January 2026 | Released April 08, 2026

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United States

Employment snapshot

• In January, among the 50 states and the District of Columbia unemployment fell in 9, rose in 22, and remained unchanged in 20.

• The highest unemployment rate was 6.7 percent in District of Columbia, and the lowest was 2.2 percent in Hawaii and South Dakota. Nationally, the unemployment rate fell by 0.1 percentage point to 4.3 percent.

• In January, payroll jobs rose in 45 states and fell in 6. The largest payroll job percent increase was 0.5 percent in California and North Dakota. The largest payroll job percent decline was 0.7 percent in District of Columbia.

North Carolina

Employment snapshot

• In January, North Carolina added 5,200 net payroll jobs and the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 3.8 percent. In the prior month, North Carolina added 4,100 net payroll jobs.

• Over the past 12 months, North Carolina added 41,900 net payroll jobs and the unemployment rate remained unchanged.

• Nationally, nonfarm payrolls rose by 178,000 in March, or 0.1 percent. North Carolina is tied for 5th in the nation for percentage gain in nonfarm payroll employment over the past 12 months.

• In January, North Carolina’s private sector added 4,900 net private payroll jobs, and over the past 12 months it added 38,200 private payroll jobs. In the prior month, North Carolina added 2,900 net private payroll jobs.

• In January, employment in North Carolina fell by 3,494, and over the past 12 months it rose by 19,919.

• North Carolina’s labor force participation rate fell to 59.2 percent in January from 59.3 percent and ranks 42nd in the nation. In the past 12 months, the labor force participation rate has fallen by 0.5 percentage points.

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North Carolina

Payroll employment

• North Carolina added 5,200 net payroll jobs, or 0.1 percent, on a seasonally adjusted basis during January. In the prior month, North Carolina added 4,100 jobs. North Carolina nonfarm payroll employment has increased in 9 of the past 12 months.

• Nationally, nonfarm payrolls rose by 178,000 in March, or 0.1 percent. North Carolina is tied for 5th in the nation for percentage gain in nonfarm payroll employment over the past 12 months.

• North Carolina added 4,900 private sector jobs, or 0.1 percent, on a seasonally adjusted basis during January. In the prior month, North Carolina added 2,900 jobs. North Carolina private sector payroll employment has increased in 9 of the past 12 months.

• Nationally, private sector payroll jobs rose by 186,000 jobs in March, or 0.1 percent. North Carolina is tied for 8th in the nation for percentage gain in private sector payroll employment over the past 12 months.

From December 2025 to January 2026:

• The best performing sectors were Private Education and Health Services (+4,700) and Construction (+1,300).
• The worst performing sectors were Information (-1,600) and Manufacturing (-1,400).

From January 2025 to January 2026:

• The best performing sectors were Private Education and Health Services (+22,500) and Leisure and Hospitality (+10,900).
• The worst performing sectors were Manufacturing (-11,600) and Federal Government (-6,500).

North Carolina

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 North Carolina fell to 59.2 percent in January from 59.3 percent in the prior month.

• North Carolina ranks 42nd in the nation.

• The 10-year high for the labor force participation rate in North Carolina was 61.6 percent occurring in August 2019, and the 10-year low was 56.6 percent in April 2020.

• The national labor force participation rate fell by 0.1 percentage points to 61.9 percent in March.