US Unemployment Rate by Year: 1948–2026
The US unemployment rate is the share of the civilian labour force that is actively looking for work and does not have a job. It is the single most watched indicator of labour-market slack, and one half of the Federal Reserve's dual mandate.
The annual average peaked at 9.71% in 1982 and reached a post-war low of 2.93% in 1953. It averaged 4.24% in 2026, with the latest monthly reading at 4.20% for September 2026.
US unemployment rate by year, 1948–2026
| Year | Annual average | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 (YTD) | 4.24% | −0.02 pp |
| 2025 | 4.26% | +0.24 pp |
| 2024 | 4.03% | +0.40 pp |
| 2023 | 3.63% | −0.03 pp |
| 2022 | 3.65% | −1.70 pp |
| 2021 | 5.35% | −2.75 pp |
| 2020 | 8.10% | +4.43 pp |
| 2019 | 3.68% | −0.22 pp |
| 2018 | 3.89% | −0.47 pp |
| 2017 | 4.36% | −0.52 pp |
| 2016 | 4.88% | −0.40 pp |
| 2015 | 5.28% | −0.88 pp |
| 2014 | 6.16% | −1.20 pp |
| 2013 | 7.36% | −0.72 pp |
| 2012 | 8.08% | −0.86 pp |
| 2011 | 8.93% | −0.67 pp |
| 2010 | 9.61% | +0.32 pp |
| 2009 | 9.28% | +3.48 pp |
| 2008 | 5.80% | +1.18 pp |
| 2007 | 4.62% | +0.01 pp |
| 2006 | 4.61% | −0.47 pp |
| 2005 | 5.08% | −0.46 pp |
| 2004 | 5.54% | −0.45 pp |
| 2003 | 5.99% | +0.21 pp |
| 2002 | 5.78% | +1.04 pp |
| 2001 | 4.74% | +0.77 pp |
| 2000 | 3.97% | −0.25 pp |
| 1999 | 4.22% | −0.28 pp |
| 1998 | 4.50% | −0.44 pp |
| 1997 | 4.94% | −0.47 pp |
| 1996 | 5.41% | −0.18 pp |
| 1995 | 5.59% | −0.51 pp |
| 1994 | 6.10% | −0.81 pp |
| 1993 | 6.91% | −0.58 pp |
| 1992 | 7.49% | +0.64 pp |
| 1991 | 6.85% | +1.23 pp |
| 1990 | 5.62% | +0.36 pp |
| 1989 | 5.26% | −0.23 pp |
| 1988 | 5.49% | −0.68 pp |
| 1987 | 6.18% | −0.82 pp |
| 1986 | 7.00% | −0.19 pp |
| 1985 | 7.19% | −0.32 pp |
| 1984 | 7.51% | −2.09 pp |
| 1983 | 9.60% | −0.11 pp |
| 1982 | 9.71% | +2.09 pp |
| 1981 | 7.62% | +0.44 pp |
| 1980 | 7.18% | +1.33 pp |
| 1979 | 5.85% | −0.22 pp |
| 1978 | 6.07% | −0.98 pp |
| 1977 | 7.05% | −0.65 pp |
| 1976 | 7.70% | −0.78 pp |
| 1975 | 8.47% | +2.83 pp |
| 1974 | 5.64% | +0.78 pp |
| 1973 | 4.86% | −0.74 pp |
| 1972 | 5.60% | −0.35 pp |
| 1971 | 5.95% | +0.97 pp |
| 1970 | 4.98% | +1.49 pp |
| 1969 | 3.49% | −0.07 pp |
| 1968 | 3.56% | −0.28 pp |
| 1967 | 3.84% | +0.05 pp |
| 1966 | 3.79% | −0.72 pp |
| 1965 | 4.51% | −0.65 pp |
| 1964 | 5.16% | −0.48 pp |
| 1963 | 5.64% | +0.07 pp |
| 1962 | 5.57% | −1.12 pp |
| 1961 | 6.69% | +1.15 pp |
| 1960 | 5.54% | +0.09 pp |
| 1959 | 5.45% | −1.39 pp |
| 1958 | 6.84% | +2.54 pp |
| 1957 | 4.30% | +0.17 pp |
| 1956 | 4.13% | −0.24 pp |
| 1955 | 4.37% | −1.22 pp |
| 1954 | 5.59% | +2.67 pp |
| 1953 | 2.93% | −0.10 pp |
| 1952 | 3.03% | −0.26 pp |
| 1951 | 3.28% | −1.92 pp |
| 1950 | 5.21% | −0.84 pp |
| 1949 | 6.05% | +2.30 pp |
| 1948 | 3.75% | — |
Recent monthly readings
| Month | Reading | Change |
|---|---|---|
| September 2026 | 4.20% | +0.10 pp |
| August 2026 | 4.10% | 0.00 pp |
| July 2026 | 4.10% | −0.10 pp |
| June 2026 | 4.20% | −0.10 pp |
| May 2026 | 4.30% | 0.00 pp |
| April 2026 | 4.30% | 0.00 pp |
| March 2026 | 4.30% | −0.10 pp |
| February 2026 | 4.40% | +0.10 pp |
| January 2026 | 4.30% | −0.10 pp |
| December 2025 | 4.40% | −0.10 pp |
| November 2025 | 4.50% | +0.10 pp |
| September 2025 | 4.40% | +0.10 pp |
| August 2025 | 4.30% | 0.00 pp |
What the history shows
Recessions, not trends, move this series. Every double-digit reading on the annual series belongs to a recession year or its immediate aftermath. Between shocks the rate moves slowly: the 2010s expansion pushed it from 9.61% in 2010 to 3.68% in 2019, a nine-year grind lower.
The 2020 spike was an outlier in speed, not size. The rate jumped from 3.68% in 2019 to 8.10% on the annual average — but the monthly peak was far higher and lasted only weeks, which is why annual averages can understate a genuine shock.
The Sahm rule and why annual data lags. A rising three-month average of the unemployment rate relative to its prior twelve-month low is the standard recession trigger. Annual figures are useful for context but too slow for that purpose; the monthly table and the BLS release remain the operative inputs.
Frequently asked questions
What is the US unemployment rate today?
The latest reading is 4.20% for September 2026. The 2026 annual average is 4.24%.
What was the highest unemployment rate in US history?
On this post-war annual series the peak is 9.71% in 1982. The 1933 Depression peak was far higher but predates the modern series.
What is full employment?
Most economists place the non-accelerating inflation rate of unemployment — the level consistent with stable inflation — somewhere between 4% and 5%. Annual averages below that range, as in 1953, are usually followed by rising wage pressure.
Source and method
All figures on this page are computed at build time from the Civilian Unemployment Rate series (FRED identifier UNRATE) published by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics and distributed by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Annual figures are averages of the underlying observations; growth and inflation rates are year-over-year changes of those annual averages. Where a year is incomplete the figure is labelled YTD.
Data retrieved 2026-10-30. Raw series: FRED — Civilian Unemployment Rate. Chart and table code licensed CC BY 4.0 — reuse freely with attribution to CapitalWire.
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