In 1990, the unemployment rate of the United States stood at 5.6 percent. Since then there have been many significant fluctuations to this number - the 2008 financial crisis left millions of people without work, as did the COVID-19 pandemic. By the end of 2022 and throughout 2023, the unemployment rate came to 3.6 percent, the lowest rate seen for decades. However, 2024 saw an increase up to four percent. For monthly updates on unemployment in the United States visit either the monthly national unemployment rate here, or the monthly state unemployment rate here. Both are seasonally adjusted. UnemploymentUnemployment is defined as a situation when an employed person is laid off, fired or quits his work and is still actively looking for a job. Unemployment can be found even in the healthiest economies, and many economists consider an unemployment rate at or below five percent to mean there is 'full employment' within an economy. If former employed persons go back to school or leave the job to take care of children they are no longer part of the active labor force and therefore not counted among the unemployed. Unemployment can also be the effect of events that are not part of the normal dynamics of an economy. Layoffs can be the result of technological progress, for example when robots replace workers in automobile production. Sometimes unemployment is caused by job outsourcing, due to the fact that employers often search for cheap labor around the globe and not only domestically. In 2022, the tech sector in the U.S. experienced significant lay-offs amid growing economic uncertainty. In the fourth quarter of 2022, more than 70,000 workers were laid off, despite low unemployment nationwide. The unemployment rate in the United States varies from state to state. In 2021, California had the highest number of unemployed persons with 1.38 million out of work.

Data of Thailand National Statistics Office (NSO) showed that the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted on jobs. These datasets are derived from major findings from Labour Force Survey (http://statbbi.nso.go.th/staticreport/Page/sector/th/02.aspx).

Unemployment Rate in the United States remained unchanged at 4.20 percent in May. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Unemployment Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

This statistic shows the U.S. underemployment rate on a monthly basis for the ongoing year. The survey is conducted doing daily telephone interviews among about 30,000 adults per month in the U.S. The graph shows the 30-day average for each month to depict an annual trend. The rate is created by adding unemployed workers, who are looking for work, to the amount of workers employed part time but seeking full-time work. In July 2017, the U.S. underemployment rate was 12.5 percent.

The unemployment rate in Brazil, which had already been on a rise since December 2019, soared amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. In March and April 2021, this figure stood close to ** percent. However, since May 2021, this rate has been decreasing at a rapid pace. As of March 2025, the unemployment rate stood at * percent.Figures represent three-month average unemployment rates, calculated between the indicated month and the two previous consecutive months.

Unemployment rate for 2017 by census tract. Data from ACS survey.

United States US: Unemployment Rate: % Change data was reported at -10.616 % in 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of -8.031 % for 2016. United States US: Unemployment Rate: % Change data is updated yearly, averaging -5.513 % from Dec 1949 (Median) to 2017, with 69 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 89.744 % in 1954 and a record low of -37.402 % in 1951. United States US: Unemployment Rate: % Change data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by International Monetary Fund. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.IMF.IFS: Labour Force, Employment and Unemployment: Annual.

This map shows the unemployment rate in the United States in 2017 in a multiscale map by country, state, county, ZIP Code, tract, and block group.The pop-up is configured to include the following information for each geography level:Unemployment rate (%)Population count of persons over the age of 16 within work forceCount of employed and unemployed civil population (over age 16)The data shown is from Esri's 2017 Updated Demographic estimates using Census 2010 geographies. The map adds increasing level of detail as you zoom in, from state, to county, to ZIP Code, to tract, to block group data. Esri's U.S. Updated Demographic (2017/2022) Data - Population, age, income, sex, race, home value, and marital status are among the variables included in the database. Each year, Esri's Data Development team employs its proven methodologies to update more than 2,000 demographic variables for a variety of U.S. geographies. Additional Esri Resources:Esri DemographicsU.S. 2017/2022 Esri Updated DemographicsEssential demographic vocabulary

In June 2024, about 32.9 percent of college graduates were underemployed in the United States. This number has remained relatively constant since throughout the last years. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York defines underemployment as "working in a job that typically does not require a bachelor’s degree".

The percent of persons between the ages of 16 and 64 that are in the labor force (and are looking for work) but are not currently working. Source: American Community Survey Years Available: 2006-2010, 2007-2011, 2008-2012, 2009-2013, 2010-2014, 2011-2015, 2012-2016, 2013-2017, 2014-2018, 2015-2019, 2016-2020, 2017-2021, 2018-2022, 2019-2023Please note: We do not recommend comparing overlapping years of data due to the nature of this dataset. For more information, please visit: https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/guidance/comparing-acs-data.html

The percent of persons between the ages of 16 and 64 that are in the labor force (and are looking for work) but are not currently working. Source: American Community Survey Years Available: 2006-2010, 2007-2011, 2008-2012, 2009-2013, 2010-2014, 2011-2015, 2012-2016, 2013-2017, 2014-2018, 2015-2019, 2016-2020, 2017-2021, 2018-2022, 2019-2023Please note: We do not recommend comparing overlapping years of data due to the nature of this dataset. For more information, please visit: https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/guidance/comparing-acs-data.html

In June 2024, about **** percent of recent college graduates were underemployed in the United States. This indicated no change from the previous month.The Federal Reserve Bank of New York defines underemployment as "working in a job that typically does not require a bachelor’s degree". Recent college graduates are those aged 22 to 27 with a bachelor's degree or higher

Historical chart and dataset showing U.S. unemployment rate by year from 1991 to 2024.

From the second quarter of 2017, Brazil was the country of those included in the chart with the highest unemployment rates. However, it has been decreasing constantly since the second quarter of 2021, reaching 6.4 percent in the third quarter of 2024. In the same quarter, Japan and Russia had the lowest unemployment rates of the countries included. China does not release quarterly unemployment rate statistics anymore. Monthly unemployment data can be found here.

Unemployment Rate in China decreased to 5 percent in May from 5.10 percent in April of 2025. This dataset provides - China Unemployment Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Unemployment rate of Canadians aged 15 to 24 and 15 and over, Canada, provinces and territories, health regions and peer groups.

This layer was developed by the Research & Analytics Group of the Atlanta Regional Commission, using data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey 5-year estimates for 2013-2017, to show unemployment numbers and percentages by census tract in the Atlanta region.

The user should note that American Community Survey data represent estimates derived from a surveyed sample of the population, which creates some level of uncertainty, as opposed to an exact measure of the entire population (the full census count is only conducted once every 10 years and does not cover as many detailed characteristics of the population). Therefore, any measure reported by ACS should not be taken as an exact number – this is why a corresponding margin of error (MOE) is also given for ACS measures. The size of the MOE relative to its corresponding estimate value provides an indication of confidence in the accuracy of each estimate. Each MOE is expressed in the same units as its corresponding measure; for example, if the estimate value is expressed as a number, then its MOE will also be a number; if the estimate value is expressed as a percent, then its MOE will also be a percent.

The user should also note that for relatively small geographic areas, such as census tracts shown here, ACS only releases combined 5-year estimates, meaning these estimates represent rolling averages of survey results that were collected over a 5-year span (in this case 2013-2017). Therefore, these data do not represent any one specific point in time or even one specific year. For geographic areas with larger populations, 3-year and 1-year estimates are also available.

For further explanation of ACS estimates and margin of error, visit Census ACS website.

Naming conventions:

Prefixes:

None

Count

p

Percent

r

Rate

m

Median

a

Mean (average)

t

Aggregate (total)

ch

Change in absolute terms (value in t2 - value in t1)

pch

Percent change ((value in t2 - value in t1) / value in t1)

chp

Change in percent (percent in t2 - percent in t1)

Suffixes:

None

Change over two periods

_e

Estimate from most recent ACS

_m

Margin of Error from most recent ACS

_00

Decennial 2000

Attributes:

SumLevel

Summary level of geographic unit (e.g., County, Tract, NSA, NPU, DSNI, SuperDistrict, etc)

GEOID

Census tract Federal Information Processing Series (FIPS) code

NAME

Name of geographic unit

Planning_Region

Planning region designation for ARC purposes

Acres

Total area within the tract (in acres)

SqMi

Total area within the tract (in square miles)

County

County identifier (combination of Federal Information Processing Series (FIPS) codes for state and county)

CountyName

County Name

Pop16P_e

# Population 16 years and over, 2017

Pop16P_m

# Population 16 years and over, 2017 (MOE)

InLabForce_e

# In labor force, 2017

InLabForce_m

# In labor force, 2017 (MOE)

pInLabForce_e

% In labor force, 2017

pInLabForce_m

% In labor force, 2017 (MOE)

CivLabForce_e

# In civilian labor force, 2017

CivLabForce_m

# In civilian labor force, 2017 (MOE)

pCivLabForce_e

% In civilian labor force, 2017

pCivLabForce_m

% In civilian labor force, 2017 (MOE)

CivEmployed_e

# Civilian employed, 2017

CivEmployed_m

# Civilian employed, 2017 (MOE)

pCivEmployed_e

% Civilian employed, 2017

pCivEmployed_m

% Civilian employed, 2017 (MOE)

Unemployed_e

# Civilian unemployed, 2017

Unemployed_m

# Civilian unemployed, 2017 (MOE)

pUnemployed_e

% Civilian unemployed, 2017

pUnemployed_m

% Civilian unemployed, 2017 (MOE)

ArmedForce_e

# In armed forces, 2017

ArmedForce_m

# In armed forces, 2017 (MOE)

pArmedForce_e

% In armed forces, 2017

pArmedForce_m

% In armed forces, 2017 (MOE)

NotLabForce_e

# Not in labor force, 2017

NotLabForce_m

# Not in labor force, 2017 (MOE)

pNotLabForce_e

% Not in labor force, 2017

pNotLabForce_m

% Not in labor force, 2017 (MOE)

pUnempOLabForce_e

% Unemployed as part of total labor force (including armed forces), 2017

pUnempOLabForce_m

% Unemployed as part of total labor force (including armed forces), 2017 (MOE)

UnempCivLabForce_e

# Civilian Unemployed, 2017

UnempCivLabForce_m

# Civilian Unemployed, 2017 (MOE)

pUnempCivLabForce_e

% Unemployment Rate, 2017

pUnempCivLabForce_m

% Unemployment Rate, 2017 (MOE)

last_edited_date

Last date the feature was edited by ARC

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Atlanta Regional Commission

Date: 2013-2017

For additional information, please visit the Census ACS website.

In 2024, the rate of surveyed unemployment in urban areas of China amounted to approximately 5.1 percent. The unemployment rate is expected to remain at 5.1 percent in 2025 and the following years. Monthly unemployment ranged at a level of around 5.3 percent in the first quarter of 2025. Unemployment rate in China In 2017, the National Statistics Bureau of China introduced surveyed unemployment as a new indicator of unemployment in the country. It is based on monthly surveys among the labor force in urban areas of China. Surveyed unemployment replaced registered unemployment figures, which were often criticized for missing out large parts of the urban labor force and thereby not presenting a true picture of urban unemployment levels. However, current unemployment figures still do not include rural areas.A main concern in China’s current state of employment lies within the large regional differences. As of 2021, the unemployment rate in northeastern regions of China was notably higher than in China’s southern parts. In Beijing, China’s political and cultural center, registered unemployment ranged at around 3.2 percent for 2021. Indicators of economic activities Apart from the unemployment rate, most commonly used indicators to measure economic activities of a country are GDP growth and inflation rate. According to an IMF forecast, GDP growth in China will decrease to about four percent in 2025, after five percent in 2023, depicting a decrease of more than six percentage points from 10.6 percent in 2010. Quarterly growth data published by the National Bureau of Statistics indicated 5.4 percent GDP growth for the first quarter of 2025.

Unemployment Rate: Far East Federal District data was reported at 5.100 % in Dec 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of 6.200 % for Nov 2017. Unemployment Rate: Far East Federal District data is updated monthly, averaging 6.000 % from Apr 2014 (Median) to Dec 2017, with 45 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 7.400 % in May 2015 and a record low of 5.000 % in Jun 2017. Unemployment Rate: Far East Federal District data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Federal State Statistics Service. The data is categorized under Russia Premium Database’s Demographic and Labour Market – Table RU.GB007: Unemployment Rate.

Youth Unemployment Rate in the United States increased to 9.70 percent in May from 9.60 percent in April of 2025. This dataset provides - United States Youth Unemployment Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.