind of work
Lowest, by kind of work
Unemployment rate among people whose last job was that kind of work, averaged over the twelve months to September 2026. Not seasonally adjusted.
Look closer
Every number here is in one file: download the CSV. It is free to use. If you publish something made with it, please link to this page.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (Current Population Survey; Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey), last read October 12, 2026. Job openings come out a month later than the unemployment numbers. BLS.gov cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from BLS.gov.