Department of Labor Logo United States Department of Labor
Dot gov

The .gov means it's official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you're on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

57 metro areas had unemployment rates lower than 3.0 percent in August 2018

October 12, 2018

In August 2018, 57 of the nation's 388 metropolitan areas had unemployment rates of less than 3.0 percent. Unemployment rates were 3.0 percent to 3.9 percent in 142 metropolitan areas.

Metropolitan area unemployment rates, August 2018 and August 2017, not seasonally adjusted
Metropolitan area Unemployment rate, August 2018 Unemployment rate, August 2017 Over-the-year change

Ames, IA

1.7% 2.4% -0.7 percentage point(s)

Idaho Falls, ID

2.0 2.4 -0.4

Iowa City, IA

2.0 2.8 -0.8

Fargo, ND-MN

2.1 2.1 0.0

Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI

2.1 2.2 -0.1

Mankato-North Mankato, MN

2.1 2.8 -0.7

Urban Honolulu, HI

2.1 2.1 0.0

Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA

2.2 2.9 -0.7

Dubuque, IA

2.2 3.0 -0.8

Midland, TX

2.2 3.0 -0.8

Rochester, MN

2.2 2.7 -0.5

Bismarck, ND

2.3 2.3 0.0

Boise City, ID

2.3 2.9 -0.6

Madison, WI

2.3 2.4 -0.1

Pocatello, ID

2.3 2.8 -0.5

Portsmouth, NH-ME

2.3 2.3 0.0

Sioux Falls, SD

2.3 2.7 -0.4

Dover-Durham, NH-ME

2.4 2.4 0.0

Portland-South Portland, ME

2.4 2.3 0.1

Sioux City, IA-NE-SD

2.4 3.2 -0.8

Burlington-South Burlington, VT

2.5 2.6 -0.1

Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR-MO

2.5 2.9 -0.4

Grand Forks, ND-MN

2.5 2.9 -0.4

Manchester, NH

2.5 2.6 -0.1

Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI

2.5 3.3 -0.8

Sheboygan, WI

2.5 2.7 -0.2

St. Cloud, MN

2.5 3.2 -0.7

Cedar Rapids, IA

2.6 3.4 -0.8

Coeur d'Alene, ID

2.6 3.3 -0.7

Columbia, MO

2.6 3.0 -0.4

La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN

2.6 2.9 -0.3

Lewiston, ID-WA

2.6 2.9 -0.3

Lincoln, NE

2.6 2.7 -0.1

Eau Claire, WI

2.7 3.1 -0.4

Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI

2.7 4.1 -1.4

Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA

2.7 3.0 -0.3

San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA

2.7 3.5 -0.8

Santa Rosa, CA

2.7 3.5 -0.8

Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA

2.7 3.6 -0.9

Wausau, WI

2.7 3.1 -0.4

Amarillo, TX

2.8 3.1 -0.3

Appleton, WI

2.8 2.9 -0.1

Columbus, IN

2.8 3.1 -0.3

Grand Island, NE

2.8 2.9 -0.1

Missoula, MT

2.8 3.3 -0.5

Napa, CA

2.8 3.5 -0.7

Rapid City, SD

2.8 3.2 -0.4

San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA

2.8 3.6 -0.8

Charlottesville, VA

2.9 3.6 -0.7

Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL

2.9 3.4 -0.5

Elkhart-Goshen, IN

2.9 2.9 0.0

Fond du Lac, WI

2.9 3.0 -0.1

Green Bay, WI

2.9 2.9 0.0

Jonesboro, AR

2.9 3.4 -0.5

Odessa, TX

2.9 3.9 -1.0

Staunton-Waynesboro, VA

2.9 3.7 -0.8

Winchester, VA-WV

2.9 3.5 -0.6

Ann Arbor, MI

3.0 4.3 -1.3

Austin-Round Rock, TX

3.0 3.3 -0.3

Billings, MT

3.0 3.4 -0.4

Fort Collins, CO

3.0 2.4 0.6

Gainesville, GA

3.0 4.1 -1.1

Jefferson City, MO

3.0 3.8 -0.8

Lewiston-Auburn, ME

3.0 2.9 0.1

Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR

3.0 3.4 -0.4

Logan, UT-ID

3.0 2.9 0.1

Manhattan, KS

3.0 3.4 -0.4

Oshkosh-Neenah, WI

3.0 3.2 -0.2

San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande, CA

3.0 4.0 -1.0

Springfield, MO

3.0 3.6 -0.6

Bangor, ME

3.1 3.1 0.0

Boulder, CO

3.1 2.4 0.7

Charleston-North Charleston, SC

3.1 4.0 -0.9

Enid, OK

3.1 3.9 -0.8

Harrisonburg, VA

3.1 4.1 -1.0

Lansing-East Lansing, MI

3.1 4.9 -1.8

Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN

3.1 2.9 0.2

Roanoke, VA

3.1 4.2 -1.1

St. Joseph, MO-KS

3.1 3.8 -0.7

Asheville, NC

3.2 3.9 -0.7

Barnstable Town, MA

3.2 3.3 -0.1

Cape Girardeau, MO-IL

3.2 4.0 -0.8

Greeley, CO

3.2 2.6 0.6

Lawrence, KS

3.2 3.6 -0.4

Lubbock, TX

3.2 3.6 -0.4

Oklahoma City, OK

3.2 3.9 -0.7

Provo-Orem, UT

3.2 3.1 0.1

Richmond, VA

3.2 4.1 -0.9

Sherman-Denison, TX

3.2 3.6 -0.4

Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford, VA

3.3 4.5 -1.2

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH

3.3 3.4 -0.1

College Station-Bryan, TX

3.3 3.6 -0.3

Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO

3.3 2.7 0.6

Duluth, MN-WI

3.3 4.5 -1.2

Gettysburg, PA

3.3 4.1 -0.8

Great Falls, MT

3.3 3.6 -0.3

Greenville-Anderson-Mauldin, SC

3.3 4.2 -0.9

Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Beaufort, SC

3.3 4.3 -1.0

Janesville-Beloit, WI

3.3 3.7 -0.4

Joplin, MO

3.3 3.9 -0.6

Kalamazoo-Portage, MI

3.3 5.0 -1.7

Lexington-Fayette, KY

3.3 3.8 -0.5

San Angelo, TX

3.3 3.7 -0.4

State College, PA

3.3 3.9 -0.6

Danbury, CT

3.4 3.8 -0.4

Fort Wayne, IN

3.4 3.7 -0.3

Gainesville, FL

3.4 3.9 -0.5

Midland, MI

3.4 5.0 -1.6

Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL

3.4 3.9 -0.5

Panama City, FL

3.4 4.0 -0.6

Raleigh, NC

3.4 4.3 -0.9

Salt Lake City, UT

3.4 3.3 0.1

San Diego-Carlsbad, CA

3.4 4.3 -0.9

Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC

3.4 4.4 -1.0

Wichita Falls, TX

3.4 3.8 -0.4

Abilene, TX

3.5 4.0 -0.5

Athens-Clarke County, GA

3.5 4.7 -1.2

Columbia, SC

3.5 4.8 -1.3

Corvallis, OR

3.5 3.9 -0.4

Durham-Chapel Hill, NC

3.5 4.4 -0.9

Evansville, IN-KY

3.5 3.7 -0.2

Glens Falls, NY

3.5 4.3 -0.8

Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN

3.5 3.7 -0.2

Jacksonville, FL

3.5 4.2 -0.7

Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN

3.5 3.7 -0.2

Lancaster, PA

3.5 4.3 -0.8

Lynchburg, VA

3.5 4.7 -1.2

San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX

3.5 3.7 -0.2

Spartanburg, SC

3.5 4.6 -1.1

Tulsa, OK

3.5 4.5 -1.0

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV

3.5 3.8 -0.3

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA

3.6 4.7 -1.1

Bend-Redmond, OR

3.6 4.1 -0.5

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX

3.6 3.8 -0.2

Fort Smith, AR-OK

3.6 4.3 -0.7

Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC

3.6 4.5 -0.9

Huntsville, AL

3.6 3.8 -0.2

Jackson, MI

3.6 5.2 -1.6

Kansas City, MO-KS

3.6 4.4 -0.8

Knoxville, TN

3.6 3.5 0.1

Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI

3.6 3.9 -0.3

North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton, FL

3.6 4.1 -0.5

Ogden-Clearfield, UT

3.6 3.4 0.2

Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, FL

3.6 4.1 -0.5

Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA

3.6 4.3 -0.7

Savannah, GA

3.6 4.6 -1.0

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA

3.6 4.4 -0.8

St. Louis, MO-IL

3.6 4.1 -0.5

Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL

3.6 4.1 -0.5

Topeka, KS

3.6 3.9 -0.3

Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY

3.7 4.3 -0.6

Bowling Green, KY

3.7 4.4 -0.7

Brunswick, GA

3.7 4.9 -1.2

Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL

3.7 4.1 -0.4

Chambersburg-Waynesboro, PA

3.7 4.8 -1.1

Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC

3.7 4.6 -0.9

Chattanooga, TN-GA

3.7 4.0 -0.3

Cheyenne, WY

3.7 3.4 0.3

Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL

3.7 3.8 -0.1

Hot Springs, AR

3.7 4.1 -0.4

Ithaca, NY

3.7 4.6 -0.9

Kokomo, IN

3.7 4.1 -0.4

Norwich-New London-Westerly, CT-RI

3.7 4.4 -0.7

Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL

3.7 4.4 -0.7

Reno, NV

3.7 4.0 -0.3

Tallahassee, FL

3.7 4.2 -0.5

Tyler, TX

3.7 4.1 -0.4

Waco, TX

3.7 4.3 -0.6

Wilmington, NC

3.7 4.5 -0.8

Battle Creek, MI

3.8 5.5 -1.7

Birmingham-Hoover, AL

3.8 3.9 -0.1

Burlington, NC

3.8 4.7 -0.9

Columbus, OH

3.8 4.2 -0.4

Decatur, AL

3.8 4.2 -0.4

Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA

3.8 4.6 -0.8

Kingsport-Bristol-Bristol, TN-VA

3.8 4.1 -0.3

Laredo, TX

3.8 4.3 -0.5

Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN

3.8 4.2 -0.4

Niles-Benton Harbor, MI

3.8 5.3 -1.5

Owensboro, KY

3.8 4.4 -0.6

Pittsfield, MA

3.8 3.9 -0.1

Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA

3.8 4.3 -0.5

Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade, CA

3.8 4.7 -0.9

Wichita, KS

3.8 4.6 -0.8

Winston-Salem, NC

3.8 4.6 -0.8

Worcester, MA-CT

3.8 4.0 -0.2

Auburn-Opelika, AL

3.9 4.0 -0.1

Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN

3.9 4.5 -0.6

Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL

3.9 4.3 -0.4

Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL

3.9 4.5 -0.6

Elizabethtown-Fort Knox, KY

3.9 4.6 -0.7

Kingston, NY

3.9 4.7 -0.8

Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL

3.9 4.6 -0.7

Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA

3.9 4.8 -0.9

Providence-Warwick, RI-MA

3.9 4.4 -0.5

Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA

3.9 4.8 -0.9

Valdosta, GA

3.9 5.0 -1.1

Vallejo-Fairfield, CA

3.9 4.9 -1.0

Warner Robins, GA

3.9 5.0 -1.1

Bay City, MI

4.0 6.0 -2.0

Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT

4.0 4.6 -0.6

Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI

4.0 5.4 -1.4

Cleveland, TN

4.0 3.8 0.2

Grand Junction, CO

4.0 3.7 0.3

Lebanon, PA

4.0 4.6 -0.6

Racine, WI

4.0 4.6 -0.6

South Bend-Mishawaka, IN-MI

4.0 4.2 -0.2

St. George, UT

4.0 3.6 0.4

Tuscaloosa, AL

4.0 4.2 -0.2

Victoria, TX

4.0 4.9 -0.9

Wenatchee, WA

4.0 4.3 -0.3

York-Hanover, PA

4.0 4.9 -0.9

Bloomington, IL

4.1 4.2 -0.1

Colorado Springs, CO

4.1 3.2 0.9

Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV

4.1 4.4 -0.3

Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT

4.1 4.8 -0.7

Hinesville, GA

4.1 5.2 -1.1

Jackson, MS

4.1 4.3 -0.2

Jackson, TN

4.1 3.9 0.2

Killeen-Temple, TX

4.1 4.3 -0.2

Macon-Bibb County, GA

4.1 5.4 -1.3

Morristown, TN

4.1 4.0 0.1

Muskegon, MI

4.1 6.1 -2.0

Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC-NC

4.1 5.0 -0.9

New Haven, CT

4.1 4.7 -0.6

Santa Fe, NM

4.1 5.3 -1.2

Syracuse, NY

4.1 5.0 -0.9

Trenton, NJ

4.1 4.6 -0.5

Utica-Rome, NY

4.1 5.0 -0.9

Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC

4.2 5.3 -1.1

Dalton, GA

4.2 5.5 -1.3

Dayton, OH

4.2 4.9 -0.7

Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI

4.2 5.1 -0.9

Florence, SC

4.2 5.4 -1.2

Greensboro-High Point, NC

4.2 5.2 -1.0

Hattiesburg, MS

4.2 4.4 -0.2

Johnson City, TN

4.2 4.2 0.0

Lake Charles, LA

4.2 4.2 0.0

Lawton, OK

4.2 4.6 -0.4

Leominster-Gardner, MA

4.2 4.3 -0.1

Longview, TX

4.2 5.1 -0.9

Montgomery, AL

4.2 4.1 0.1

Morgantown, WV

4.2 4.4 -0.2

Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island, FL

4.2 4.7 -0.5

New Bern, NC

4.2 5.0 -0.8

New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA

4.2 4.9 -0.7

Rochester, NY

4.2 5.0 -0.8

Rome, GA

4.2 5.4 -1.2

Saginaw, MI

4.2 5.9 -1.7

Salem, OR

4.2 4.7 -0.5

Springfield, IL

4.2 4.3 -0.1

Walla Walla, WA

4.2 4.5 -0.3

Altoona, PA

4.3 5.1 -0.8

Bremerton-Silverdale, WA

4.3 4.8 -0.5

Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Niagara Falls, NY

4.3 5.4 -1.1

Carson City, NV

4.3 4.5 -0.2

Casper, WY

4.3 4.5 -0.2

Flint, MI

4.3 6.1 -1.8

Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX

4.3 5.1 -0.8

Jacksonville, NC

4.3 5.3 -1.0

Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL

4.3 4.9 -0.6

Lima, OH

4.3 5.0 -0.7

Muncie, IN

4.3 4.8 -0.5

Punta Gorda, FL

4.3 4.9 -0.6

Reading, PA

4.3 5.0 -0.7

Salinas, CA

4.3 5.1 -0.8

Sumter, SC

4.3 6.0 -1.7

Akron, OH

4.4 5.1 -0.7

Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD

4.4 4.5 -0.1

Bellingham, WA

4.4 4.9 -0.5

Bloomsburg-Berwick, PA

4.4 5.2 -0.8

California-Lexington Park, MD

4.4 4.3 0.1

Dothan, AL

4.4 4.3 0.1

El Paso, TX

4.4 4.8 -0.4

Eugene, OR

4.4 5.0 -0.6

Fairbanks, AK

4.4 5.5 -1.1

Gadsden, AL

4.4 4.5 -0.1

Goldsboro, NC

4.4 5.4 -1.0

Greenville, NC

4.4 5.4 -1.0

Mansfield, OH

4.4 5.4 -1.0

Memphis, TN-MS-AR

4.4 4.2 0.2

Michigan City-La Porte, IN

4.4 4.6 -0.2

Olympia-Tumwater, WA

4.4 4.9 -0.5

Pittsburgh, PA

4.4 5.4 -1.0

Port St. Lucie, FL

4.4 5.0 -0.6

Salisbury, MD-DE

4.4 4.5 -0.1

Springfield, MA-CT

4.4 4.6 -0.2

Springfield, OH

4.4 4.9 -0.5

Albany, OR

4.5 5.2 -0.7

Bloomington, IN

4.5 4.5 0.0

Champaign-Urbana, IL

4.5 4.5 0.0

Elmira, NY

4.5 5.4 -0.9

Erie, PA

4.5 6.0 -1.5

Monroe, MI

4.5 5.7 -1.2

Ocala, FL

4.5 5.1 -0.6

Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ

4.5 4.4 0.1

Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA

4.5 5.6 -1.1

Binghamton, NY

4.6 5.3 -0.7

Canton-Massillon, OH

4.6 5.2 -0.6

Clarksville, TN-KY

4.6 4.7 -0.1

Columbus, GA-AL

4.6 5.7 -1.1

Kennewick-Richland, WA

4.6 5.1 -0.5

Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA

4.6 4.8 -0.2

Ocean City, NJ

4.6 5.3 -0.7

Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD

4.6 5.2 -0.6

Watertown-Fort Drum, NY

4.6 5.6 -1.0

Albany, GA

4.7 5.8 -1.1

Albuquerque, NM

4.7 6.0 -1.3

Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ

4.7 5.4 -0.7

Chico, CA

4.7 5.8 -1.1

Florence-Muscle Shoals, AL

4.7 4.8 -0.1

Kankakee, IL

4.7 5.1 -0.4

Medford, OR

4.7 5.2 -0.5

Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA

4.7 5.2 -0.5

Pine Bluff, AR

4.7 5.2 -0.5

Redding, CA

4.7 5.6 -0.9

Williamsport, PA

4.7 5.6 -0.9

Prescott, AZ

4.8 4.6 0.2

Terre Haute, IN

4.8 4.7 0.1

Tucson, AZ

4.8 4.7 0.1

Anniston-Oxford-Jacksonville, AL

4.9 4.9 0.0

Carbondale-Marion, IL

4.9 5.0 -0.1

Charleston, WV

4.9 5.4 -0.5

Dover, DE

4.9 5.5 -0.6

Gulfport-Biloxi-Pascagoula, MS

4.9 5.0 -0.1

Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV

4.9 5.3 -0.4

Peoria, IL

4.9 5.4 -0.5

Sebastian-Vero Beach, FL

4.9 5.5 -0.6

Toledo, OH

4.9 6.0 -1.1

Baton Rouge, LA

5.0 4.9 0.1

Corpus Christi, TX

5.0 5.8 -0.8

Mobile, AL

5.0 5.1 -0.1

Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA

5.0 5.3 -0.3

Texarkana, TX-AR

5.0 4.8 0.2

Wheeling, WV-OH

5.0 5.5 -0.5

Anchorage, AK

5.1 6.1 -1.0

Beckley, WV

5.1 5.7 -0.6

New Bedford, MA

5.1 5.3 -0.2

Parkersburg-Vienna, WV

5.1 5.7 -0.6

Pueblo, CO

5.1 4.5 0.6

Waterbury, CT

5.1 5.8 -0.7

Cleveland-Elyria, OH

5.2 5.9 -0.7

Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH

5.2 5.7 -0.5

Farmington, NM

5.3 7.2 -1.9

Fayetteville, NC

5.3 6.1 -0.8

Grants Pass, OR

5.3 5.8 -0.5

Las Cruces, NM

5.3 6.7 -1.4

New Orleans-Metairie, LA

5.3 5.4 -0.1

Rockford, IL

5.3 5.6 -0.3

Scranton--Wilkes-Barre--Hazleton, PA

5.3 6.0 -0.7

Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ

5.4 7.0 -1.6

East Stroudsburg, PA

5.4 6.2 -0.8

Homosassa Springs, FL

5.4 5.9 -0.5

Houma-Thibodaux, LA

5.4 5.7 -0.3

Longview, WA

5.4 5.9 -0.5

Sebring, FL

5.4 6.0 -0.6

Decatur, IL

5.5 5.9 -0.4

Johnstown, PA

5.5 6.8 -1.3

Lafayette, LA

5.5 5.9 -0.4

The Villages, FL

5.5 6.3 -0.8

Yakima, WA

5.5 6.4 -0.9

Stockton-Lodi, CA

5.6 6.6 -1.0

Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA

5.7 6.5 -0.8

Cumberland, MD-WV

5.8 5.6 0.2

Flagstaff, AZ

5.8 5.5 0.3

Rocky Mount, NC

5.8 7.1 -1.3

Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH

5.8 6.5 -0.7

Danville, IL

5.9 6.8 -0.9

Modesto, CA

5.9 6.9 -1.0

Monroe, LA

5.9 5.7 0.2

Shreveport-Bossier City, LA

5.9 6.0 -0.1

Yuba City, CA

5.9 6.9 -1.0

Lake Havasu City-Kingman, AZ

6.0 5.9 0.1

Sierra Vista-Douglas, AZ

6.0 5.9 0.1

Alexandria, LA

6.1 6.2 -0.1

Hammond, LA

6.1 6.2 -0.1

Brownsville-Harlingen, TX

6.2 7.2 -1.0

Madera, CA

6.2 7.3 -1.1

Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX

6.3 7.1 -0.8

Fresno, CA

6.6 7.7 -1.1

McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX

6.6 7.8 -1.2

Vineland-Bridgeton, NJ

6.6 7.5 -0.9

Hanford-Corcoran, CA

6.7 7.7 -1.0

Merced, CA

7.0 8.2 -1.2

Bakersfield, CA

7.3 8.6 -1.3

Visalia-Porterville, CA

8.7 10.0 -1.3

El Centro, CA

20.3 22.0 -1.7

Yuma, AZ

22.0 22.4 -0.4

Note: Data for the most recent month are preliminary.

Ames, Iowa, had the lowest unemployment rate, 1.7 percent, followed by Idaho Falls, Idaho, and Iowa City, Iowa, which both had jobless rates of 2.0 percent. Unemployment rates were 2.1 percent in Fargo, North Dakota-Minnesota; Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, Hawaii; Mankato-North Mankato, Minnesota; and Urban Honolulu, Hawaii.

Yuma, Arizona, and El Centro, California, had the highest unemployment rates, 22.0 percent and 20.3 percent, respectively. Merced, Bakersfield, and Visalia-Porterville, all in California, were the only other metropolitan areas with unemployment rates of 7.0 percent or higher in August 2018.

Of the 51 metropolitan areas with a 2010 Census population of 1 million or more, Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, Minnesota-Wisconsin, had the lowest unemployment rate in August 2018, 2.5 percent. New Orleans-Metairie, Louisiana, had the highest jobless rate among the large areas, 5.3 percent, closely followed by Cleveland-Elyria, Ohio, 5.2 percent.

The largest over-the-year unemployment rate decreases occurred in Bay City, Michigan, and Muskegon, Michigan (−2.0 percentage points each). Declines of at least 1.0 percentage point occurred in 75 other areas. Colorado Springs, Colorado, had the largest over-the-year rate increase in August (+0.9 percentage point).

These data are from the Local Area Unemployment Statistics program and are not seasonally adjusted. Data for the most recent month are preliminary. To learn more, see "Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment — August 2018." Also see Charts related to the latest "Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment" news release.

SUGGESTED CITATION

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, 57 metro areas had unemployment rates lower than 3.0 percent in August 2018 at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2018/57-metro-areas-had-unemployment-rates-lower-than-3-0-percent-in-august-2018.htm (visited March 29, 2024).

OF INTEREST
spotlight
Recent editions of Spotlight on Statistics


triangle