Initial Jobless Claims in the United States decreased to 224 thousand in the week ending August 9 of 2025 from 227 thousand in the previous week. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Initial Jobless Claims - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

Graph and download economic data for Initial Claims (ICSA) from 1967-01-07 to 2025-08-02 about initial claims, headline figure, and USA.

During the week ending May 20, 2023, unemployment insurance claims in U.S. states totaled 202,044 claims, an increase from the previous week when there were 200,738 claims. During the week, California was the most affected state, with 45,667 initial unemployment insurance claims.

Continuing Jobless Claims in the United States decreased to 1953 thousand in the week ending August 2 of 2025 from 1968 thousand in the previous week. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Continuing Jobless Claims - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

Graph and download economic data for Continued Claims (Insured Unemployment) (CCSA) from 1967-01-07 to 2025-08-02 about continued claims, insurance, headline figure, unemployment, and USA.

Unemployment Rate in the United States increased to 4.20 percent in July from 4.10 percent in June of 2025. 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.

The unemployment rate in fiscal year 2204 rose to 3.9 percent. The unemployment rate of the United States which has been steadily decreasing since the 2008 financial crisis, spiked to 8.1 percent in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The annual unemployment rate of the U.S. since 1990 can be found here. Falling unemployment The unemployment rate, or the part of the U.S. labor force that is without a job, fell again in 2022 after peaking at 8.1 percent in 2020 - a rate that has not been seen since the years following the 2008 financial crisis. The financial crash caused unemployment in the U.S. to soar from 4.6 percent in 2007 to 9.6 percent in 2010. Since 2010, the unemployment rate had been steadily falling, meaning that more and more people are finding work, whether that be through full-time employment or part-time employment. However, the affects of the COVID-19 pandemic created a spike in unemployment across the country. U.S. unemployment in comparison Compared to unemployment rates in the European Union, U.S. unemployment is relatively low. Greece was hit particularly hard by the 2008 financial crisis and faced a government debt crisis that sent the Greek economy into a tailspin. Due to this crisis, and the added impact of the pandemic, Greece still has the highest unemployment rate in the European Union.

Jobless Claims 4-week Average in the United States increased to 221.75 Thousand in August 9 from 221 Thousand in the previous week. This dataset provides - United States Jobless Claims 4-week Average- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

United States Unemployment Insurance: Continued Claims: West Virginia data was reported at 59.089 Person th in 08 Aug 2020. This records an increase from the previous number of 57.763 Person th for 01 Aug 2020. United States Unemployment Insurance: Continued Claims: West Virginia data is updated weekly, averaging 15.950 Person th from Dec 1986 (Median) to 08 Aug 2020, with 1755 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 146.566 Person th in 18 Apr 2020 and a record low of 6.418 Person th in 06 Oct 2018. United States Unemployment Insurance: Continued Claims: West Virginia data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by US Department of Labor. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.G072: Unemployment Insurance: Jobless Claims: by State.

United States Unemployment Insurance: Continued Claims: Delaware data was reported at 38.846 Person th in 08 Aug 2020. This records an increase from the previous number of 36.026 Person th for 01 Aug 2020. United States Unemployment Insurance: Continued Claims: Delaware data is updated weekly, averaging 7.171 Person th from Dec 1986 (Median) to 08 Aug 2020, with 1754 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 55.172 Person th in 23 May 2020 and a record low of 1.739 Person th in 03 Oct 1987. United States Unemployment Insurance: Continued Claims: Delaware data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by US Department of Labor. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.G072: Unemployment Insurance: Jobless Claims: by State.

Graph and download economic data for 4-Week Moving Average of Initial Claims (IC4WSA) from 1967-01-28 to 2025-08-09 about moving average, initial claims, 1-month, average, and USA.

In July 2024, 3.16 billion U.S. dollars were paid out in unemployment benefits in the United States. This is an increase from June 2024, when 2.62 billion U.S. dollars were paid in unemployment benefits. The large figures seen in 2020 are largely due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Welfare in the U.S. Unemployment benefits first started in 1935 during the Great Depression as a part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal. The Social Security Act of 1935 ensured that Americans would not fall deeper into poverty. The United States was the only developed nation in the world at the time that did not offer any welfare benefits. This program created unemployment benefits, Medicare and Medicaid, and maternal and child welfare. The only major welfare program that the United States currently lacks is a paid maternity leave policy. Currently, the United States only offers 12 unpaid weeks of leave, under certain circumstances. However, the number of people without health insurance in the United States has greatly decreased since 2010. Unemployment benefits Current unemployment benefits in the United States vary from state to state due to unemployment being funded by both the state and the federal government. The average duration of people collecting unemployment benefits in the United States has fluctuated since January 2020, from as little as 4.55 weeks to as many as 50.32 weeks. The unemployment rate varies by ethnicity, gender, and education levels. For example, those aged 16 to 24 have faced the highest unemployment rates since 1990 during the pandemic. In February 2023, the Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV metropolitan area had the highest unemployment rate in the United States.

United States Unemployment Insurance: Initial Claims: Montana data was reported at 1.830 Person th in 15 Aug 2020. This records an increase from the previous number of 1.642 Person th for 08 Aug 2020. United States Unemployment Insurance: Initial Claims: Montana data is updated weekly, averaging 1.024 Person th from Jan 1987 (Median) to 15 Aug 2020, with 1755 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 21.244 Person th in 04 Apr 2020 and a record low of 0.398 Person th in 28 Jul 2018. United States Unemployment Insurance: Initial Claims: Montana data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by US Department of Labor. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.G072: Unemployment Insurance: Jobless Claims: by State.

The unemployment rate for people ages 16 to 24 in the United States in 202024 23 was 10 percent. However, this rate was much lower for people aged 45 and over, at 2.9 percent. U.S. unemployment The unemployment rate in the United States varies based on several factors, such as race, gender, and level of education. Black and African-American individuals had the highest unemployment rate in 2021 out of any ethnicity, and people who had less than a high school diploma had the highest unemployment rate by education level. Alaska is consistently the state with the highest unemployment rate, although the El Centro, California metropolitan area was the area with the highest unemployment rate in the country in 2019. Additionally, in August 2022, farming, fishing, and forestry occupations had the highest unemployment rate in the United States Unemployment rate The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics is the agency that researches and calculates the unemployment rate in the United States. Unemployment rises during recessions, which causes the cost of social welfare programs to increase. The Bureau of Labor Statistics says unemployed people are those who are jobless, have looked for employment within the last four weeks, and are free to work.

The seasonally-adjusted national unemployment rate is measured on a monthly basis in the United States. In February 2025, the national unemployment rate was at 4.1 percent. Seasonal adjustment is a statistical method of removing the seasonal component of a time series that is used when analyzing non-seasonal trends. U.S. monthly unemployment rate According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics - the principle fact-finding agency for the U.S. Federal Government in labor economics and statistics - unemployment decreased dramatically between 2010 and 2019. This trend of decreasing unemployment followed after a high in 2010 resulting from the 2008 financial crisis. However, after a smaller financial crisis due to the COVID-19 pandemic, unemployment reached 8.1 percent in 2020. As the economy recovered, the unemployment rate fell to 5.3 in 2021, and fell even further in 2022. Additional statistics from the BLS paint an interesting picture of unemployment in the United States. In November 2023, the states with the highest (seasonally adjusted) unemployment rate were the Nevada and the District of Columbia. Unemployment was the lowest in Maryland, at 1.8 percent. Workers in the agricultural and related industries suffered the highest unemployment rate of any industry at seven percent in December 2023.

In April 2025, the agriculture and related private wage and salary workers industry had the highest unemployment rate in the United States, at eight percent. In comparison, government workers had the lowest unemployment rate, at 1.8 percent. The average for all industries was 3.9 percent. U.S. unemployment There are several factors that impact unemployment, as it fluctuates with the state of the economy. Unfortunately, the forecasted unemployment rate in the United States is expected to increase as we head into the latter half of the decade. Those with a bachelor’s degree or higher saw the lowest unemployment rate from 1992 to 2022 in the United States, which is attributed to the fact that higher levels of education are seen as more desirable in the workforce. Nevada unemployment Nevada is one of the states with the highest unemployment rates in the country and Vermont typically has one of the lowest unemployment rates. These are seasonally adjusted rates, which means that seasonal factors such as holiday periods and weather events that influence employment periods are removed. Nevada's economy consists of industries that are currently suffering high unemployment rates such as tourism. As of May 2023, about 5.4 percent of Nevada's population was unemployed, possibly due to the lingering impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

The employment and unemployment indicator shows several data points. The first figure is the number of people in the labor force, which includes the number of people who are either working or looking for work. The second two figures, the number of people who are employed and the number of people who are unemployed, are the two subcategories of the labor force. The unemployment rate is a calculation of the number of people who are in the labor force and unemployed as a percentage of the total number of people in the labor force.

The unemployment rate does not include people who are not employed and not in the labor force. This includes adults who are neither working nor looking for work. For example, full-time students may choose not to seek any employment during their college career, and are thus not considered in the unemployment rate. Stay-at-home parents and other caregivers are also considered outside of the labor force, and therefore outside the scope of the unemployment rate.

The unemployment rate is a key economic indicator, and is illustrative of economic conditions in the county at the individual scale.

There are additional considerations to the unemployment rate. Because it does not count those who are outside the labor force, it can exclude individuals who were looking for a job previously, but have since given up. The impact of this on the overall unemployment rate is difficult to quantify, but it is important to note because it shows that no statistic is perfect.

The unemployment rates for Champaign County, the City of Champaign, and the City of Urbana are extremely similar between 2000 and 2023.

All three areas saw a dramatic increase in the unemployment rate between 2006 and 2009. The unemployment rates for all three areas decreased overall between 2010 and 2019. However, the unemployment rate in all three areas rose sharply in 2020 due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The unemployment rate in all three areas dropped again in 2021 as pandemic restrictions were removed, and were almost back to 2019 rates in 2022. However, the unemployment rate in all three areas rose slightly from 2022 to 2023.

This data is sourced from the Illinois Department of Employment Security’s Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS), and from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Sources: Illinois Department of Employment Security, Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Graph and download economic data for Number Unemployed for 27 Weeks & over (UEMP27OV) from Jan 1948 to Jul 2025 about 27 weeks +, civilian, 16 years +, household survey, unemployment, and USA.

United States Unemployment Insurance: Initial Claims: West Virginia data was reported at 2.248 Person th in 15 Aug 2020. This records an increase from the previous number of 1.981 Person th for 08 Aug 2020. United States Unemployment Insurance: Initial Claims: West Virginia data is updated weekly, averaging 1.481 Person th from Jan 1987 (Median) to 15 Aug 2020, with 1755 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 46.755 Person th in 18 Apr 2020 and a record low of 0.580 Person th in 23 Sep 2017. United States Unemployment Insurance: Initial Claims: West Virginia data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by US Department of Labor. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.G072: Unemployment Insurance: Jobless Claims: by State.

United States Unemployment Insurance: Initial Claims: New York data was reported at 62.397 Person th in 15 Aug 2020. This records an increase from the previous number of 52.631 Person th for 08 Aug 2020. United States Unemployment Insurance: Initial Claims: New York data is updated weekly, averaging 19.955 Person th from Jan 1987 (Median) to 15 Aug 2020, with 1755 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 394.701 Person th in 11 Apr 2020 and a record low of 0.481 Person th in 31 Oct 1987. United States Unemployment Insurance: Initial Claims: New York data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by US Department of Labor. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.G072: Unemployment Insurance: Jobless Claims: by State.