Data / Rankings / Unemployment rate / Counties in California

Counties in California by unemployment rate, August 2026

Imperial County had the highest unemployment rate of 58 counties in August 2026, at 21.9%. San Mateo County had the lowest, at 4%. The median was 5.65% and the figure for California was 5.1%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest21.9Imperial County
Lowest4San Mateo County
Median5.6558 counties
California5.1History

All counties, August 2026

CSVChart (SVG)

Imperial CountyImperial County: 21.9 %21.9Alpine CountyAlpine County: 10.4 %10.4Tulare CountyTulare County: 10.4 %10.4Colusa CountyColusa County: 9.4 %9.4Merced CountyMerced County: 8.9 %8.9Kings CountyKings County: 8.5 %8.5Kern CountyKern County: 8.4 %8.4Fresno CountyFresno County: 7.8 %7.8Madera CountyMadera County: 7.4 %7.4Sutter CountySutter County: 7.4 %7.4Siskiyou CountySiskiyou County: 7.3 %7.3Lake CountyLake County: 7.2 %7.2Glenn CountyGlenn County: 7.1 %7.1Stanislaus CountyStanislaus County: 7 %7Yuba CountyYuba County: 6.7 %6.7Lassen CountyLassen County: 6.6 %6.6Del Norte CountyDel Norte County: 6.5 %6.5San Joaquin CountySan Joaquin County: 6.5 %6.5Calaveras CountyCalaveras County: 6.3 %6.3Butte CountyButte County: 6.2 %6.2Riverside CountyRiverside County: 6.2 %6.2Tehama CountyTehama County: 6.2 %6.2Modoc CountyModoc County: 6.1 %6.1San Benito CountySan Benito County: 5.9 %5.9Amador CountyAmador County: 5.8 %5.8Monterey CountyMonterey County: 5.7 %5.7Plumas CountyPlumas County: 5.7 %5.7San Bernardino CountySan Bernardino County: 5.7 %5.7Yolo CountyYolo County: 5.7 %5.7Humboldt CountyHumboldt County: 5.6 %5.6Mariposa CountyMariposa County: 5.6 %5.6Mendocino CountyMendocino County: 5.6 %5.6Tuolumne CountyTuolumne County: 5.6 %5.6Solano CountySolano County: 5.5 %5.5Trinity CountyTrinity County: 5.5 %5.5Sacramento CountySacramento County: 5.3 %5.3Santa Cruz CountySanta Cruz County: 5.3 %5.3Shasta CountyShasta County: 5.3 %5.3El Dorado CountyEl Dorado County: 5.1 %5.1Contra Costa CountyContra Costa County: 5 %5Nevada CountyNevada County: 5 %5Ventura CountyVentura County: 5 %5Alameda CountyAlameda County: 4.9 %4.9Los Angeles CountyLos Angeles County: 4.9 %4.9San Diego CountySan Diego County: 4.9 %4.9Inyo CountyInyo County: 4.7 %4.7San Luis Obispo CountySan Luis Obispo County: 4.7 %4.7Santa Barbara CountySanta Barbara County: 4.6 %4.6Placer CountyPlacer County: 4.5 %4.5Sonoma CountySonoma County: 4.5 %4.5Marin CountyMarin County: 4.4 %4.4Orange CountyOrange County: 4.4 %4.4Sierra CountySierra County: 4.4 %4.4Mono CountyMono County: 4.3 %4.3Napa CountyNapa County: 4.3 %4.3Santa Clara CountySanta Clara County: 4.3 %4.3San Francisco CountySan Francisco County: 4.2 %4.2San Mateo CountySan Mateo County: 4 %4
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesAugust 2026 (%)Change on August 2025
1Imperial County Provisional21.9-0.1 pts
2Alpine County Provisional10.4+1.8 pts
2Tulare County Provisional10.4-0.2 pts
4Colusa County Provisional9.4-0.1 pts
5Merced County Provisional8.9-0.5 pts
6Kings County Provisional8.5-0.1 pts
7Kern County Provisional8.4-0.3 pts
8Fresno County Provisional7.8-0.2 pts
9Madera County Provisional7.40 pts
9Sutter County Provisional7.4-0.3 pts
11Siskiyou County Provisional7.3+0.3 pts
12Lake County Provisional7.2+0.1 pts
13Glenn County Provisional7.1-0.1 pts
14Stanislaus County Provisional7-0.1 pts
15Yuba County Provisional6.7-0.3 pts
16Lassen County Provisional6.6-0.1 pts
17Del Norte County Provisional6.50 pts
17San Joaquin County Provisional6.5-0.3 pts
19Calaveras County Provisional6.3-0.2 pts
20Butte County Provisional6.2-0.2 pts
20Riverside County Provisional6.2-0.1 pts
20Tehama County Provisional6.2-0.4 pts
23Modoc County Provisional6.10 pts
24San Benito County Provisional5.9-0.4 pts
25Amador County Provisional5.8-0.4 pts
26Monterey County Provisional5.7-0.1 pts
26Plumas County Provisional5.7-0.1 pts
26San Bernardino County Provisional5.7-0.3 pts
26Yolo County Provisional5.7-0.2 pts
30Humboldt County Provisional5.6-0.1 pts
30Mariposa County Provisional5.6+0.4 pts
30Mendocino County Provisional5.6-0.3 pts
30Tuolumne County Provisional5.60 pts
34Solano County Provisional5.5-0.2 pts
34Trinity County Provisional5.50 pts
36Sacramento County Provisional5.3-0.2 pts
36Santa Cruz County Provisional5.3-0.3 pts
36Shasta County Provisional5.3-0.2 pts
39El Dorado County Provisional5.1-0.1 pts
40Contra Costa County Provisional5-0.2 pts
40Nevada County Provisional50 pts
40Ventura County Provisional5-0.3 pts
43Alameda County Provisional4.9-0.2 pts
43Los Angeles County Provisional4.9-1.3 pts
43San Diego County Provisional4.9-0.2 pts
46Inyo County Provisional4.70 pts
46San Luis Obispo County Provisional4.7-0.2 pts
48Santa Barbara County Provisional4.6-0.2 pts
49Placer County Provisional4.5-0.2 pts
49Sonoma County Provisional4.5-0.3 pts
51Marin County Provisional4.4-0.2 pts
51Orange County Provisional4.4-0.2 pts
51Sierra County Provisional4.4-0.4 pts
54Mono County Provisional4.30 pts
54Napa County Provisional4.3-0.2 pts
54Santa Clara County Provisional4.3-0.3 pts
57San Francisco County Provisional4.2-0.3 pts
58San Mateo County Provisional4-0.3 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Unemployed people as a percentage of the labour force, using the survey definition of unemployment: without work, available and looking for work. Spain: EPA, aged 16 and over. EU: Labour Force Survey, aged 15 to 74. United States: civilian labour force aged 16 and over, from the Current Population Survey for the nation and from BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics models, consistent with that survey, for states and counties. Other countries and the World: ILO modelled estimates published by the World Bank, aged 15 and over.

Survey-based. Available for Spain, regions, provinces, EU countries, US states and US counties, not Spanish municipalities. For municipalities use registered_unemployment_rate. US national and state rates are seasonally adjusted; county rates are not. Countries without a national or Eurostat series get the annual ILO modelled estimate, a model output rather than a survey result.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Local Area Unemployment Statistics: unemployment rate by county, not seasonally adjusted. https://download.bls.gov/pub/time.series/la/la.data.0.CurrentU25-29. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

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Questions

Which county has the highest unemployment rate?

Imperial County, with 21.9% in August 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

San Mateo County, with 4% in August 2026.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics: unemployment rate by county, not seasonally adjusted. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Unemployment rate: other rankings

Counties in California: more rankings