---
title: "Prime-Age Employment Rate (25-54)"
slug: the-prime-years
summary: "Prime-age employment rose to 80.7% in September 2026"
category: "The Deal"
unit: percent
frequency: monthly
direction: lower_is_worse
latest_value: 80.7
latest_period: "2026-09"
trend: rising
last_updated: "2026-10-02T00:00:00Z"
source: "U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data retrieved via FRED"
source_url: https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/LNS12300060
canonical_html: https://americandefault.org/indicators/the-prime-years/
citation_apa: "Kilburn, R. (2026). Prime-Age Employment Rate (25-54) [Data set]. American Default Research. https://americandefault.org/indicators/the-prime-years/"
citation_chicago: "Kilburn, Ross. 2026. \"Prime-Age Employment Rate (25-54).\" American Default Research. https://americandefault.org/indicators/the-prime-years/."
citation_mla: "Kilburn, Ross. \"Prime-Age Employment Rate (25-54).\" American Default Research, 2026, americandefault.org/indicators/the-prime-years/."
---

# Prime-Age Employment Rate (25-54)

Also tracked as The Prime Years.

> Prime-age employment rose to 80.7% in September 2026

## Current Reading

As of September 2026, Prime-Age Employment Rate (25-54) is **80.7%** (rising — improving for households).

Share of people ages 25 to 54 who have a job, BLS, seasonally adjusted, the same as a year earlier.

## What Changed

- The prime-age employment rate (ages 25 to 54) rose to 80.7% in September 2026, from 80.4% in August 2026.
- The same as a year earlier.

## Recent Values

| Period | Value |
|--------|-------|
| 2026-09 | 80.7% |
| 2026-08 | 80.4% |
| 2026-07 | 80.4% |
| 2026-06 | 80.2% |
| 2026-05 | 80.8% |
| 2026-04 | 80.7% |
| 2026-03 | 80.7% |
| 2026-02 | 80.7% |
| 2026-01 | 80.8% |
| 2025-12 | 80.7% |
| 2025-11 | 80.6% |
| 2025-09 | 80.7% |

## Historical Context

This series is not comparable end to end, so no all-time extreme or long-run average is published for it. The source changed what it measures on the following date(s):

- January 1994: BLS redesigned the Current Population Survey questionnaire and collection methods in January 1994 and says comparability with earlier data is affected. Source: https://www.bls.gov/cps/revisions1994.pdf

Compare readings only within a single segment. Subtracting across one of these dates measures the change in method, not in household conditions.

## Methodology

This indicator carries monthly observations and is interpreted as lower values indicate worse household conditions. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data retrieved via FRED.
Automation: collected automatically on the daily refresh pipeline, with no hand entry.

## Source

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data retrieved via FRED — [https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/LNS12300060](https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/LNS12300060)

Data retrieved: 2026-10-02T00:00:00Z

## Related Indicators

- [total-nonfarm-payrolls](https://americandefault.org/indicators/total-nonfarm-payrolls/)
- [u-6-underemployment-rate](https://americandefault.org/indicators/u-6-underemployment-rate/)
- [unemployment-rate](https://americandefault.org/indicators/unemployment-rate/)

## Machine-Readable Endpoints

- HTML page: https://americandefault.org/indicators/the-prime-years/
- JSON: https://americandefault.org/api/indicators/the-prime-years.json
- CSV: https://americandefault.org/api/downloads/the-prime-years.csv
- BibTeX: https://americandefault.org/citations/the-prime-years.bib
- RIS: https://americandefault.org/citations/the-prime-years.ris

## Citation

**APA 7th**

    Kilburn, R. (2026). Prime-Age Employment Rate (25-54) [Data set]. American Default Research. https://americandefault.org/indicators/the-prime-years/

**Chicago (author-date)**

    Kilburn, Ross. 2026. "Prime-Age Employment Rate (25-54)." American Default Research. https://americandefault.org/indicators/the-prime-years/.

**MLA 9th**

    Kilburn, Ross. "Prime-Age Employment Rate (25-54)." American Default Research, 2026, americandefault.org/indicators/the-prime-years/.

Use **American Default Research** as the institutional name in source lists, bibliographies, and press citations. **American Default** is the brand and URL form. **American Distress Index (ADI)** is the product name for the national composite score.