---
title: "Unemployment Rate"
slug: unemployment-rate
summary: "Unemployment edged up to 4.2% in September 2026"
category: "Jobs"
unit: percent
frequency: monthly
direction: higher_is_worse
latest_value: 4.2
latest_period: "2026-09"
trend: stable
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/UNRATE
canonical_html: https://americandefault.org/indicators/unemployment-rate/
citation_apa: "Kilburn, R. (2026). Unemployment Rate [Data set]. American Default Research. https://americandefault.org/indicators/unemployment-rate/"
citation_chicago: "Kilburn, Ross. 2026. \"Unemployment Rate.\" American Default Research. https://americandefault.org/indicators/unemployment-rate/."
citation_mla: "Kilburn, Ross. \"Unemployment Rate.\" American Default Research, 2026, americandefault.org/indicators/unemployment-rate/."
---

# Unemployment Rate

> Unemployment edged up to 4.2% in September 2026

## Current Reading

As of September 2026, Unemployment Rate is **4.2%** (stable).

unemployment rate — edged up from the month before

## What Changed

- Unemployment edged up to 4.2% in September 2026, edging up from 4.1% in August 2026.
- Little changed from a year earlier, when it was 4.4%.

## Recent Values

| Period | Value |
|--------|-------|
| 2026-09 | 4.2% |
| 2026-08 | 4.1% |
| 2026-07 | 4.1% |
| 2026-06 | 4.2% |
| 2026-05 | 4.3% |
| 2026-04 | 4.3% |
| 2026-03 | 4.3% |
| 2026-02 | 4.4% |
| 2026-01 | 4.3% |
| 2025-12 | 4.4% |
| 2025-11 | 4.5% |
| 2025-09 | 4.4% |

## Historical Context

- Peak since 1948: **14.8%** in April 2020
- Low since 1948: **2.5%** in May 1953
- Pre-pandemic average (2015-01 – 2019-12): **4.42%**
- Post-pandemic average (2020-01 – 2024-12): **4.95%**

## Methodology

This indicator carries monthly observations and is interpreted as higher 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/UNRATE](https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/UNRATE)

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

## Related Indicators

- [continued-unemployment-claims-sa](https://americandefault.org/indicators/continued-unemployment-claims-sa/)
- [jolts-quits-rate](https://americandefault.org/indicators/jolts-quits-rate/)
- [part-time-for-economic-reasons](https://americandefault.org/indicators/part-time-for-economic-reasons/)
- [u-6-underemployment-rate](https://americandefault.org/indicators/u-6-underemployment-rate/)
- [youth-unemployment-rate-16-24](https://americandefault.org/indicators/youth-unemployment-rate-16-24/)

## Machine-Readable Endpoints

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

## Citation

**APA 7th**

    Kilburn, R. (2026). Unemployment Rate [Data set]. American Default Research. https://americandefault.org/indicators/unemployment-rate/

**Chicago (author-date)**

    Kilburn, Ross. 2026. "Unemployment Rate." American Default Research. https://americandefault.org/indicators/unemployment-rate/.

**MLA 9th**

    Kilburn, Ross. "Unemployment Rate." American Default Research, 2026, americandefault.org/indicators/unemployment-rate/.

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.