Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate - 20 Yrs. & over (LNU04000024) from Jan 1948 to Sep 2025 about 20 years +, unemployment, rate, and USA.

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.

Unemployment Rate in the United States increased to 4.40 percent in September from 4.30 percent in August 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.

View monthly updates and historical trends for US Unemployment Rate. from United States. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics. Track economic data with YCha…

Introduction

The U.S. job market, with its dynamic trends and fluctuating unemployment rates, serves as an important barometer for the nation's economic health. All rates provided in this dataset are seasonally adjusted. Delving into the intricacies of unemployment rates by age and gender helps researchers, policymakers, and analysts uncover underlying patterns and address potential disparities.

Usage Examples

• Economic Research: Study the historical unemployment trends to gauge economic cycles.
• Policy Making: Inform labor market policies and interventions based on age or gender disparities.
• Business Strategy: Companies can analyze job market conditions when considering expansions or contractions.
• Academic Projects: Students and educators can use the dataset for case studies, dissertations, or classroom projects.

Image Source Photo by Ron Lach : https://www.pexels.com/photo/woman-looking-for-jobs-in-newspaper-9832700/

Dataset Contents

This dataset, sourced from the FRED API, provides: - df_sex_unemployment_rates.csv: A breakdown of U.S. unemployment rates based on gender. - df_unemployment_rates.csv: Unemployment rates categorized by various age groups, ranging from young entrants (ages 16-17) to seasoned professionals (55 and above).

Together, these data files offer a comprehensive insight into the nuances of unemployment in the U.S., highlighting potential disparities in the job market across different age groups and between men and women.

The seasonally-adjusted national unemployment rate is measured on a monthly basis in the United States. In August 2025, the national unemployment rate was at 4.3 percent. Seasonal adjustment is a statistical method of removing the seasonal component of a time series that is used when analyzing non-seasonal trends.

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate - 16-24 Yrs. (LNS14024887) from Jan 1948 to Sep 2025 about 16 to 24 years, unemployment, rate, and USA.

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.

In August 2025, the agriculture and related private wage and salary workers industry had the highest unemployment rate in the United States, at seven percent. In comparison, financial activities workers had the lowest unemployment rate, at 1.6 percent. The average for all industries was 4.5 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 unadjusted unemployment rate in the United States stood at 4.5 percent in August 2025. This data is not seasonally adjusted. The adjusted monthly unemployment rate can be found here and the monthly civilian labor force participation rate here.

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate - 30-34 Yrs. (LNU04024933) from Jan 1981 to Sep 2025 about 30 to 34 years, unemployment, rate, and USA.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Units: Percent, Seasonally Adjusted

Frequency: Monthly

The unemployment rate represents the number of unemployed as a percentage of the labor force. Labor force data are restricted to people 16 years of age and older, who currently reside in 1 of the 50 states or the District of Columbia, who do not reside in institutions (e.g., penal and mental facilities, homes for the aged), and who are not on active duty in the Armed Forces.

This rate is also defined as the U-3 measure of labor underutilization.

The series comes from the 'Current Population Survey (Household Survey)'

Suggested Citation:

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Unemployment Rate [UNRATE], retrieved from FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis; https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/UNRATE, August 13, 2023.

Youth Unemployment Rate in the United States decreased to 10.40 percent in September from 10.50 percent in August of 2025. This dataset provides - United States Youth Unemployment Rate - actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate - Black or African American (LNS14000006) from Jan 1972 to Sep 2025 about African-American, 16 years +, household survey, unemployment, rate, and USA.

Long Term Unemployment Rate in the United States decreased to 1.06 percent in September from 1.13 percent in August of 2025. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Long Term Unemployment Rate - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

This dataset contains unemployment data at metropolitan area (MA) level, respectively the change over the year of unemployment rate. The data for the unemployment rate change over the year is starting from 2023 to 2024.

In August 2025, the unemployment rate for those aged 16 and over in the United States came to 4.5 percent. Service occupations had an unemployment rate of 5.7 percent in that month. The underemployment rate of the country can be accessed here and the monthly unemployment rate here. Unemployment by occupation in the U.S. The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics publish data on the unemployment situation within certain occupations in the United States on a monthly basis. According to latest data released from May 2023, transportation and material moving occupations experienced the highest level of unemployment that month, with a rate of around 5.6 percent. Second ranked was farming, fishing, and forestry occupations with a rate of 4.9 percent. Total (not seasonally adjusted) unemployment was reported at 3.6 percent in March 2023. Other data on the U.S. unemployment rate by industry and class of worker shows comparable results. It should be noted that the data were not seasonally adjusted to account for normal seasonal fluctuations in unemployment. The monthly unemployment by occupation data can be compared to the seasonally adjusted monthly unemployment rate. In March 2023, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.5 percent, which was an increase from the previous month. The annual unemployment rate in 2022 was 3.6 percent, down from a high of 9.6 in 2010. Unemployment in the United States trended downward after the coronavirus pandemic, and is now experiencing consistently low rates - a sign of economic stability. Individuals who opt to leave the workforce and stop looking for employment are not included among the unemployed. The civilian labor force participation rate in the U.S. rose to 62.2 percent in 2022, down from 67.1 percent in 2000, before the financial crisis.

From the late 19th century until the 1980s, the United States' unemployment rate was generally somewhere between three and ten percent of the total workforce. The periods when it peaked were in times of recession or depression - the Panic of 1893, which lasted until 1897, saw unemployment peak at over 18 percent, whereas the post-WWI recession saw unemployment spike to almost 12 percent in 1921.

However, the longest and most-severe period of mass unemployment in U.S. history came during the Great Depression - unemployment rose from just 3.2 percent in 1929 to one quarter of the total workforce in 1933, and it was not until the Second World War until it fell below five percent once more. Since this time, unemployment has never exceeded 10 percent, although it did come close during the recessions of the 1970s and 1980s.

More recent unemployment statistics for the U.S. can be found here.

Graph and download economic data for Unemployment Rate - 50-54 Yrs. (LNU04024937) from Jan 1981 to Sep 2025 about 50 to 54 years, unemployment, rate, and USA.

Employment Rate in the United States increased to 59.70 percent in September from 59.60 percent in August of 2025. This dataset provides - United States Employment Rate- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.