Data / Civilian labor force / Wilmington, NC

Civilian labor force in Wilmington, NC

Civilian labor force in Wilmington, NC was 66,238 in 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That is up 1.2% from 2024. That is the 8th highest of 44 cities in 2025.

2025, persons66,238
Change on 2024+1.2%
Rank8th of 44Cities in North Carolina ranked
Series high66,2382025
Series low28,3891990

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

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Civilian labor force in Wilmington, NC, 1990 to 2025

20K30K40K50K60K70K19901996200220082014202020251990: 28,389 persons1991: 29,789 persons1992: 30,655 persons1993: 31,213 persons1994: 31,757 persons1995: 32,509 persons1996: 33,919 persons1997: 34,902 persons1998: 35,286 persons1999: 36,031 persons2000: 39,618 persons2001: 40,678 persons2002: 41,103 persons2003: 42,181 persons2004: 42,981 persons2005: 50,424 persons2006: 51,648 persons2007: 52,810 persons2008: 53,229 persons2009: 52,723 persons2010: 55,764 persons2011: 55,606 persons2012: 56,307 persons2013: 56,363 persons2014: 56,807 persons2015: 58,311 persons2016: 57,617 persons2017: 58,485 persons2018: 59,050 persons2019: 60,108 persons2020: 58,635 persons2021: 60,528 persons2022: 63,984 persons2023: 65,362 persons2024: 65,421 persons2025: 66,238 persons20K30K40K50K60K70K19902002201420251990: 28,389 persons1991: 29,789 persons1992: 30,655 persons1993: 31,213 persons1994: 31,757 persons1995: 32,509 persons1996: 33,919 persons1997: 34,902 persons1998: 35,286 persons1999: 36,031 persons2000: 39,618 persons2001: 40,678 persons2002: 41,103 persons2003: 42,181 persons2004: 42,981 persons2005: 50,424 persons2006: 51,648 persons2007: 52,810 persons2008: 53,229 persons2009: 52,723 persons2010: 55,764 persons2011: 55,606 persons2012: 56,307 persons2013: 56,363 persons2014: 56,807 persons2015: 58,311 persons2016: 57,617 persons2017: 58,485 persons2018: 59,050 persons2019: 60,108 persons2020: 58,635 persons2021: 60,528 persons2022: 63,984 persons2023: 65,362 persons2024: 65,421 persons2025: 66,238 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
202566,238
202465,421
202365,362
202263,984
202160,528
202058,635
201960,108
201859,050
201758,485
201657,617
201558,311
201456,807
201356,363
201256,307
201155,606
201055,764
200952,723
200853,229
200752,810
200651,648
200550,424
200442,981
200342,181
200241,103
200140,678
200039,618
199936,031
199835,286
199734,902
199633,919
199532,509
199431,757
199331,213
199230,655
199129,789
199028,389

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

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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, Wilmington, NC, 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, Wilmington, NC, 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/wilmington-nc. 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, Wilmington, NC, 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/wilmington-nc.

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, Wilmington, NC, 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/wilmington-nc (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_civilian_labor_force_wilmington_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, Wilmington, NC, 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/wilmington-nc. 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, Wilmington, NC, 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/wilmington-nc
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/en/civilian-labor-force/wilmington-nc.
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 Wilmington, NC?

Civilian labor force in Wilmington, NC was 66,238 in 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That is up 1.2% from 2024. That is the 8th highest of 44 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 Wilmington, NC?

66,238 in 2025, the highest value since 1990 in this series.

Civilian labor force elsewhere in North Carolina

Related statistics for Wilmington, NC

All statistics for Wilmington, NC | Wilmington, NC in figures