Unemployment rate in the U.S. 1990-2018
Unemployment rate in the United States from 1990 to 2018
by Erin Duffin,
last edited
Jun 3, 2019
This statistic displays the unemployment rate in the U.S. from 1990 to 2017. In 1990, this rate stood at 5.6 percent. Unemployment rate stood at 3.9 percent in 2018. For monthly updates on unemployment in the United States visit either the monthly national unemployment rate here, or the monthly state unemployment rate here. Both are seasonally adjusted.
Unemployment
Unemployment is defined as a situation when an employed person is laid off, fired or quits his work and is still looking for a job. Even in a healthy economy unemployment occurs. If former employed persons go back to school or leave the job to take care of children they are no longer part of the active labor force and therefore not among the unemployed.
Unemployment can also be the effect of events that are not part of the normal dynamics of an economy. Layoffs can be the result of technological progress, for example when robots replace workers in automobile production. Sometimes unemployment is caused by job outsourcing, due to the fact that employers often search for cheap labor around the globe and not only domestically. A rise in unemployment was also an effect of the financial crisis that hit the United States in 2008.
The unemployment rate in the United States varies from state to state. The state with the highest number of unemployed persons in the United States in 2017 was California. Around 919,000 unemployed persons were counted in California.
Unemployment rate in the United States from 1990 to 2018
Loading statistic...
| Unemployment rate | |
|---|---|
| '18 | 3.9% |
| '17 | 4.4% |
| '16 | 4.9% |
| '15 | 5.3% |
| '14 | 6.2% |
| '13 | 7.4% |
| '12 | 8.1% |
| '11 | 8.9% |
| '10 | 9.6% |
| '09 | 9.3% |
| '08 | 5.8% |
| '07 | 4.6% |
| '06 | 4.6% |
| '05 | 5.1% |
| '04 | 5.5% |
| '03 | 6% |
| '02 | 5.8% |
| '01 | 4.7% |
| '00 | 4% |
| '99 | 4.2% |
| '98 | 4.5% |
| '97 | 4.9% |
| '96 | 5.4% |
| '95 | 5.6% |
| '94 | 6.1% |
| '93 | 6.9% |
| '92 | 7.5% |
| '91 | 6.8% |
| '90 | 5.6% |
| Unemployment rate | |
|---|---|
| '18 | 3.9% |
| '17 | 4.4% |
| '16 | 4.9% |
| '15 | 5.3% |
| '14 | 6.2% |
| '13 | 7.4% |
| '12 | 8.1% |
| '11 | 8.9% |
| '10 | 9.6% |
| '09 | 9.3% |
| '08 | 5.8% |
| '07 | 4.6% |
| '06 | 4.6% |
| '05 | 5.1% |
| '04 | 5.5% |
| '03 | 6% |
| '02 | 5.8% |
| '01 | 4.7% |
| '00 | 4% |
| '99 | 4.2% |
| '98 | 4.5% |
| '97 | 4.9% |
| '96 | 5.4% |
| '95 | 5.6% |
| '94 | 6.1% |
| '93 | 6.9% |
| '92 | 7.5% |
| '91 | 6.8% |
| '90 | 5.6% |
© Statista 2019
About this statistic
Show source
Download
Settings
Share
Download started
Please be patient - this may take a moment
Please be patient - this may take a moment
Description
Source
More information
by Erin Duffin,
last edited
Jun 3, 2019
This statistic displays the unemployment rate in the U.S. from 1990 to 2017. In 1990, this rate stood at 5.6 percent. Unemployment rate stood at 3.9 percent in 2018. For monthly updates on unemployment in the United States visit either the monthly national unemployment rate here, or the monthly state unemployment rate here. Both are seasonally adjusted.
Unemployment
Unemployment is defined as a situation when an employed person is laid off, fired or quits his work and is still looking for a job. Even in a healthy economy unemployment occurs. If former employed persons go back to school or leave the job to take care of children they are no longer part of the active labor force and therefore not among the unemployed.
Unemployment can also be the effect of events that are not part of the normal dynamics of an economy. Layoffs can be the result of technological progress, for example when robots replace workers in automobile production. Sometimes unemployment is caused by job outsourcing, due to the fact that employers often search for cheap labor around the globe and not only domestically. A rise in unemployment was also an effect of the financial crisis that hit the United States in 2008.
The unemployment rate in the United States varies from state to state. The state with the highest number of unemployed persons in the United States in 2017 was California. Around 919,000 unemployed persons were counted in California.
- Show sources information
- As a Premium user you get access to the detailed source references and background information about this statistic.
- Show publisher information
- Release date
- January 2019
Source
- Show sources information
- As a Premium user you get access to the detailed source references and background information about this statistic.
- Show publisher information
- Release date
- January 2019
More information
Statista Accounts:
Access All Statistics. Starting from $588 / Year
Basic Account
Get to know the platform
You only have access to basic statistics.
Premium Account
Your perfect start with Statista
- Instant access to 1m statistics
- Download in XLS, PDF & PNG format
- Detailed references
$49 / Month *
Corporate Account
Full access
Corporate solution including all features.
* All products require an annual contract.
Prices do not include sales tax.
Prices do not include sales tax.
Leading companies trust Statista:
Related Studies: Available to Download in PDF or PPTX Format
All Information
in one Presentation
U.S. unemployment
- 101 page/s
- English
- pptx
- Detailed references
Everything On "U.S. unemployment" in One Document: Edited and Divided into Handy Chapters. Including Detailed References.
Other Reports & Dossiers
Statista is a great source of knowledge, and pretty helpful to manage the daily work.Christof Baron
CEO, MindShare Germany
Statistics on "U.S. unemployment"
- Unemployment
The most important statistics
- Number of unemployed persons in the United States from 1990 to 2018 (in millions)U.S. unemployment level 1990-2018
- Unemployment rate in the United States from 1990 to 2018Unemployment rate in the U.S. 1990-2018
- Monthly number of unemployed persons in the U.S. from July 2018 to July 2019 (in millions, adjusted)U.S. unemployment level - seasonally adjusted monthly number July 2019
- Monthly unemployment rate in the United States from July 2018 to July 2019 (seasonally-adjusted)U.S. unemployment rate: seasonally adjusted July 2019
- U.S. underemployment rate from July 2016 to July 2017 (by month)U.S. underemployment rate - July 2017
- State unemployment rate in the U.S. in 2018State unemployment rate in the U.S. 2018
- State unemployment rate in the U.S. as of July 2019 (seasonally adjusted)State unemployment rate in the U.S. July 2019
- Top 20 metropolitan areas with the highest unemployment rate in the United States in 2018Top 20 metropolitan areas with the highest unemployment rate in the U.S. 2018
- Employment
The most important statistics
- Civilian labor force in the United States from 1990 to 2018 (in millions)U.S. labor force 1990-2018
- Civilian labor force participation rate in the United States from 1990 to 2018Civilian labor force participation rate in the U.S. 1990-2018
- Monthly civilian labor force in the United States from July 2018 to July 2019 (in millions, seasonally adjusted)U.S. civilian labor force: seasonally adjusted, July 2019
- Monthly civilian labor force participation rate in the United States from July 2018 to July 2019 (seasonally adjusted)U.S. civilian labor force participation rate: seasonally adjusted, July 2019
- Monthly number of full-time employees in the United States from July 2018 to July 2019 (in millions, unadjusted) Full-time employees - unadjusted monthly number in the U.S. July 2019
- Employment level of the United States from 1990 to 2018 (in millions)Employment level of the U.S. 1990-2018
- Employment rate in the United States from 1990 to 2018USA - employment rate 1990-2018
- Number of employed persons in the U.S. in 2018, by state (in 1,000s)State employment in the U.S. 2018
- Outlook
The most important statistics
- Forecast of the unemployment rate in the United States for fiscal years 2018 to 2029Unemployment rate in the U.S. - forecast 2018-2029
- Projected change in employment in the United States from 2016 to 2026, by major industry (in 1,000)U.S. employment growth 2016-2026, by industry
- Projected employment change in the U.S. by major occupational groups from 2016 to 2026Projected U.S. employment change by major occupational groups 2016-2026
- Top 20 industries in the U.S. with largest projected wage and salary employment growth from 2016 to 2026 (in 1,000)U.S. industries with largest projected payroll employment growth 2016-2026
- Top 20 industries in the U.S. with largest projected payroll employment declines from 2016 to 2026 (in 1,000)U.S. industries with largest projected payroll employment declines 2016-2026
Discover Statista
Need help with using Statista for your research?
Tutorials and first steps
Further Content: Statistics, Studies, and Topic Pages
Statistics
- White - unemployment rate in the U.S. 1990-2018
- State unemployment in the U.S. in 2018
- Unemployment rate in Sweden 2008-2018
- Unemployment level in Poland 2008-2016
- U.S. male unemployment rate: unadjusted July 2019
- Unemployment rate of women - unadjusted monthly number in the U.S. July 2019
- U.S. male unemployment rate: seasonally adjusted July 2019
- Unemployment level of women: unadjusted monthly number in the U.S. July 2019
- Mexican Americans - unemployment level in the U.S. 1990-2018
- Puerto Rican unemployment level in the U.S. 1990-2018
- Construction sector: unemployment figures in Spain 2005-2018
- Number of unemployed in the tourism sector according to level of education Spain 2017
- Number of unemployed in the tourism sector by age Spain 2017
- Distribution of the unemployed in the tourism sector by autonomous community Spain 2017
- Number of unemployed in the tourism sector by activity Spain 2017
- Persons outside the labor force in Denmark 2017, by age group
- Readiness of Chinese employees to work abroad 2011, by qualification
- Individuals employed as plant and machine operatives UK 2018, by employment
- Number of employed senior officers in protective services UK, by occupation 2018
- Number of employed engineering professionals in the UK in 2018, by occupation
Studies
- Unemployment in Spain
- Unemployment in the United Kingdom (UK)
- U.S. unemployment
- Unemployment in Canada
- Employment in Italy
- Employment in Singapore
- Higher education and employment in the United Kingdom (UK)
- Labor market in the Gulf Cooperation Council
- Key economic indicators of Italy
- Registered unemployment I-IV quarter 2018
- Job market in Belgium
- Employment, wages and salaries in national economy in first quarter 2019
- Job market in the Netherlands
- Employment in China
- Employment, wages and salaries in national economy in 2018
Statistics on "U.S. unemployment"
- Number of unemployed persons in the United States from 1990 to 2018 (in millions)
- Unemployment rate in the United States from 1990 to 2018
- Monthly number of unemployed persons in the U.S. from July 2018 to July 2019 (in millions, adjusted)
- Monthly unemployment rate in the United States from July 2018 to July 2019 (seasonally-adjusted)
- U.S. underemployment rate from July 2016 to July 2017 (by month)
- State unemployment rate in the U.S. in 2018
- State unemployment rate in the U.S. as of July 2019 (seasonally adjusted)
- Top 20 metropolitan areas with the highest unemployment rate in the United States in 2018
- Monthly ranking of unemployment rates in the United States for larger metropolitan areas in June 2019
- Monthly youth (16-24) unemployment rate in the United States from July 2018 to July 2019 (seasonally adjusted)
- Unemployment rate in the United States in July 2019, by occupation
- Unemployment rate in the United States by industry and class of worker in July 2019
- Monthly number of long-term unemployed persons in the U.S. from July 2018 to July 2019 (in millions, adjusted)
- Average duration of unemployment in the United States from 1990 to 2018 (in weeks)
- Monthly number of job losers in the U.S. from July 2018 to July 2019 (in millions, adjusted)
- Unemployment rate of men in the United States from 1990 to 2018
- Unemployment rate of women in the United States from 1990 to 2018
- Unemployment rate in the United States from 1990 to 2018, by age
- Unemployment rate in the United States in 2018, by ethnicity
- Unemployment rate in the United States from 1992-2018, by level of education
- Unemployment rate of high school graduates and dropouts not enrolled in school in the United States from 2000 to 2018
- Unemployment rate of recent graduates in the U.S. from June 2018 to June 2019
- Civilian labor force in the United States from 1990 to 2018 (in millions)
- Civilian labor force participation rate in the United States from 1990 to 2018
- Monthly civilian labor force in the United States from July 2018 to July 2019 (in millions, seasonally adjusted)
- Monthly civilian labor force participation rate in the United States from July 2018 to July 2019 (seasonally adjusted)
- Monthly number of full-time employees in the United States from July 2018 to July 2019 (in millions, unadjusted)
- Employment level of the United States from 1990 to 2018 (in millions)
- Employment rate in the United States from 1990 to 2018
- Number of employed persons in the U.S. in 2018, by state (in 1,000s)
- State civilian labor force in the U.S. in 2018 (in 1,000s)
- Monthly employment level of the United States from July 2018 to July 2019 (in millions, seasonally adjusted)
- Monthly change in nonfarm payroll employment in the United States from July 2018 to July 2019 (in 1,000s)
- Number of full-time employees in the United States from 1990 to 2018 (in millions)
- Number of part-time employees in the United States from 1990 to 2018 (in millions)
- Total employed persons in the U.S. in 2018, by industry (in 1,000s)
- Monthly change in nonfarm payroll employment in the United States in July 2019, by industry sector (in 1,000s)
- Distribution of employment in the private sector in the United States in 2018, by size of business
- Monthly job openings in the United States from June 2018 to June 2019 (in millions)
- Monthly job openings rate in the United States from June 2018 to June 2019
- Employment rate in the United States in 2018, by ethnicity
- Forecast of the unemployment rate in the United States for fiscal years 2018 to 2029
- Projected change in employment in the United States from 2016 to 2026, by major industry (in 1,000)
- Projected employment change in the U.S. by major occupational groups from 2016 to 2026
- Top 20 industries in the U.S. with largest projected wage and salary employment growth from 2016 to 2026 (in 1,000)
- Top 20 industries in the U.S. with largest projected payroll employment declines from 2016 to 2026 (in 1,000)
- Unemployment rate of White Americans in the United States from 1990 to 2018
- Number of unemployed persons in the U.S. in 2018, by state (in 1,000s)
- Unemployment rate in Sweden from 2008 to 2018
- Number of unemployed persons in Poland from 2008 to 2016* (in 1.000s)
- Monthly unemployment rate of men in the United States from July 2018 to July 2019 (not seasonally adjusted)
- Monthly unemployment rate of women in the United States from July 2018 to July 2019 (not seasonally adjusted)
- Monthly unemployment rate of men in the United States from July 2018 to July 2019 (seasonally adjusted)
- Monthly number of unemployed women in the United States from July 2018 to July 2019 (in millions, unadjusted)
- Unemployment level of Mexican Americans in the United States from 1990 to 2018 (in millions)
- Unemployment level of Puerto Rican Americans in the United States from 1990 to 2018 (in 1,000)
- Number of unemployed people in the construction sector in Spain from 2005 to 2018 (in 1,000s)
- Number of unemployed in the tourism sector in Spain in 2017, according to level of education
- Number of unemployed in the tourism sector in Spain in 2017, by age
- Share distribution of the unemployed in the tourism sector in Spain in 2017, by autonomous community
- Number of unemployed in the tourism sector in Spain in 2017, by type of activity
- Number of persons outside the labor force in Denmark in 2017, by age group
- Readiness of Chinese employees to work abroad in 2011, by qualification
- Number of individuals employed as plant and machine operatives in the United Kingdom (UK) in 2018, by employment type (1,000s)
- Number of employed senior officers in protective services in the United Kingdom (UK) in 2018, by occupation (1,000s)
- Number of employed full-time engineering professionals in the United Kingdom (UK) in 2018, by occupation (1,000s)
Statista Accounts:
Access All Statistics. Starting from $588 / Year
Related topics
About Statista
Statista offers dossiers and reports on over 170 industries. With Statista you are always able to make informed decisions and boost your work efficiency.
Internet & Telecommunications
- Social Media
- E-Commerce
- Online Video & Entertainment
- Advertising & Marketing
Consumer Goods & FMCG
- Alcoholic Beverages
- Cleaning Products
- Cosmetics & Personal Care
- Food & Nutrition
Retail & Trade
- Health & Hygiene
- International Trade
- Shopping Behavior
- Sports & Leisure
Travel, Tourism & Hospitality
- Business Travel
- Leisure Travel
- Accomodation
- Restaurants
Society
- Demographics
- Economy
- Education & Science
- Politics & Government
Transportation & Logistics
- Aviation
- Rail Transport
- Vehicles & Road Traffic
- Water Transport
Please log in to access our additional functions
Register in seconds and access exclusive features.
Basic Account
|
Instant Access
Premium Account
| ||
|---|---|---|---|
Our services
Click the question mark for further information | Free |
$49 per month* | |
| Basic statistics | |||
| Premium statistics | |||
|
Graph download
| |||
| Download PDF | |||
|
Excel download
| |||
| Register | Purchase now | ||
*Duration: 12 months, billed annually, single license
Yes, let me download!
...and make my research life easier.
Exclusive Corporate feature
This feature is limited to our corporate solutions.
Please contact us to get started with full access to dossiers, forecasts, studies and international data.
Corporate Account
We use cookies to personalize contents and ads, offer social media features, and analyze access to our website. In your browser settings you can configure or disable this, respectively, and can delete any already placed cookies. For details, please see your browser’s Help section (by pressing F1). Please see our privacy statement for details about how we use data.