April 2026 | Released May 22, 2026

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United States

Employment snapshot

• In April, among the 50 states and the District of Columbia unemployment fell in 15, rose in 9, and remained unchanged in 27.

• The highest unemployment rate was 6.2 percent in District of Columbia, and the lowest was 2.2 percent in South Dakota. Nationally, the unemployment rate remained unchanged in April.

• In April, payroll jobs rose in 42 states and fell in 9. The largest payroll job percent increase was 0.6 percent in New Mexico. The largest payroll job percent decline was 0.4 percent in North Dakota.

New Mexico

Employment snapshot

• In April, New Mexico added 5,700 net payroll jobs and the unemployment rate rose by 0.1 percentage point to 4.9 percent. In the prior month, New Mexico lost 1,900 net payroll jobs.

• Over the past 12 months, New Mexico added 4,700 net payroll jobs and the unemployment rate rose by 0.8 percentage points from 4.1 percent.

• Nationally, nonfarm payrolls rose by 115,000 in April, or 0.1 percent. New Mexico is tied for 8th in the nation for percentage gain in nonfarm payroll employment over the past 12 months.

• In April, New Mexico’s private sector added 5,700 net private payroll jobs, and over the past 12 months it added 5,400 private payroll jobs. In the prior month, New Mexico lost 2,300 net private payroll jobs.

• In April, employment in New Mexico fell by 4,490, and over the past 12 months it fell by 15,047.

• New Mexico’s labor force participation rate fell to 57.2 percent in April from 57.4 percent and ranks 49th in the nation. In the past 12 months, the labor force participation rate has fallen by 0.6 percentage points.

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New Mexico

Payroll employment

• New Mexico added 5,700 net payroll jobs, or 0.6 percent, on a seasonally adjusted basis during April. In the prior month, New Mexico lost 1,900 jobs. New Mexico nonfarm payroll employment has increased in 6 of the past 12 months.

• Nationally, nonfarm payrolls rose by 115,000 in April, or 0.1 percent. New Mexico is tied for 8th in the nation for percentage gain in nonfarm payroll employment over the past 12 months.

• New Mexico added 5,700 private sector jobs, or 0.8 percent, on a seasonally adjusted basis during April. In the prior month, New Mexico lost 2,300 jobs. New Mexico private sector payroll employment has increased in 7 of the past 12 months.

• Nationally, private sector payroll jobs rose by 123,000 jobs in April, or 0.1 percent. New Mexico is tied for 5th in the nation for percentage gain in private sector payroll employment over the past 12 months.

From March 2026 to April 2026:

• The best performing sectors were Construction (+2,600) and Private Education and Health Services (+1,700).
• The worst performing sectors were Financial Activities (-300) and Other Services (-300).

From April 2025 to April 2026:

• The best performing sectors were Private Education and Health Services (+3,600) and Trade, Transportation, and Utilities (+2,800).
• The worst performing sectors were Federal Government (-2,500) and Professional and Business Services (-1,900).

New Mexico

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 Mexico fell to 57.2 percent in April from 57.4 percent in the prior month.

• New Mexico ranks 49th in the nation.

• The 10-year high for the labor force participation rate in New Mexico was 58.3 percent occurring in May 2016, and the 10-year low was 54.1 percent in April 2020.

• The national labor force participation rate fell by 0.1 percentage points to 61.8 percent in April.