Data / Unemployed people / Ottumwa, IA

Unemployed people in Ottumwa, IA

Unemployed people in Ottumwa, IA was 543 in 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That is up 17% from 2024. That is the 19th highest of 23 cities in 2025.

2025, persons543
Change on 2024+17%
Rank19th of 23Cities in Iowa ranked
Series high1,1202009
Series low4282022

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

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Unemployed people in Ottumwa, IA, 1990 to 2025

4006008001,0001,20019901996200220082014202020251990: 795 persons1991: 1,011 persons1992: 916 persons1993: 833 persons1994: 711 persons1995: 715 persons1996: 720 persons1997: 860 persons1998: 556 persons1999: 545 persons2000: 493 persons2001: 647 persons2002: 805 persons2003: 828 persons2004: 818 persons2005: 683 persons2006: 548 persons2007: 527 persons2008: 627 persons2009: 1,120 persons2010: 1,007 persons2011: 894 persons2012: 882 persons2013: 787 persons2014: 708 persons2015: 638 persons2016: 744 persons2017: 584 persons2018: 473 persons2019: 472 persons2020: 793 persons2021: 613 persons2022: 428 persons2023: 439 persons2024: 464 persons2025: 543 persons4006008001,0001,20019902002201420251990: 795 persons1991: 1,011 persons1992: 916 persons1993: 833 persons1994: 711 persons1995: 715 persons1996: 720 persons1997: 860 persons1998: 556 persons1999: 545 persons2000: 493 persons2001: 647 persons2002: 805 persons2003: 828 persons2004: 818 persons2005: 683 persons2006: 548 persons2007: 527 persons2008: 627 persons2009: 1,120 persons2010: 1,007 persons2011: 894 persons2012: 882 persons2013: 787 persons2014: 708 persons2015: 638 persons2016: 744 persons2017: 584 persons2018: 473 persons2019: 472 persons2020: 793 persons2021: 613 persons2022: 428 persons2023: 439 persons2024: 464 persons2025: 543 persons
persons. Source: BLS, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average. Retrieved 2026-10-12, published 2026-09-30.
All 36 values
Periodpersons
2025543
2024464
2023439
2022428
2021613
2020793
2019472
2018473
2017584
2016744
2015638
2014708
2013787
2012882
2011894
20101,007
20091,120
2008627
2007527
2006548
2005683
2004818
2003828
2002805
2001647
2000493
1999545
1998556
1997860
1996720
1995715
1994711
1993833
1992916
19911,011
1990795

Rankings

Definition

Residents with no job who were available for work and had looked for work in the previous four weeks, or were waiting to be recalled from a layoff, 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. The survey definition, not a count of benefit claimants. 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: unemployment (measure 04), 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: unemployment (measure 04), annual average (Unemployed people, Ottumwa, IA, 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: unemployment (measure 04), annual average, Unemployed people, Ottumwa, IA, 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/unemployed-people/ottumwa-ia. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2026. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average. Unemployed people, Ottumwa, IA, 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/unemployed-people/ottumwa-ia.

Harvard

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2026) Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average, Unemployed people, Ottumwa, IA, 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/unemployed-people/ottumwa-ia (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{bureau_unemployed_people_ottumwa_ia_2025,
  author = {{U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics}},
  title = {{Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), annual average: Unemployed people, Ottumwa, IA, 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/unemployed-people/ottumwa-ia. Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), 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: unemployment (measure 04), annual average: Unemployed people, Ottumwa, IA, 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/unemployed-people/ottumwa-ia
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/en/unemployed-people/ottumwa-ia.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics, cities and towns, not seasonally adjusted: unemployment (measure 04), 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 unemployed people in Ottumwa, IA?

Unemployed people in Ottumwa, IA was 543 in 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That is up 17% from 2024. That is the 19th highest of 23 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: unemployment (measure 04), annual average. Retrieved by Invokely on 2026-10-12.

What was the highest unemployed people in Ottumwa, IA?

1,120 in 2009, the highest value since 1990 in this series.

Unemployed people elsewhere in Iowa

Related statistics for Ottumwa, IA

All statistics for Ottumwa, IA | Ottumwa, IA in figures