West region · state data

Hawaii unemployment rate and jobs

Hawaii's unemployment rate was 2.8% in Sep 2026, 1.4 percentage points below the U.S. rate of 4.2%. That was up from 2.1% a year earlier.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (Local Area Unemployment Statistics and Current Employment Statistics) via FRED®. Monthly data, seasonally adjusted. Latest observation Sep 2026; snapshot taken Oct 27, 2026, 2:15 AM EDT.

Unemployment rate (Sep 2026)

2.8%

U.S. rate, same month

4.2%

Difference from U.S.

-1.4 pt

A year earlier

2.1%

Rank (1 = lowest rate)

5th of 51

Nonfarm jobs (Sep 2026)

642,400

Job growth, 12 months

+0.1%

Record low rate

2.0% (Dec 2017)

Unemployment rate: Hawaii vs. the U.S.

2.8% Sep 2026 · Percent

2%3%4%5%20222023202420252026

Hawaii unemployment rate U.S. unemployment rate

Percent of the labor force, seasonally adjusted. Hawaii data from Jan 1976 to Sep 2026; the dashed line is the national rate (UNRATE).

How Hawaii compares

In Sep 2026, Hawaii had the 5th lowest rate of the 51 states and DC. Across the 13 states in the West region, the simple average was 4.1%, so Hawaii was 1.3 points below it.

Since the state series began in 1976, Hawaii's rate has ranged from a low of 2.0% in Dec 2017 to a high of 22.5% in Apr 2020. Just before the pandemic, in February 2020, it was 2.2%, 0.6 points lower than now. Over the last 12 months the rate averaged 2.4% and was above the national rate in 0 of them.

Jobs in Hawaii

Employers in Hawaii reported 642,400 nonfarm payroll jobs in Sep 2026, seasonally adjusted. That is 400 more than a year earlier (+0.1%), compared with +0.3% for the nation as a whole. Its 12-month job growth rate ranked 39th of 51. The record high was 663,400 in Jan 2020. Compared with February 2020, payrolls are down 3.0%.

642.4K Sep 2026 · Thousands of persons

590K600K610K620K630K640K650K20222023202420252026

Total nonfarm payroll jobs, thousands, seasonally adjusted, from the BLS survey of employers. Data from Jan 1990.

Last 12 months in Hawaii
MonthUnemployment rateU.S. rateNonfarm jobsMonthly job change
Sep 20262.8%4.2%642,400+0
Aug 20262.7%4.1%642,400-500
Jul 20262.7%4.1%642,900-300
Jun 20262.6%4.2%643,200-2,500
May 20262.5%4.3%645,700+1,700
Apr 20262.4%4.3%644,000+1,400
Mar 20262.4%4.3%642,600-800
Feb 20262.3%4.4%643,400+100
Jan 20262.2%4.3%643,300+1,800
Dec 20252.2%4.4%641,500-1,300
Nov 20252.2%4.5%642,800+800
Sep 20252.1%4.4%642,000+300

Record high unemployment rate: 22.5% (Apr 2020). Monthly figures are revised each year when BLS benchmarks the state data.

States with similar unemployment rates

New Hampshire · 2.6%Vermont · 2.6%Nebraska · 2.9%Wyoming · 3.0%

Other West states

AlaskaArizonaCaliforniaColoradoIdahoMontanaNevadaNew MexicoOregonUtahWashingtonWyoming All 50 states and DC U.S. unemployment rate

This page shows public labor market data for general information. It is not financial or career advice and does not predict future values.

Sources

FRED® is a registered trademark of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Neither the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis nor the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics endorses OpenEcon.