Civilian labor force in Columbia, SC

Civilian labor force in Columbia, SC was 71,076 in 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That is up 1.6% from 2024. That is the 2nd highest of 25 cities in 2025.

2025, persons71,076
Change on 2024+1.6%
Series high71,0762025
Series low44,1111990

Next release: Wednesday, 28 October 2026, 10:00 ET, announced by BLS. Release calendar

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Civilian labor force in Columbia, SC, 1990 to 2025

40K50K60K70K80K19901996200220082014202020251990: 44,111 persons1991: 44,758 persons1992: 45,274 persons1993: 45,377 persons1994: 44,752 persons1995: 45,029 persons1996: 46,404 persons1997: 47,042 persons1998: 47,461 persons1999: 48,139 persons2000: 49,310 persons2001: 48,629 persons2002: 49,176 persons2003: 50,486 persons2004: 51,961 persons2005: 52,837 persons2006: 54,885 persons2007: 56,624 persons2008: 56,627 persons2009: 55,808 persons2010: 57,709 persons2011: 57,552 persons2012: 58,161 persons2013: 58,302 persons2014: 58,143 persons2015: 59,516 persons2016: 66,497 persons2017: 65,360 persons2018: 63,690 persons2019: 63,520 persons2020: 63,192 persons2021: 63,463 persons2022: 65,270 persons2023: 67,509 persons2024: 69,935 persons2025: 71,076 persons40K50K60K70K80K19902002201420251990: 44,111 persons1991: 44,758 persons1992: 45,274 persons1993: 45,377 persons1994: 44,752 persons1995: 45,029 persons1996: 46,404 persons1997: 47,042 persons1998: 47,461 persons1999: 48,139 persons2000: 49,310 persons2001: 48,629 persons2002: 49,176 persons2003: 50,486 persons2004: 51,961 persons2005: 52,837 persons2006: 54,885 persons2007: 56,624 persons2008: 56,627 persons2009: 55,808 persons2010: 57,709 persons2011: 57,552 persons2012: 58,161 persons2013: 58,302 persons2014: 58,143 persons2015: 59,516 persons2016: 66,497 persons2017: 65,360 persons2018: 63,690 persons2019: 63,520 persons2020: 63,192 persons2021: 63,463 persons2022: 65,270 persons2023: 67,509 persons2024: 69,935 persons2025: 71,076 persons
persons. Source: BLS, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. Retrieved 2026-10-12, published 2026-09-30.
All 36 values
Periodpersons
202571,076
202469,935
202367,509
202265,270
202163,463
202063,192
201963,520
201863,690
201765,360
201666,497
201559,516
201458,143
201358,302
201258,161
201157,552
201057,709
200955,808
200856,627
200756,624
200654,885
200552,837
200451,961
200350,486
200249,176
200148,629
200049,310
199948,139
199847,461
199747,042
199646,404
199545,029
199444,752
199345,377
199245,274
199144,758
199044,111

Rankings

Definition

Employed plus unemployed residents, annual average.

More on how it is measured
  • People aged 16 and over by place of residence, from the Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) program of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
  • Active-duty military personnel and people living in institutions are excluded.

United States cities only for now. Counts people where they live, not jobs: for wage and salary jobs by state use oews_employment. BLS estimates cities by splitting county estimates with Census Bureau employment and population data and unemployment insurance claims, so city figures are less precise than state ones. BLS publishes cities of 25,000 or more, and smaller cities in New England.

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How to cite

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2026). Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average (Civilian labor force, Columbia, SC, 1990 to 2025) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29

MLA 9

Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average, Civilian labor force, Columbia, SC, 1990 to 2025. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 30 Sept. 2026, https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/en/civilian-labor-force/columbia-sc. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2026. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. Civilian labor force, Columbia, SC, 1990 to 2025. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/en/civilian-labor-force/columbia-sc.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average, Civilian labor force, Columbia, SC, 1990 to 2025 [Dataset]. Available at: https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/en/civilian-labor-force/columbia-sc (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_civilian_labor_force_columbia_2025,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics}},
  title = {{Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average: Civilian labor force, Columbia, SC, 1990 to 2025}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/en/civilian-labor-force/columbia-sc. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
TI  - Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average: Civilian labor force, Columbia, SC, 1990 to 2025
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/30
PB  - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29
L2  - https://invokely.ai/en/civilian-labor-force/columbia-sc
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/en/civilian-labor-force/columbia-sc.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  - 
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Questions

What is the civilian labor force in Columbia, SC?

Civilian labor force in Columbia, SC was 71,076 in 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That is up 1.6% from 2024. That is the 2nd highest of 25 cities in 2025.

Where does this figure come from?

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: labor force (measure 06), annual average. Retrieved by Invokely on 2026-10-12.

What was the highest civilian labor force in Columbia, SC?

71,076 in 2025, the highest value since 1990 in this series.

Civilian labor force elsewhere in South Carolina

Related statistics for Columbia, SC

All statistics for Columbia, SC | Columbia, SC in figures