Data / Rankings / Unemployment rate / Counties in California

Counties in California by unemployment rate

Imperial County had the highest unemployment rate of 58 counties in January 2026, at 18.6%. San Mateo County had the lowest, at 3.8%. The median was 6.5% and the figure for California was 5.4%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest18.6Imperial County
Lowest3.8San Mateo County
Median6.558 counties
California5.4History

All counties, January 2026

CSVChart (SVG)

Imperial CountyImperial County: 18.6 %18.6Colusa CountyColusa County: 17.8 %17.8Tulare CountyTulare County: 11.1 %11.1Merced CountyMerced County: 10.6 %10.6Monterey CountyMonterey County: 10.6 %10.6Plumas CountyPlumas County: 10.6 %10.6Sutter CountySutter County: 10.1 %10.1Kings CountyKings County: 10 %10Siskiyou CountySiskiyou County: 9.5 %9.5Kern CountyKern County: 9.2 %9.2Modoc CountyModoc County: 9.2 %9.2Fresno CountyFresno County: 8.9 %8.9Madera CountyMadera County: 8.6 %8.6Lake CountyLake County: 8.2 %8.2Glenn CountyGlenn County: 8.1 %8.1Lassen CountyLassen County: 7.7 %7.7Mariposa CountyMariposa County: 7.7 %7.7Stanislaus CountyStanislaus County: 7.5 %7.5Yuba CountyYuba County: 7.4 %7.4San Benito CountySan Benito County: 7.2 %7.2Santa Cruz CountySanta Cruz County: 7.1 %7.1Del Norte CountyDel Norte County: 7 %7Calaveras CountyCalaveras County: 6.9 %6.9San Joaquin CountySan Joaquin County: 6.9 %6.9Trinity CountyTrinity County: 6.7 %6.7Alpine CountyAlpine County: 6.6 %6.6Butte CountyButte County: 6.6 %6.6Tehama CountyTehama County: 6.6 %6.6Amador CountyAmador County: 6.5 %6.5Mendocino CountyMendocino County: 6.5 %6.5Sierra CountySierra County: 6.4 %6.4Yolo CountyYolo County: 6.3 %6.3Shasta CountyShasta County: 5.9 %5.9Tuolumne CountyTuolumne County: 5.8 %5.8Humboldt CountyHumboldt County: 5.6 %5.6Los Angeles CountyLos Angeles County: 5.5 %5.5Riverside CountyRiverside County: 5.5 %5.5Santa Barbara CountySanta Barbara County: 5.5 %5.5Solano CountySolano County: 5.5 %5.5San Bernardino CountySan Bernardino County: 5.3 %5.3El Dorado CountyEl Dorado County: 5.2 %5.2Sacramento CountySacramento County: 5.2 %5.2Inyo CountyInyo County: 5.1 %5.1Nevada CountyNevada County: 5 %5Ventura CountyVentura County: 5 %5Napa CountyNapa County: 4.9 %4.9Contra Costa CountyContra Costa County: 4.8 %4.8San Diego CountySan Diego County: 4.7 %4.7Alameda CountyAlameda County: 4.6 %4.6San Luis Obispo CountySan Luis Obispo County: 4.6 %4.6Sonoma CountySonoma County: 4.6 %4.6Placer CountyPlacer County: 4.4 %4.4Mono CountyMono County: 4.3 %4.3Marin CountyMarin County: 4.2 %4.2Santa Clara CountySanta Clara County: 4.2 %4.2Orange CountyOrange County: 4.1 %4.1San Francisco CountySan Francisco County: 4.1 %4.1San Mateo CountySan Mateo County: 3.8 %3.8
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesJanuary 2026 (%)Change on January 2025
1Imperial County18.6+0.4 pts
2Colusa County17.8-1.1 pts
3Tulare County11.1+0.1 pts
4Merced County10.6-0.6 pts
4Monterey County10.60 pts
4Plumas County10.6+0.6 pts
7Sutter County10.1+0.1 pts
8Kings County100 pts
9Siskiyou County9.5+0.7 pts
10Kern County9.2+0.1 pts
10Modoc County9.2-0.2 pts
12Fresno County8.9+0.2 pts
13Madera County8.6+0.1 pts
14Lake County8.2+0.1 pts
15Glenn County8.1+0.2 pts
16Lassen County7.7+0.1 pts
16Mariposa County7.7+0.6 pts
18Stanislaus County7.5-0.1 pts
19Yuba County7.4-0.1 pts
20San Benito County7.2-0.1 pts
21Santa Cruz County7.10 pts
22Del Norte County7+0.4 pts
23Calaveras County6.9+0.2 pts
23San Joaquin County6.9-0.1 pts
25Trinity County6.7+0.1 pts
26Alpine County6.6+0.8 pts
26Butte County6.6+0.1 pts
26Tehama County6.6-0.4 pts
29Amador County6.5+0.2 pts
29Mendocino County6.5-0.1 pts
31Sierra County6.4-0.8 pts
32Yolo County6.3+0.2 pts
33Shasta County5.90 pts
34Tuolumne County5.80 pts
35Humboldt County5.60 pts
36Los Angeles County5.5-0.3 pts
36Riverside County5.5+0.2 pts
36Santa Barbara County5.50 pts
36Solano County5.5+0.2 pts
40San Bernardino County5.3+0.1 pts
41El Dorado County5.2+0.1 pts
41Sacramento County5.2+0.2 pts
43Inyo County5.1+0.2 pts
44Nevada County5+0.1 pts
44Ventura County50 pts
46Napa County4.9+0.1 pts
47Contra Costa County4.80 pts
48San Diego County4.7+0.2 pts
49Alameda County4.60 pts
49San Luis Obispo County4.6+0.3 pts
49Sonoma County4.60 pts
52Placer County4.4+0.1 pts
53Mono County4.3-0.1 pts
54Marin County4.2+0.1 pts
54Santa Clara County4.2-0.1 pts
56Orange County4.10 pts
56San Francisco County4.1-0.1 pts
58San Mateo County3.8-0.1 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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Rank Counties in California by unemployment rate using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which county has the highest unemployment rate?

Imperial County, with 18.6% in January 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

San Mateo County, with 3.8% in January 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