Little Mountain 5 // Wikicommons
1 / 50#50. Medford, Oregon
- Unemployment rate: 4.89%
- 1 month change: +0.4%%
- 1 year change: -0.5%%
Metros with the highest unemployment rate
The U.S. economy is coming off of one of the largest spikes in unemployment in recorded history. The country's employers have added more jobs month after month since more than 20 million Americans found themselves jobless in spring 2020—the result of the COVID-19 pandemic and the uncertainty it wrought for businesses.
Stacker compiled a list of the metros with the highest unemployment using data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Metros are ranked by the highest percent unemployment rate in August 2022, a measure that when high can signal a slowing economy. When an economy is contracting, less workers are needed for less output.
Robert Lawton // Wikimedia
2 / 50#49. Peoria, Illinois
- Unemployment rate: 4.92%
- 1 month change: -0.0%%
- 1 year change: -1.0%%
Dough4872 // Wikicommons
3 / 50#48. Atlantic City-Hammonton, New Jersey
- Unemployment rate: 4.93%
- 1 month change: -0.0%%
- 1 year change: -4.2%%
Ruhrfisch // Wikimedia
4 / 50#47. Williamsport, Pennsylvania
- Unemployment rate: 4.95%
- 1 month change: -0.0%%
- 1 year change: -2.0%%
Derek.cashman // Wikicommons
5 / 50#46. Flagstaff, Arizona
- Unemployment rate: 4.96%
- 1 month change: +0.3%%
- 1 year change: -0.8%%
Andrew Jameson // Wikicommons
6 / 50#45. Bay City, Michigan
- Unemployment rate: 5.00%
- 1 month change: -0.5%%
- 1 year change: -0.8%%
AllenS // Wikicommons
7 / 50#44. Farmington, New Mexico
- Unemployment rate: 5.08%
- 1 month change: -0.6%%
- 1 year change: -3.2%%
LEONARDO DASILVA // Wikimedia Commons
8 / 50#43. New Bedford, Massachusetts
- Unemployment rate: 5.12%
- 1 month change: +0.2%%
- 1 year change: -1.8%%
Quibik // Wikimedia Commons
9 / 50#42. Battle Creek, Michigan
- Unemployment rate: 5.16%
- 1 month change: -0.5%%
- 1 year change: -1.5%%
Public Domain
10 / 50#41. Modesto, California
- Unemployment rate: 5.17%
- 1 month change: +0.1%%
- 1 year change: -2.9%%
LPS.1 // Wikicommons
11 / 50#40. Stockton-Lodi, California
- Unemployment rate: 5.17%
- 1 month change: +0.2%%
- 1 year change: -3.3%%
Smallbones // Wikicommons
12 / 50#39. Vineland-Bridgeton, New Jersey
- Unemployment rate: 5.22%
- 1 month change: -0.1%%
- 1 year change: -2.7%%
Acroterion // Wikicommons
13 / 50#38. Cumberland, Maryland
- Unemployment rate: 5.31%
- 1 month change: +0.3%%
- 1 year change: -0.7%%
adambarhan // Flickr
14 / 50#37. Longview, Washington
- Unemployment rate: 5.35%
- 1 month change: +0.8%%
- 1 year change: -1.3%%
pubdog // Wikimedia Commons
15 / 50#36. Erie, Pennsylvania
- Unemployment rate: 5.35%
- 1 month change: +0.1%%
- 1 year change: -1.9%%
John Wark // Wikicommons
16 / 50#35. Pueblo, Colorado
- Unemployment rate: 5.38%
- 1 month change: -0.3%%
- 1 year change: -2.7%%
Jack Pearce // Wikimedia Commons
17 / 50#34. Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, Ohio
- Unemployment rate: 5.39%
- 1 month change: +0.1%%
- 1 year change: -0.9%%
Daniel Case // Wikimedia Commons
18 / 50#33. Waterbury, Connecticut
- Unemployment rate: 5.47%
- 1 month change: +0.0%%
- 1 year change: -2.1%%
Ray Bouknight // Wikicommons
19 / 50#32. Yuba City, California
- Unemployment rate: 5.48%
- 1 month change: +0.2%%
- 1 year change: -2.7%%
Larry D. Moore // Wikicommons
20 / 50#31. Corpus Christi, Texas
- Unemployment rate: 5.52%
- 1 month change: -0.2%%
- 1 year change: -1.5%%
Public Domain
21 / 50#30. Madera, California
- Unemployment rate: 5.55%
- 1 month change: -0.1%%
- 1 year change: -2.6%%
NOAA Great Lakes Envorinmental Ressearch Laboritory // Flickr
22 / 50#29. Muskegon, Michigan
- Unemployment rate: 5.70%
- 1 month change: -0.5%%
- 1 year change: -1.7%%
Steven Pavlov // Wikimedia Commons
23 / 50#28. Yakima, Washington
- Unemployment rate: 5.70%
- 1 month change: +1.2%%
- 1 year change: -0.9%%
Nyttend // Wikicommons
24 / 50#27. Danville, Illinois
- Unemployment rate: 5.71%
- 1 month change: +0.1%%
- 1 year change: -1.1%%
Tim Kiser // Wikicommons
25 / 50#26. Dover, Delaware
- Unemployment rate: 5.71%
- 1 month change: +0.1%%
- 1 year change: -1.0%%
Smallbones // Wikimedia Commons
26 / 50#25. Scranton--Wilkes-Barre--Hazleton, Pennsylvania
- Unemployment rate: 5.72%
- 1 month change: +0.2%%
- 1 year change: -2.2%%
Joseph Novak // Wikicommons
27 / 50#24. Grants Pass, Oregon
- Unemployment rate: 5.74%
- 1 month change: +0.4%%
- 1 year change: -0.4%%
randy andy // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, Nevada
- Unemployment rate: 5.74%
- 1 month change: +0.2%%
- 1 year change: -1.9%%
davidwilson1949 // Flickr
29 / 50#22. Fayetteville, North Carolina
- Unemployment rate: 5.78%
- 1 month change: +0.2%%
- 1 year change: -1.1%%
Paul Sableman // Wikimedia
30 / 50#21. Pine Bluff, Arkansas
- Unemployment rate: 5.80%
- 1 month change: -0.9%%
- 1 year change: -0.1%%
David Jordan // Wikicommons
31 / 50#20. Fresno, California
- Unemployment rate: 5.85%
- 1 month change: +0.2%%
- 1 year change: -2.9%%
Michael // Wikimedia Comons
32 / 50#19. Kankakee, Illinois
- Unemployment rate: 5.86%
- 1 month change: +0.5%%
- 1 year change: -0.6%%
WeaponizingArchitecture // Wikicommons
33 / 50#18. Saginaw, Michigan
- Unemployment rate: 5.88%
- 1 month change: -0.7%%
- 1 year change: -1.7%%
formulanone // Wikimedia Commons
34 / 50#17. Weirton-Steubenville, Ohio
- Unemployment rate: 5.98%
- 1 month change: +0.3%%
- 1 year change: -0.4%%
Ron Cogswell // Flickr
35 / 50#16. Johnstown, Pennsylvania
- Unemployment rate: 6.02%
- 1 month change: +0.0%%
- 1 year change: -1.7%%
Flintmichigan // Wikicommons
36 / 50#15. Flint, Michigan
- Unemployment rate: 6.05%
- 1 month change: -0.6%%
- 1 year change: -3.4%%
Armona // Wikicommons
37 / 50#14. Hanford-Corcoran, California
- Unemployment rate: 6.28%
- 1 month change: +0.1%%
- 1 year change: -2.7%%
Public Domain
38 / 50#13. Brownsville-Harlingen, Texas
- Unemployment rate: 6.45%
- 1 month change: -0.4%%
- 1 year change: -1.4%%
Harris Walker // Wikicommon
39 / 50#12. Rocky Mount, North Carolina
- Unemployment rate: 6.45%
- 1 month change: +0.4%%
- 1 year change: -0.6%%
Mathew Schwartz // Wikicommons
40 / 50#11. East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania
- Unemployment rate: 6.47%
- 1 month change: +0.3%%
- 1 year change: -1.6%%
J. Pinta // Wikimedia
41 / 50#10. Decatur, Illinois
- Unemployment rate: 6.52%
- 1 month change: -0.0%%
- 1 year change: -1.2%%
nickchapman // Wikicommons
42 / 50#9. Bakersfield, California
- Unemployment rate: 6.69%
- 1 month change: +0.1%%
- 1 year change: -3.1%%
Alexbaumgarner // Wikimedia
43 / 50#8. Rockford, Illinois
- Unemployment rate: 6.76%
- 1 month change: +0.2%%
- 1 year change: -1.1%%
Mark Miller // Wikicommons
44 / 50#7. Merced, California
- Unemployment rate: 6.79%
- 1 month change: +0.1%%
- 1 year change: -2.8%%
Rapierce // Wikimedia Commons
45 / 50#6. Kokomo, Indiana
- Unemployment rate: 6.91%
- 1 month change: +1.2%%
- 1 year change: +0.9%%
Public Domain
46 / 50#5. Beaumont-Port Arthur, Texas
- Unemployment rate: 7.06%
- 1 month change: -0.3%%
- 1 year change: -2.4%%
Distrito Medico Monterrey // Flickr
47 / 50#4. McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Texas
- Unemployment rate: 7.67%
- 1 month change: -0.3%%
- 1 year change: -1.4%%
VISALIA2010 // Wikicommons
48 / 50#3. Visalia-Porterville, California
- Unemployment rate: 7.94%
- 1 month change: +0.3%%
- 1 year change: -2.5%%
Cbl62 // Wikicommons
49 / 50#2. El Centro, California
- Unemployment rate: 16.21%
- 1 month change: +1.8%%
- 1 year change: -3.2%%
Ken L. // Flickr
50 / 50#1. Yuma, Arizona
- Unemployment rate: 21.00%
- 1 month change: +2.9%%
- 1 year change: +4.4%%
