Counties with the highest unemployment in Minnesota

The first jobs report fully under the new Trump administration showed a softening job market, with the unemployment rate ticking up to 4.1% in February, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics figures released March 7.

Job growth increased but fell below expectations, one of several possible fissures appearing in the once rock-solid labor market. Businesses are pulling back on hiring as the economic forecast and policy outlook grow murkier due to volatile trade policies and large cuts to the federal workforce.

Federal government employment fell by 10,000 in February, pushing up total cuts to the federal workforce. In the first two months of 2025, 62,530 federal workers were let go. However, the most recent cuts, including the Department of Education's workforce getting slashed by nearly half, have not yet appeared in official jobs data. Retail employment also fell by 6,000.

The broader unemployment index, known as the U-6, which also includes laborers working part-time because they can't find full-time work, and those who want to work but have given up searching, rose to 8%, its highest since October 2021.

To get a glimpse of regional variations in employment, Stacker compiled a list of counties with the highest unemployment rates in Minnesota, using BLS data. Counties are ranked by their preliminary unemployment rate in January 2025, with initial ties broken by the number of unemployed people within that county, though some ties may remain. County-level unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted.

Key takeaways: Jobs report shows softening labor market

February's job growth of 151,000 fell below economists' expected gains of 160,000, showing the labor market is cooling faster than predicted. Experts say many companies weighing policy changes and economic uncertainty are deciding it's safer to hold off on hiring decisions for now.

"If you were a company and you were saying, 'I'm looking to expand, or I'm looking to hire,' you would have investors in those companies saying, 'Are you crazy?'" Ron Hetrick, senior labor economist at Lightcast, told Marketplace.

Consumer spending fell in January for the first time in two years, which may have led to layoffs or hiring slowdowns, Nela Richardson, ADP's chief economist, told NBC News.

The big story: From bold promises to frozen labor market

After an initial market pop following Trump's electoral win, indexes have slumped to below when he took office, and uncertainty about the future of the markets is a common theme. Are threatened tariffs in place, delayed, reversed, or ramped up? Has that federal worker been fired or given their job back? Are those federal dollars slashed or reinstated? It's a question mark that changes daily.

Research shows that uncertainty invites lower investment, slows employment, and increases financial market volatility. The word "uncertain" showed up 47 times in the March edition of the Beige Book, the Federal Reserve's snapshot of reports from across the nation, compared to 17 times in the previous report from January.

The new administration's blitz of executive orders and trade policy waffling have cast a dense fog over the short-term economic outlook. One thing that is known? Uncertainty isn't good for business planning, job creation, or hiring.

In a March 12 interview with Semafor, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon noted that average consumers likely don't change "what they're going to do because they read about tariffs," but "companies might."

"Uncertainty is not a good thing," Dimon added.

To get a better idea of your community's current economy, read on to see the counties with the highest unemployment in Minnesota.

49. Brown County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: +1.6 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 13,864 people (587 unemployed)

49. Sherburne County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: +1.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: 0.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 57,811 people (2,427 unemployed)

46. Lake of the Woods County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.3%
--- 1-month change: +0.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,038 people (87 unemployed)

46. Steele County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.3%
--- 1-month change: +1.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 17,824 people (769 unemployed)

46. Yellow Medicine County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.3%
--- 1-month change: +1.6 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 4,836 people (210 unemployed)

43. Kandiyohi County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.5%
--- 1-month change: +1.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 22,594 people (1,017 unemployed)

43. Lake County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.5%
--- 1-month change: +1.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 5,038 people (229 unemployed)

43. McLeod County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.5%
--- 1-month change: +1.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 20,236 people (911 unemployed)

41. Roseau County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.6%
--- 1-month change: +1.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 8,714 people (401 unemployed)

41. Kittson County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.6%
--- 1-month change: +1.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,249 people (104 unemployed)

36. Koochiching County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: +1.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 5,816 people (274 unemployed)

36. Chippewa County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: +1.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 6,165 people (289 unemployed)

36. Chisago County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: +1.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 32,163 people (1,510 unemployed)

36. Norman County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: +1.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 3,386 people (158 unemployed)

36. Pope County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: +1.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 6,029 people (281 unemployed)

34. Waseca County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.8%
--- 1-month change: +0.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 9,460 people (452 unemployed)

34. Faribault County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.8%
--- 1-month change: +1.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 7,477 people (357 unemployed)

31. Pipestone County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.1%
--- 1-month change: +2.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +1.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 4,554 people (233 unemployed)

31. Big Stone County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.1%
--- 1-month change: +1.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,419 people (124 unemployed)

31. Benton County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.1%
--- 1-month change: +1.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 23,291 people (1,178 unemployed)

27. Meeker County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.2%
--- 1-month change: +2.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 12,964 people (670 unemployed)

27. Beltrami County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.2%
--- 1-month change: +1.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 22,714 people (1,178 unemployed)

27. Cook County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.2%
--- 1-month change: +1.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,755 people (143 unemployed)

27. Becker County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.2%
--- 1-month change: +1.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 18,014 people (944 unemployed)

25. Sibley County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.3%
--- 1-month change: +1.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 7,717 people (412 unemployed)

25. Crow Wing County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.3%
--- 1-month change: +1.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 33,642 people (1,781 unemployed)

23. Otter Tail County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.4%
--- 1-month change: +1.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 30,111 people (1,621 unemployed)

23. Carlton County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.4%
--- 1-month change: +1.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 17,803 people (961 unemployed)

22. Lincoln County

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.5%
--- 1-month change: +2.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,903 people (161 unemployed)

21. Isanti County

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.6%
--- 1-month change: +1.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 23,636 people (1,314 unemployed)

20. Todd County

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.7%
--- 1-month change: +1.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 13,546 people (771 unemployed)

19. Grant County

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.8%
--- 1-month change: +1.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 3,189 people (185 unemployed)

17. Mahnomen County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.9%
--- 1-month change: +2.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,411 people (143 unemployed)

17. Renville County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.9%
--- 1-month change: +2.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 7,530 people (443 unemployed)

15. Murray County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6%
--- 1-month change: +2.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 4,278 people (256 unemployed)

15. Swift County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6%
--- 1-month change: +1.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +1.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 5,636 people (336 unemployed)

13. Itasca County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.3%
--- 1-month change: +2.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 21,269 people (1,339 unemployed)

13. Le Sueur County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.3%
--- 1-month change: +1.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 16,799 people (1,056 unemployed)

12. Wadena County

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.7%
--- 1-month change: +1.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 6,887 people (462 unemployed)

11. Morrison County

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.8%
--- 1-month change: +2.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 18,475 people (1,256 unemployed)

10. Hubbard County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 7%
--- 1-month change: +2.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 10,188 people (713 unemployed)

9. Marshall County

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.2%
--- 1-month change: +2.6 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 5,028 people (361 unemployed)

6. Mille Lacs County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.3%
--- 1-month change: +1.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: -0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 14,783 people (1,079 unemployed)

6. Pennington County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.3%
--- 1-month change: +1.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +1.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 7,721 people (567 unemployed)

6. Red Lake County (tie)

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.3%
--- 1-month change: +2.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +1.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 2,026 people (148 unemployed)

5. Aitkin County

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.4%
--- 1-month change: +2.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 7,113 people (527 unemployed)

4. Cass County

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.7%
--- 1-month change: +2.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 14,220 people (1,092 unemployed)

3. Pine County

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 8.8%
--- 1-month change: +3.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +1.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 13,561 people (1,199 unemployed)

2. Kanabec County

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 9.1%
--- 1-month change: +3.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +1.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 8,616 people (782 unemployed)

1. Clearwater County

- January unemployment rate (preliminary): 10.5%
--- 1-month change: +4.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: +1.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 4,101 people (430 unemployed)

This story features data reporting by Karim Noorani, writing by Ben Popken, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 50 states.