Five states at historically low unemployment rates in September 2019

Vermont had the lowest unemployment rate in September 2019, at 2.2 percent. The rates in Alabama (3.0 percent), California (4.0 percent), Illinois (3.9 percent), New Jersey (3.1 percent), and South Carolina (2.9 percent) set new series lows. (All state series begin in 1976.)

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Chart Data State unemployment rates, September 2019, seasonally adjusted State August 2019 September 2019[p] Vermont 2.1% 2.2% Iowa 2.5 2.5 New Hampshire 2.5 2.5 North Dakota 2.4 2.5 Colorado 2.8 2.7 Utah 2.8 2.7 Virginia 2.8 2.7 Hawaii 2.7 2.7 South Carolina 3.2 2.9 Idaho 2.9 2.9 Maine 2.9 2.9 Massachusetts 2.9 2.9 Alabama 3.1 3.0 South Dakota 2.9 3.0 Missouri 3.2 3.1 New Jersey 3.2 3.1 Nebraska 3.1 3.1 Florida 3.3 3.2 Indiana 3.3 3.2 Minnesota 3.3 3.2 Kansas 3.2 3.2 Oklahoma 3.2 3.2 Wisconsin 3.1 3.2 Montana 3.3 3.3 Tennessee 3.5 3.4 Texas 3.4 3.4 Georgia 3.6 3.5 Arkansas 3.4 3.5 Delaware 3.4 3.5 Connecticut 3.6 3.6 Rhode Island 3.6 3.6 Maryland 3.8 3.7 Wyoming 3.7 3.8 Illinois 4.0 3.9 New York 4.0 3.9 California 4.1 4.0 Pennsylvania 3.9 4.0 North Carolina 4.2 4.1 Nevada 4.1 4.1 Oregon 4.0 4.1 Michigan 4.2 4.2 Ohio 4.1 4.2 Louisiana 4.3 4.3 Kentucky 4.4 4.4 Washington 4.6 4.6 West Virginia 4.6 4.7 Arizona 5.0 4.9 New Mexico 4.9 4.9 District of Columbia 5.5 5.4 Mississippi 5.2 5.4 Alaska 6.2 6.2

Alaska had the highest jobless rate, at 6.2 percent. In total, 15 states had unemployment rates lower than the U.S. figure of 3.5 percent, 14 states and the District of Columbia had higher rates, and 21 states had rates that were not appreciably different from that of the nation.

These data are from the Local Area Unemployment Statistics program and are seasonally adjusted. Data for the most recent month are preliminary. To learn more, see "State Employment and Unemployment — September 2019." We also have more charts and maps on state employment and unemployment.