US Employment Rates
Using Data Updated with January 2026 data as of: February 23, 2026
The Bureau of Labor Statistics is the primary source for data.
Research Summary and Editorial
Employment Explained
Note: "jobs" and "payrolls" will be used interchangeably
CES0000000001, or Nonfarm Payrolls is the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ official monthly measure of total nonfarm employment in the United States. It comes from the Current Employment Statistics (CES) survey, which collects payroll data from roughly 149,000 businesses and 651,000 worksites to estimate employment, hours, and earnings across the economy. This series represents:
- All employees on nonfarm payrolls
- Nationwide
- Seasonally adjusted
- Reported monthly
- Available back to 1939
It is one of the most widely watched indicators of U.S. labor‑market health and is a core component of the monthly Employment Situation report.
These data are revised regularly to maintain accuracy. Each monthly estimate is updated twice as additional employer data arrives. Once a year, the BLS performs a major “benchmark revision” that aligns the payroll employment series with comprehensive unemployment‑insurance tax records, often adjusting up to two years of historical data. Seasonal adjustment factors are also updated annually, ensuring the series reflects true economic trends rather than seasonal patterns.
2021-2026 Monthly Nonfarm Payrolls
This chart shows the change in the number of employed persons in the United States each calendar year.
We're looking at 26+ years of data here, which includes:
- Recession from March 2001 through November 2001
- The Great Recession (Global Financial Crisis) from December 2007 through June 2009
- Covid-19 Recession from February 2020 through April 2020
The latter two highly unusual events have data bars filled with patterns.
Monthly Nonfarm Payrolls Since 2021
2000-2026 Annual Nonfarm Payrolls
This chart shows the change in the number of employed persons in the United States each calendar year.
We're looking at 26+ years of data here, which includes:
- Recession from March 2001 through November 2001
- The Great Recession (Global Financial Crisis) from December 2007 through June 2009
- Covid-19 Recession from February 2020 through April 2020
The latter two highly unusual events have data bars filled with patterns.
Annual Nonfarm Payrolls Since 2000
1939-2024
Sources
- Bureau of Labor Statistics-Data Tools-Data Retrieval Tools-BLS Popular Series
- Civilian Labor Force (Seasonally Adjusted) - LNS11000000
- Civilian Employment (Seasonally Adjusted) - LNS12000000
- Civilian Unemployment (Seasonally Adjusted) - LNS13000000
- Unemployment Rate (Seasonally Adjusted) - LNS14000000
- Total Nonfarm Employment - Seasonally Adjusted - CES0000000001
- Total Private Average Weekly Hours of All Employees - Seasonally Adjusted - CES0500000002
- Total Private Average Weekly Hours of Prod. and Nonsup. Employees - Seasonally Adjusted - CES0500000007
- Total Private Average Hourly Earnings of All Employees - Seasonally Adjusted - CES0500000003
- Total Private Average Hourly Earnings of Prod. and Nonsup. Employees - Seasonally Adjusted - CES0500000008
