August 2026 | Released September 18, 2026
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United States
Employment snapshot
In August, among the 50 states and the District of Columbia unemployment fell in 28, rose in 4, and remained unchanged in 19.
The highest unemployment rate was 5.7 percent in District of Columbia, and the lowest was 2 percent in South Dakota. Nationally, the unemployment rate remained unchanged in August.
In August, payroll jobs rose in 35 states and fell in 16. The largest payroll job percent increase was 0.6 percent in New Mexico. The largest payroll job percent decline was 0.3 percent in Maryland.
New Hampshire
Employment snapshot
In August, New Hampshire lost 1,500 net payroll jobs and the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 2.8 percent. In the prior month, New Hampshire lost 700 net payroll jobs.
Over the past 12 months, New Hampshire added 1,300 net payroll jobs and the unemployment rate fell by 0.3 percentage points from 3.1 percent.
Nationally, nonfarm payrolls rose by 162,000 in August, or 0.1 percent. New Hampshire is tied for 27th in the nation for percentage gain in nonfarm payroll employment over the past 12 months.
In August, New Hampshire’s private sector lost 1,500 net private payroll jobs, and over the past 12 months it added 1,800 private payroll jobs. In the prior month, New Hampshire lost 100 net private payroll jobs.
In August, employment in New Hampshire fell by 515, and over the past 12 months it rose by 1,803.
New Hampshire’s labor force participation rate fell to 64.8 percent in August from 65 percent and ranks 12th in the nation. In the past 12 months, the labor force participation rate has fallen by 0.5 percentage points.
New Hampshire
Payroll employment
New Hampshire lost 1,500 net payroll jobs, or -0.2 percent, on a seasonally adjusted basis during August. In the prior month, New Hampshire lost 700 jobs. New Hampshire nonfarm payroll employment has increased in 4 of the past 12 months.
Nationally, nonfarm payrolls rose by 162,000 in August, or 0.1 percent. New Hampshire is tied for 27th in the nation for percentage gain in nonfarm payroll employment over the past 12 months.
New Hampshire lost 1,500 private sector jobs, or -0.2 percent, on a seasonally adjusted basis during August. In the prior month, New Hampshire lost 100 jobs. New Hampshire private sector payroll employment has increased in 5 of the past 12 months.
Nationally, private sector payroll jobs rose by 127,000 jobs in August, or 0.1 percent. New Hampshire is tied for 31st in the nation for percentage gain in private sector payroll employment over the past 12 months.
From July 2026 to August 2026:
- The best performing sectors were Manufacturing (+200) and Private Education and Health Services (+200).
- The worst performing sectors were Trade, Transportation, and Utilities (-600) and Leisure and Hospitality (-500).
From August 2025 to August 2026:
- The best performing sectors were Professional and Business Services (+2,600) and Leisure and Hospitality (+1,500).
- The worst performing sectors were Trade, Transportation, and Utilities (-2,200) and Construction (-1,200).
New Hampshire
Labor force
The labor force participation rate is the percentage of the civilian noninstitutionalized population age 16 and older who are employed or actively looking for work.
The labor force participation rate in New Hampshire fell to 64.8 percent in August from 65 percent in the prior month.
New Hampshire ranks 12th in the nation.
The 10-year high for the labor force participation rate in New Hampshire was 69 percent occurring in September 2019, and the 10-year low was 64.8 percent in August 2026.
The national labor force participation rate rose by 0.2 percentage points to 61.6 percent in August.