US unemployment rate lookup
What was the unemployment rate in the year you were born, or in any month since January 1948? Enter a year or a month, or compare two months, to see the official US unemployment rate, how it compares with today and where it ranks in the record. The latest rate is 4.2%, for September 2026.
Updated 1 November 2026. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey. Monthly chart and CSV: US unemployment rate tracker. Key figures: US unemployment statistics.
In September 2026, the US unemployment rate was 4.2%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (seasonally adjusted). That is the latest month published. It was 0.1 percentage points higher than in August 2026 (4.1%) and 0.2 percentage points lower than a year earlier (4.4%). Of the 944 months on record since January 1948, 192 had a lower rate and 27 had the same rate, so it ranks joint 193rd lowest. The record low is 2.5%, in May 1953, and the record high 14.8%, in April 2020.
Key figures
- The US unemployment rate was 4.2% in September 2026, 0.1 percentage points higher than in August 2026 and 0.2 percentage points lower than a year earlier. 192 of the 944 months since January 1948 had a lower rate. #
- The lowest monthly rate since January 1948 is 2.5%, in May 1953. The lowest since 1970 is 3.4%. #
- The highest monthly rate since January 1948 is 14.8%, in April 2020, at the start of the pandemic. Before that, the peak was 10.8%, in November 1982. #
- The lowest yearly average is 2.9%, in 1953; the highest is 9.7%, in 1982. The latest complete year, 2025, averaged 4.3%, ranking joint 17th lowest of the 78 complete years since 1948. #
- The average monthly rate since January 1948 is 5.7%. The rate in September 2026 (4.2%) is 1.5 percentage points lower than that long-run average. #
- The largest rise in the yearly average was in 2020, up 4.4 percentage points on 2019 (3.7% to 8.1%). #
- The largest fall in the yearly average was in 2021, down 2.7 percentage points on 2020 (8.1% to 5.4%). #
Example: 1990
In 1990, the US unemployment rate averaged 5.6%, according to monthly Bureau of Labor Statistics figures (seasonally adjusted). That is 0.3 percentage points higher than the 1989 average (5.3%). Its highest month was December 1990 (6.3%) and its lowest March 1990 (5.2%). Among the 78 complete years since 1948, it ranks joint 41st lowest. The latest rate, for September 2026, is 4.2%, 1.4 percentage points lower than the 1990 average.
US unemployment rate by year since 1948
Yearly averages of the monthly rate, with the change on the previous year in percentage points, the highest and lowest month, and the rank among the complete years (1 = lowest unemployment). Each row has its own link, for example #year-1982.
| Year | Average rate | Change on year | Highest month | Lowest month | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (so far) | 4.2% | −0.1 pts | February (4.4%) | July (4.1%) | – |
| 2025 | 4.3% | +0.3 pts | November (4.5%) | January (4.0%) | 17 |
| 2024 | 4.0% | +0.4 pts | July (4.2%) | January (3.7%) | 13 |
| 2023 | 3.6% | −0.1 pts | October (3.9%) | April (3.4%) | 5 |
| 2022 | 3.7% | −1.7 pts | January (4.0%) | July (3.5%) | 7 |
| 2021 | 5.4% | −2.7 pts | January (6.4%) | December (3.9%) | 35 |
| 2020 | 8.1% | +4.4 pts | April (14.8%) | February (3.5%) | 71 |
| 2019 | 3.7% | −0.2 pts | January (4.0%) | September (3.5%) | 7 |
| 2018 | 3.9% | −0.5 pts | February (4.1%) | September (3.7%) | 12 |
| 2017 | 4.4% | −0.5 pts | January (4.7%) | December (4.1%) | 19 |
| 2016 | 4.9% | −0.4 pts | April (5.1%) | November (4.7%) | 26 |
| 2015 | 5.3% | −0.9 pts | January (5.7%) | September (5.0%) | 33 |
| 2014 | 6.2% | −1.2 pts | February (6.7%) | December (5.6%) | 56 |
| 2013 | 7.4% | −0.7 pts | January (8.0%) | December (6.7%) | 66 |
| 2012 | 8.1% | −0.8 pts | January (8.3%) | November (7.7%) | 71 |
| 2011 | 8.9% | −0.7 pts | January (9.1%) | December (8.5%) | 74 |
| 2010 | 9.6% | +0.3 pts | March (9.9%) | December (9.3%) | 76 |
| 2009 | 9.3% | +3.5 pts | October (10.0%) | January (7.8%) | 75 |
| 2008 | 5.8% | +1.2 pts | December (7.3%) | February (4.9%) | 48 |
| 2007 | 4.6% | ±0.0 pts | December (5.0%) | March (4.4%) | 23 |
| 2006 | 4.6% | −0.5 pts | February (4.8%) | October (4.4%) | 23 |
| 2005 | 5.1% | −0.4 pts | February (5.4%) | August (4.9%) | 30 |
| 2004 | 5.5% | −0.5 pts | March (5.8%) | August (5.4%) | 37 |
| 2003 | 6.0% | +0.2 pts | June (6.3%) | December (5.7%) | 51 |
| 2002 | 5.8% | +1.1 pts | December (6.0%) | January (5.7%) | 48 |
| 2001 | 4.7% | +0.7 pts | December (5.7%) | January (4.2%) | 25 |
| 2000 | 4.0% | −0.2 pts | February (4.1%) | April (3.8%) | 13 |
| 1999 | 4.2% | −0.3 pts | February (4.4%) | December (4.0%) | 16 |
| 1998 | 4.5% | −0.4 pts | March (4.7%) | April (4.3%) | 21 |
| 1997 | 4.9% | −0.5 pts | January (5.3%) | November (4.6%) | 26 |
| 1996 | 5.4% | −0.2 pts | January (5.6%) | August (5.1%) | 35 |
| 1995 | 5.6% | −0.5 pts | April (5.8%) | February (5.4%) | 41 |
| 1994 | 6.1% | −0.8 pts | January (6.6%) | December (5.5%) | 53 |
| 1993 | 6.9% | −0.6 pts | January (7.3%) | December (6.5%) | 61 |
| 1992 | 7.5% | +0.7 pts | June (7.8%) | January (7.3%) | 67 |
| 1991 | 6.8% | +1.2 pts | December (7.3%) | January (6.4%) | 59 |
| 1990 | 5.6% | +0.3 pts | December (6.3%) | March (5.2%) | 41 |
| 1989 | 5.3% | −0.2 pts | January (5.4%) | March (5.0%) | 33 |
| 1988 | 5.5% | −0.7 pts | January (5.7%) | November (5.3%) | 37 |
| 1987 | 6.2% | −0.8 pts | January (6.6%) | December (5.7%) | 56 |
| 1986 | 7.0% | −0.2 pts | February (7.2%) | December (6.6%) | 62 |
| 1985 | 7.2% | −0.3 pts | June (7.4%) | November (7.0%) | 64 |
| 1984 | 7.5% | −2.1 pts | January (8.0%) | June (7.2%) | 67 |
| 1983 | 9.6% | −0.1 pts | January (10.4%) | December (8.3%) | 76 |
| 1982 | 9.7% | +2.1 pts | November (10.8%) | January (8.6%) | 78 |
| 1981 | 7.6% | +0.4 pts | December (8.5%) | April (7.2%) | 69 |
| 1980 | 7.2% | +1.3 pts | July (7.8%) | January (6.3%) | 64 |
| 1979 | 5.9% | −0.2 pts | August (6.0%) | May (5.6%) | 50 |
| 1978 | 6.1% | −1.0 pts | January (6.4%) | October (5.8%) | 53 |
| 1977 | 7.1% | −0.6 pts | February (7.6%) | December (6.4%) | 63 |
| 1976 | 7.7% | −0.8 pts | January (7.9%) | May (7.4%) | 70 |
| 1975 | 8.5% | +2.9 pts | May (9.0%) | January (8.1%) | 73 |
| 1974 | 5.6% | +0.7 pts | December (7.2%) | January (5.1%) | 41 |
| 1973 | 4.9% | −0.7 pts | February (5.0%) | October (4.6%) | 26 |
| 1972 | 5.6% | −0.4 pts | January (5.8%) | December (5.2%) | 41 |
| 1971 | 6.0% | +1.0 pts | August (6.1%) | October (5.8%) | 51 |
| 1970 | 5.0% | +1.5 pts | December (6.1%) | January (3.9%) | 29 |
| 1969 | 3.5% | −0.1 pts | September (3.7%) | January (3.4%) | 4 |
| 1968 | 3.6% | −0.2 pts | February (3.8%) | September (3.4%) | 5 |
| 1967 | 3.8% | ±0.0 pts | October (4.0%) | February (3.8%) | 9 |
| 1966 | 3.8% | −0.7 pts | January (4.0%) | November (3.6%) | 9 |
| 1965 | 4.5% | −0.7 pts | February (5.1%) | December (4.0%) | 21 |
| 1964 | 5.2% | −0.4 pts | January (5.6%) | November (4.8%) | 31 |
| 1963 | 5.6% | ±0.0 pts | February (5.9%) | August (5.4%) | 41 |
| 1962 | 5.6% | −1.1 pts | January (5.8%) | July (5.4%) | 41 |
| 1961 | 6.7% | +1.2 pts | May (7.1%) | December (6.0%) | 58 |
| 1960 | 5.5% | ±0.0 pts | December (6.6%) | February (4.8%) | 37 |
| 1959 | 5.5% | −1.3 pts | January (6.0%) | June (5.0%) | 37 |
| 1958 | 6.8% | +2.5 pts | July (7.5%) | January (5.8%) | 59 |
| 1957 | 4.3% | +0.2 pts | December (5.2%) | March (3.7%) | 17 |
| 1956 | 4.1% | −0.3 pts | July (4.4%) | February (3.9%) | 15 |
| 1955 | 4.4% | −1.2 pts | January (4.9%) | July (4.0%) | 19 |
| 1954 | 5.6% | +2.7 pts | September (6.1%) | January (4.9%) | 41 |
| 1953 | 2.9% | −0.1 pts | December (4.5%) | May (2.5%) | 1 |
| 1952 | 3.0% | −0.3 pts | August (3.4%) | December (2.7%) | 2 |
| 1951 | 3.3% | −1.9 pts | January (3.7%) | May (3.0%) | 3 |
| 1950 | 5.2% | −0.9 pts | January (6.5%) | October (4.2%) | 31 |
| 1949 | 6.1% | +2.3 pts | October (7.9%) | January (4.3%) | 53 |
| 1948 | 3.8% | – | March (4.0%) | January (3.4%) | 9 |
Cite or link to this tool
Students, teachers, writers, analysts and researchers are welcome to use and link to this lookup. Each year and key figure has its own link, such as #year-2009, #record-low or #largest-annual-rise.
How the lookup works
Monthly values are the official US unemployment rate for people aged 16 and over, seasonally adjusted, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Current Population Survey, as published on FRED (series UNRATE) from January 1948. Months from 2000 onward use the same figures as the US unemployment rate tracker. There is no official rate for October 2025, when the household survey was not collected; averages and ranks skip that month.
Yearly figures are the average of the seasonally adjusted monthly rates in each calendar year, so they can differ by a tenth of a point from the annual averages the Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes from unadjusted data. The current year shows the average of the months published so far, and only complete years are ranked. Differences are in percentage points, calculated by MastheadWire from the published one-decimal rates. Ranks count months or years with a lower rate, so 1st is the lowest; months with equal rates share a rank. Seasonally adjusted rates for recent years are revised each January, so figures here can change. This page is updated daily with the tracker's latest data.