Unemployment rates for African Americans by state in 2015

In 2015, the unemployment rate for the United States averaged 5.3 percent. The rate for African Americans was 9.6 percent, but rates varied among the states. The lowest unemployment rates for African Americans were in Hawaii (4.1 percent), Alaska (4.6 percent), Nebraska (5.3 percent), and Colorado (5.9 percent). The highest unemployment rates for African Americans were in Iowa (14.8 percent), Minnesota (14.1 percent), and Nevada (13.5 percent).

Unemployment rates for blacks or African Americans, by state, 2015 annual averages



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South Dakota U.S. rate 9.6% Hover over a state to see data.

Hover over legend items to see states in a category.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. View Chart Data Unemployment rates for blacks or African Americans, by state, 2015 annual averages State Rate United States 9.6 Alabama 10.6 Alaska 4.6 Arizona 9.1 Arkansas 10.3 California 11.0 Colorado 5.9 Connecticut 13.2 Delaware 8.0 District of Columbia 13.3 Florida 9.0 Georgia 9.3 Hawaii 4.1 Idaho Not available Illinois 12.2 Indiana 7.0 Iowa 14.8 Kansas 6.6 Kentucky 11.2 Louisiana 9.7 Maine 10.1 Maryland 8.3 Massachusetts 10.6 Michigan 11.6 Minnesota 14.1 Mississippi 9.4 Missouri 10.0 Montana Not available Nebraska 5.3 Nevada 13.5 New Hampshire 8.6 New Jersey 10.0 New Mexico 6.5 New York 8.2 North Carolina 10.3 North Dakota Not available Ohio 10.9 Oklahoma 8.8 Oregon 7.4 Pennsylvania 10.5 Rhode Island 12.2 South Carolina 10.7 South Dakota Not available Tennessee 7.5 Texas 7.5 Utah Not available Vermont Not available Virginia 7.9 Washington 8.9 West Virginia 10.6 Wisconsin 11.1 Wyoming Not available

The gap between the overall U.S. unemployment rate and the rate for African Americans in 2015 was 4.3 percentage points. Within states, the gaps were largest in Iowa (11.2 percentage points), Minnesota (10.3 points), and Connecticut (7.6 points). In Alaska and New Mexico, unemployment rates for African Americans were lower than the overall rates.

These Current Population Survey data are compiled by the Local Area Unemployment Statistics program. To learn more, see 2015 Data on Employment Status by State and Demographic Group (XLS) (HTML). Unemployment rates are not shown for states where the survey sample size is too small to provide reliable estimates.