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SeriesThe job market

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The job market

Monthly jobs reports, the revisions that follow, and what they mean for people working or looking for work.

Start with the latest

Story updated

Jobs gained and lost each monthOctober 2025 to September 2026 · Seasonally adjusted
-100k0k+100k+200kOctober 2025: -140,000 jobsOct 25November 2025: +41,000 jobsDecember 2025: -17,000 jobsJanuary 2026: +160,000 jobsFebruary 2026: -156,000 jobsMarch 2026: +214,000 jobsApril 2026: +148,000 jobsMay 2026: +63,000 jobsMay 26June 2026: +31,000 jobsJuly 2026: -10,000 jobsAugust 2026: +133,000 jobsSeptember 2026: +29,000 jobsSep 26

September: +29,000 jobs. Inspect the source data

Bureau of Labor Statistics payroll counts, from the St. Louis Fed's FRED database as published October 3, 2026; later releases may revise the counts.

Read the values and calculation

Each bar subtracts the previous month's total jobs from that month's total. The database reports totals in thousands.

MonthJobs gained or lost
October 2025-140,000
November 2025+41,000
December 2025-17,000
January 2026+160,000
February 2026-156,000
March 2026+214,000
April 2026+148,000
May 2026+63,000
June 2026+31,000
July 2026-10,000
August 2026+133,000
September 2026+29,000

Follow the story over time

  1. Payrolls rise by 162,000 and July's loss becomes a gain, with two volatile categories supplying 101,000 of it

    Forecasters expected 53,000 to 65,000. The employer survey estimated payrolls rose by 162,000, two and a half to three times those forecasts. Restaurants and public schools supplied 101,000 of the gain, and the July loss that opened this series was revised to a gain of 21,000. The unemployment rate held at 4.1 percent.

  2. The job market goes into reverse: payrolls fall by 23,000

    Forecasters expected a gain of 83,000. Instead the economy lost jobs, the two prior months were revised down by a combined 103,000, and the unemployment rate fell for the wrong reason: fewer people working or looking.

Key figures and sources
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