Business & Economy

States with the most job openings in September

Written by:
Dom DiFurio
Paxtyn Merten
November 21, 2023
BreizhAtao // Shutterstock

States with the most job openings in September

Job openings across the U.S. remained relatively consistent in September, the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows.

At the end of the month, there were about 9.6 million open jobs nationwide. Though job openings are down from peaks in early 2022, they remain much higher than in any previous decade in recent history. Compared to September 2019, for example, the most recent monthly job openings were up by about 2.4 million.

The national job openings rate was 5.7% in September—meaning around 6 in 100 jobs in the economy are unfilled positions. Industries such as health care and hospitality are experiencing even higher job-opening rates as they struggle to recruit and retain employees. Health care employees face rampant burnout, while hospitality employees have been in short supply after the Great Resignation drove many to pursue higher-paying employment opportunities.

Labor market trends vary widely by locale, with job-opening rates ranging from 4.5% to 8.5% in various states. To get a more complete view, Stacker used Bureau of Labor Statistics data to rank states by their job opening rates in September, using the number of job openings as a tiebreaker when needed. BLS calculates job opening rates as the number of job openings per total jobs—filled or open—in a state. September estimates are preliminary.

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#51. Washington

- Job opening rate: 4.5%
- Number of job openings: 171,000

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Wangkun Jia // Shutterstock

#50. New York

- Job opening rate: 4.6%
- Number of job openings: 468,000

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Canva

#49. Hawaii

- Job opening rate: 4.8%
- Number of job openings: 32,000

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#48. California

- Job opening rate: 4.8%
- Number of job openings: 911,000

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Sean Pavone // Shutterstock

#47. Indiana

- Job opening rate: 5.0%
- Number of job openings: 172,000

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Mihai_Andritoiu // Shutterstock

#46. New Jersey

- Job opening rate: 5.0%
- Number of job openings: 231,000

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#45. Washington D.C.

- Job opening rate: 5.1%
- Number of job openings: 42,000

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Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock

#44. Iowa

- Job opening rate: 5.1%
- Number of job openings: 85,000

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Sean Pavone // Shutterstock

#43. Michigan

- Job opening rate: 5.2%
- Number of job openings: 242,000

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#42. Nebraska

- Job opening rate: 5.5%
- Number of job openings: 61,000

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Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock

#41. Kansas

- Job opening rate: 5.5%
- Number of job openings: 85,000

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Sean Pavone // Shutterstock

#40. Oregon

- Job opening rate: 5.5%
- Number of job openings: 118,000

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Sean Pavone // Shutterstock

#39. Texas

- Job opening rate: 5.5%
- Number of job openings: 811,000

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Sean Pavone // Shutterstock

#38. Connecticut

- Job opening rate: 5.7%
- Number of job openings: 103,000

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#37. Missouri

- Job opening rate: 5.7%
- Number of job openings: 182,000

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Sean Pavone // Shutterstock

#36. Massachusetts

- Job opening rate: 5.7%
- Number of job openings: 229,000

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JohnDSmith // Shutterstock

#35. South Dakota

- Job opening rate: 5.8%
- Number of job openings: 29,000

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#34. Utah

- Job opening rate: 5.8%
- Number of job openings: 106,000

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#33. Idaho

- Job opening rate: 5.9%
- Number of job openings: 54,000

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Sean Pavone // Shutterstock

#32. Arizona

- Job opening rate: 5.9%
- Number of job openings: 198,000

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Sean Pavone // Shutterstock

#31. Virginia

- Job opening rate: 5.9%
- Number of job openings: 263,000

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Sean Pavone // Shutterstock

#30. Illinois

- Job opening rate: 5.9%
- Number of job openings: 384,000

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#29. Florida

- Job opening rate: 5.9%
- Number of job openings: 619,000

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Canva

#28. Ohio

- Job opening rate: 6.0%
- Number of job openings: 363,000

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Albert Pego // Shutterstock

#27. Vermont

- Job opening rate: 6.1%
- Number of job openings: 20,000

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#26. Rhode Island

- Job opening rate: 6.1%
- Number of job openings: 32,000

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#25. Nevada

- Job opening rate: 6.1%
- Number of job openings: 101,000

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#24. Kentucky

- Job opening rate: 6.1%
- Number of job openings: 133,000

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#23. Pennsylvania

- Job opening rate: 6.1%
- Number of job openings: 401,000

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Jacob Boomsma // Shutterstock

#22. North Dakota

- Job opening rate: 6.2%
- Number of job openings: 29,000

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Sean Pavone // Shutterstock

#21. New Hampshire

- Job opening rate: 6.2%
- Number of job openings: 46,000

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Sean Pavone // Shutterstock

#20. New Mexico

- Job opening rate: 6.2%
- Number of job openings: 58,000

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#19. Arkansas

- Job opening rate: 6.2%
- Number of job openings: 90,000

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#18. Alabama

- Job opening rate: 6.2%
- Number of job openings: 143,000

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Sean Pavone // Shutterstock

#17. Maryland

- Job opening rate: 6.2%
- Number of job openings: 184,000

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#16. North Carolina

- Job opening rate: 6.2%
- Number of job openings: 329,000

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#15. Delaware

- Job opening rate: 6.3%
- Number of job openings: 33,000

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#14. Colorado

- Job opening rate: 6.3%
- Number of job openings: 197,000

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LBill45 // Shutterstock

#13. Wyoming

- Job opening rate: 6.4%
- Number of job openings: 20,000

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Sean Pavone // Shutterstock

#12. Oklahoma

- Job opening rate: 6.4%
- Number of job openings: 118,000

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Canva

#11. Minnesota

- Job opening rate: 6.4%
- Number of job openings: 206,000

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Mihai_Andritoiu // Shutterstock

#10. Montana

- Job opening rate: 6.5%
- Number of job openings: 36,000

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#9. Maine

- Job opening rate: 6.5%
- Number of job openings: 45,000

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Canva

#8. Mississippi

- Job opening rate: 6.6%
- Number of job openings: 83,000

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Canva

#7. Georgia

- Job opening rate: 6.7%
- Number of job openings: 354,000

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f11photo // Shutterstock

#6. South Carolina

- Job opening rate: 6.9%
- Number of job openings: 172,000

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Mihai_Andritoiu // Shutterstock

#5. Wisconsin

- Job opening rate: 6.9%
- Number of job openings: 223,000

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Sean Pavone // Shutterstock

#4. Louisiana

- Job opening rate: 7.0%
- Number of job openings: 149,000

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Sean Pavone // Shutterstock

#3. West Virginia

- Job opening rate: 7.3%
- Number of job openings: 56,000

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Canva

#2. Alaska

- Job opening rate: 7.6%
- Number of job openings: 27,000

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Kevin Ruck // Shutterstock

#1. Tennessee

- Job opening rate: 8.5%
- Number of job openings: 309,000

Data reporting by Paxtyn Merten.

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