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0.5 unemployed persons per job opening in the Dakotas, 1.9 in California, in December 2025
February 26, 2026
There were 6.5 million job openings in the United States in December 2025, a number about 1.0 million lower than the number of unemployed people, resulting in a ratio of 1.1 unemployed persons per job opening. Both North Dakota and South Dakota, each with about 20,000 job openings, had 0.5 unemployed persons per job opening. Four states had 0.7 unemployed persons per job opening: Alabama, Georgia, Hawaii and Oklahoma.
| State | Unemployed persons per job opening | Number of job openings |
|---|---|---|
North Dakota | 0.5 | 21,000 |
South Dakota | 0.5 | 20,000 |
Alabama | 0.7 | 98,000 |
Georgia | 0.7 | 275,000 |
Hawaii | 0.7 | 21,000 |
Oklahoma | 0.7 | 101,000 |
District of Columbia | 0.8 | 33,000 |
Idaho | 0.8 | 47,000 |
Maine | 0.8 | 28,000 |
Mississippi | 0.8 | 61,000 |
Montana | 0.8 | 23,000 |
Nebraska | 0.8 | 40,000 |
Vermont | 0.8 | 11,000 |
Virginia | 0.8 | 210,000 |
West Virginia | 0.8 | 44,000 |
Wisconsin | 0.8 | 119,000 |
Arkansas | 0.9 | 65,000 |
Iowa | 0.9 | 65,000 |
Kansas | 0.9 | 68,000 |
Louisiana | 0.9 | 95,000 |
Minnesota | 0.9 | 150,000 |
Missouri | 0.9 | 136,000 |
North Carolina | 0.9 | 231,000 |
Tennessee | 0.9 | 141,000 |
Wyoming | 0.9 | 11,000 |
Indiana | 1.0 | 126,000 |
New Hampshire | 1.0 | 25,000 |
Ohio | 1.0 | 278,000 |
Utah | 1.0 | 67,000 |
Alaska | 1.1 | 16,000 |
Colorado | 1.1 | 110,000 |
Florida | 1.1 | 427,000 |
Kentucky | 1.1 | 88,000 |
Maryland | 1.1 | 126,000 |
Pennsylvania | 1.1 | 243,000 |
Rhode Island | 1.1 | 23,000 |
South Carolina | 1.1 | 113,000 |
Texas | 1.1 | 603,000 |
United States, total | 1.1 | 6,542,000 |
Connecticut | 1.2 | 68,000 |
Delaware | 1.2 | 22,000 |
Michigan | 1.2 | 205,000 |
New York | 1.2 | 372,000 |
New Mexico | 1.3 | 33,000 |
Arizona | 1.4 | 122,000 |
Illinois | 1.4 | 219,000 |
Massachusetts | 1.5 | 129,000 |
Nevada | 1.5 | 58,000 |
Oregon | 1.5 | 78,000 |
New Jersey | 1.6 | 167,000 |
Washington | 1.6 | 121,000 |
California | 1.9 | 588,000 |
Note: Data are preliminary. | ||
There were 1.6 unemployed persons per job opening in New Jersey and Washington, which had 167,000 and 121,000 job openings, respectively. California, with 588,000 job openings, had 1.9 unemployed persons per job opening.
Vermont and Wyoming (which had 0.8 and 0.9 unemployed persons per job opening, respectively) each had 11,000 job openings in December 2025. Job openings numbered 603,000 in Texas, yielding a ratio of 1.1 unemployed persons per job opening.
These data are from the Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey and are seasonally adjusted. Data for the most recent month are preliminary. For more information, see "State Job Openings and Labor Turnover — December 2025" and these charts of state labor turnover data.
SUGGESTED CITATION
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, 0.5 unemployed persons per job opening in the Dakotas, 1.9 in California, in December 2025 at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2026/0-5-unemployed-persons-per-job-opening-in-the-dakotas-1-9-in-california-in-december-2025.htm (visited February 28, 2026).
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