December’s jobs report showed an above-average level of hiring. The economy gained 256,000 nonfarm payroll jobs, exceeding the average monthly gain of 186,000 over the past 12 months. In December, there were notable gains in sectors including health care, government, and social assistance, and the overall unemployment rate was 4.1%.
In order to take stock of how unemployment rates are changing throughout the U.S., WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia based on six key metrics that compare unemployment rate statistics from the latest month for which data is available (December 2024) to key dates in 2024, 2023, 2020 and 2019.
Main Findings
Unemployment Rate Changes by State
| Overall Rank | State | Unemployment Rate (December 2024) | Change in Unemployment (December 2024 vs November 2024) | Change in Unemployment (December 2024 vs December 2023) | Change in Unemployment (December 2024 vs December 2020) | Change in Unemployment (December 2024 vs December 2019) | Not Seasonally Adjusted Continued Claims (December 2024 vs November 2024) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Dakota | 1.9% | 0.3% | -7.0% | -36.3% | -25.6% | 70.9% |
| 2 | Connecticut | 3.0% | 0.8% | -28.2% | -57.2% | -20.8% | 14.2% |
| 3 | New Hampshire | 2.6% | 2.9% | 0.6% | -42.1% | -0.1% | 10.5% |
| 4 | Hawaii | 3.0% | 1.7% | -3.3% | -70.9% | 27.4% | -7.0% |
| 5 | Vermont | 2.4% | 2.9% | 9.2% | -38.7% | 23.6% | 28.2% |
| 6 | Virginia | 3.0% | -0.2% | -1.8% | -36.4% | 11.0% | 3.5% |
| 7 | Montana | 3.1% | -3.8% | -5.1% | -21.1% | -7.3% | 38.0% |
| 8 | Oklahoma | 3.3% | -0.7% | -6.1% | -32.9% | 12.8% | 0.9% |
| 9 | Wisconsin | 3.0% | 2.7% | -11.1% | -38.5% | -4.3% | 41.9% |
| 10 | Maryland | 3.1% | 0.7% | 42.3% | -52.0% | -7.9% | 4.4% |
| 11 | Nebraska | 2.8% | 1.1% | 14.0% | -4.0% | -7.7% | 41.4% |
| 12 | Delaware | 3.7% | -3.3% | -9.7% | -30.7% | 8.5% | 3.2% |
| 13 | Florida | 3.4% | 0.4% | 11.3% | -41.6% | 20.8% | -3.2% |
| 14 | Minnesota | 3.3% | -4.2% | 21.3% | -30.0% | -2.2% | 42.2% |
| 15 | Arkansas | 3.4% | 2.3% | -6.0% | -28.8% | 0.1% | 2.8% |
| 16 | Mississippi | 3.3% | 8.1% | 8.3% | -48.4% | -40.1% | 11.4% |
| 17 | Pennsylvania | 3.6% | 2.6% | 5.7% | -52.8% | -20.2% | 18.1% |
| 18 | Arizona | 3.8% | 1.4% | -8.9% | -38.2% | -13.2% | -4.7% |
| 19 | North Dakota | 2.5% | 1.9% | 31.6% | -41.1% | 24.6% | 99.5% |
| 20 | North Carolina | 3.7% | -0.1% | 5.1% | -30.0% | 4.3% | -2.4% |
| 21 | Maine | 3.2% | 4.7% | -2.9% | -20.0% | 3.3% | 34.6% |
| 22 | Wyoming | 3.5% | 4.0% | 22.1% | -35.0% | -17.7% | 9.4% |
| 23 | Alabama | 3.3% | 4.6% | 19.6% | -24.9% | 8.6% | 1.6% |
| 24 | Missouri | 3.7% | -2.0% | 14.8% | -24.2% | 11.3% | 11.0% |
| 25 | Tennessee | 3.6% | 3.9% | 5.5% | -34.4% | 6.4% | 5.3% |
| 26 | Iowa | 3.2% | 1.7% | 3.7% | -23.1% | 15.2% | 62.3% |
| 27 | Georgia | 3.7% | 0.1% | 16.3% | -24.1% | 9.9% | 1.3% |
| 28 | West Virginia | 4.2% | -1.1% | -3.0% | -32.9% | -20.5% | 30.6% |
| 29 | New York | 4.4% | -0.5% | -4.7% | -49.0% | 7.4% | 9.3% |
| 30 | New Mexico | 4.4% | 0.3% | 12.5% | -45.2% | -10.2% | 3.0% |
| 31 | Utah | 3.5% | -1.5% | 25.2% | 4.0% | 57.9% | 18.3% |
| 32 | Oregon | 4.1% | 1.7% | 5.2% | -35.6% | 28.2% | 7.8% |
| 33 | Louisiana | 4.4% | 2.9% | 10.7% | -39.8% | -9.5% | -5.2% |
| 34 | Texas | 4.2% | 0.3% | 11.2% | -33.1% | 33.8% | 8.7% |
| 35 | Washington | 4.5% | -2.1% | 1.8% | -29.0% | 21.3% | 9.4% |
| 36 | New Jersey | 4.6% | -1.2% | -4.1% | -33.5% | 20.0% | 5.8% |
| 37 | Kansas | 3.6% | 3.3% | 42.1% | -16.3% | 19.4% | 37.2% |
| 38 | Alaska | 4.7% | 0.3% | 2.3% | -32.7% | -10.7% | 9.5% |
| 39 | Massachusetts | 4.1% | 3.6% | 30.3% | -44.0% | 40.4% | 19.8% |
| 40 | Ohio | 4.4% | 1.3% | 23.1% | -28.1% | 0.3% | 28.2% |
| 41 | Idaho | 3.8% | 1.6% | 17.5% | -1.5% | 50.6% | 54.0% |
| 42 | Rhode Island | 4.6% | 0.1% | 38.4% | -31.3% | 35.3% | 22.9% |
| 43 | Colorado | 4.4% | 3.7% | 34.2% | -27.0% | 63.3% | 6.4% |
| 44 | Indiana | 4.5% | 1.3% | 31.4% | -8.3% | 38.3% | 15.2% |
| 45 | District of Columbia | 5.5% | -1.0% | 13.2% | -22.1% | 3.9% | 4.5% |
| 46 | Illinois | 5.2% | -1.7% | 11.8% | -28.6% | 43.3% | 31.5% |
| 47 | California | 5.5% | 0.6% | 7.2% | -37.2% | 30.9% | 9.4% |
| 48 | Michigan | 5.0% | 3.2% | 21.6% | -23.8% | 34.9% | 25.3% |
| 49 | South Carolina | 4.7% | -1.6% | 59.6% | 5.0% | 93.9% | 2.6% |
| 50 | Nevada | 5.7% | 0.7% | 9.1% | -36.1% | 42.5% | 4.2% |
| 51 | Kentucky | 5.2% | 2.9% | 25.3% | 15.1% | 29.5% | 26.9% |
- Biggest Decrease
- 1. Minnesota
- 2. Montana
- 3. Delaware
- 4. Washington
- 5. Missouri
- Smallest Decrease
- 47. Tennessee
- 48. Wyoming
- 49. Alabama
- 50. Maine
- 51. Mississippi
- Biggest Decrease
- 1. Connecticut
- 2. Wisconsin
- 3. Delaware
- 4. Arizona
- 5. South Dakota
- Smallest Decrease
- 47. Colorado
- 48. Rhode Island
- 49. Kansas
- 50. Maryland
- 51. South Carolina
- Biggest Decrease
- 1. Hawaii
- 2. Connecticut
- 3. Pennsylvania
- 4. Maryland
- 5. New York
- Smallest Decrease
- 47. Nebraska
- 48. Idaho
- 49. Utah
- 50. South Carolina
- 51. Kentucky
- Biggest Decrease
- 1. Mississippi
- 2. South Dakota
- 3. Connecticut
- 4. West Virginia
- 5. Pennsylvania
- Smallest Decrease
- 47. Illinois
- 48. Idaho
- 49. Utah
- 50. Colorado
- 51. South Carolina
- Lowest Rate
- 1. South Dakota
- 2. Vermont
- 3. North Dakota
- 4. New Hampshire
- 5. Nebraska
- Highest Rate
- T-47. Illinois
- T-47. Kentucky
- T-49. California
- T-49. District of Columbia
- 51. Nevada
Ask the Experts
In order to provide further insight into the current unemployment situation in the U.S., WalletHub turned to a panel of experts. Click on the pictures of experts below to read their bios and responses to the following key questions:
- What are the best ways for state and local authorities to ensure a continued healthy economic recovery in the wake of the high inflation experienced during the past few years?
- What are the most resilient industries and fields in our current economy?
- What job skills do you think will be the most sought after in the current job market?
- What’s in store for the job market in 2025?
Ask the Experts
Executive Director of the Business Research Division at the Leeds School of Business – University of Colorado Boulder
Read More
Ph.D – Associate Professor, College of Business and Management – Lynn University
Read More
Adjunct Faculty – Rochester Institute of Technology
Read More
Associate Professor of Practice, Management, Fox School of Business and Management – Temple University
Read More
Senior Instructor of Management, MS, Instructional Design, MS, Organizational Leadership – Quinnipiac University, School of Business
Read More
Professor of Management, Mays Business School – Texas A&M University
Read More
Methodology
In order to examine changes in unemployment rates throughout the U.S., WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across two categories. In the first category, we compared the change in unemployment for the latest month for which we had data (December 2024) to November 2024, December 2023, December 2020 and December 2019, in order to show the impact since the beginning of the pandemic and the recent changes in the job market amid high inflation. We also compared not seasonally adjusted continued claims in December 2024 to November 2024. In the second category, we looked at the state’s overall unemployment rate. We then used the average of those categories to rank-order the states.
Change in Unemployment - Total Points: 50
- Change in Unemployment in December 2024 vs. November 2024: Full Weight (~10.00 Points)
- Change in Unemployment in December 2024 vs. December 2023: Full Weight (~10.00 Points)
- Change in Unemployment in December 2024 vs. December 2020: Full Weight (~10.00 Points)
- Change in Unemployment in December 2024 vs. December 2019: Full Weight (~10.00 Points)
- Not Seasonally Adjusted Continued Claims in December 2024 vs. November 2024: Full Weight (~10.00 Points)
Unemployment Rate - Total Points: 50
- Unemployment Rate (December 2024): Full Weight (~50.00 Points)
Sources: Data used to create this ranking were obtained from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the U.S. Department of Labor.
WalletHub experts are widely quoted. Contact our media team to schedule an interview.