Number of Unemployed People by State 2025

What this chart shows. The 25 states with the most unemployed people in 2025, as an annual average in thousands. California had 1,085 thousand, followed by Texas with 665 thousand and Florida with 437 thousand. Across all states, about 7.3 million people were unemployed on average.

How the data is collected. The figures come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Local Area Unemployment Statistics program, which estimates state figures with statistical models that combine its national household survey, payroll data and unemployment insurance claims. People count as unemployed if they had no job, were available to work and had looked for work in the previous four weeks.

Background. California alone had more unemployed people than Florida and New York combined. The number of unemployed in California rose from 1,042 thousand in 2024.

Limits. Big states top this chart simply because they have more people; the unemployment rate chart is better for comparing how hard it is to find work. BLS did not publish October 2025 state figures because of the lapse in federal appropriations that autumn.