Counties in Illinois by unemployment rate

Alexander County had the highest unemployment rate of 102 counties in August 2025, at 7.8%. Brown County had the lowest, at 3.2%. The median was 4.7% and the figure for Illinois was 4.3%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Lowest3.2Brown County
Median4.7102 counties
Illinois4.3History

Top 40 counties, August 2025

CSVChart (SVG)

Alexander CountyAlexander County: 7.8 %7.8Pulaski CountyPulaski County: 6.6 %6.6Pope CountyPope County: 6.3 %6.3Hardin CountyHardin County: 6.2 %6.2Macon CountyMacon County: 6.1 %6.1Vermilion CountyVermilion County: 6.1 %6.1Kankakee CountyKankakee County: 5.6 %5.6Knox CountyKnox County: 5.6 %5.6LaSalle CountyLaSalle County: 5.6 %5.6Winnebago CountyWinnebago County: 5.6 %5.6Gallatin CountyGallatin County: 5.4 %5.4Johnson CountyJohnson County: 5.4 %5.4Peoria CountyPeoria County: 5.4 %5.4Rock Island CountyRock Island County: 5.4 %5.4Boone CountyBoone County: 5.2 %5.2Franklin CountyFranklin County: 5.2 %5.2Jackson CountyJackson County: 5.2 %5.2Jefferson CountyJefferson County: 5.2 %5.2Perry CountyPerry County: 5.2 %5.2Bureau CountyBureau County: 5.1 %5.1Calhoun CountyCalhoun County: 5.1 %5.1Clay CountyClay County: 5.1 %5.1Henry CountyHenry County: 5.1 %5.1Marion CountyMarion County: 5.1 %5.1Lawrence CountyLawrence County: 5 %5Logan CountyLogan County: 5 %5Marshall CountyMarshall County: 5 %5McDonough CountyMcDonough County: 5 %5Stark CountyStark County: 5 %5White CountyWhite County: 5 %5Champaign CountyChampaign County: 4.9 %4.9Fayette CountyFayette County: 4.9 %4.9Saline CountySaline County: 4.9 %4.9St. Clair CountySt. Clair County: 4.9 %4.9Whiteside CountyWhiteside County: 4.9 %4.9Cass CountyCass County: 4.8 %4.8Clark CountyClark County: 4.8 %4.8Hamilton CountyHamilton County: 4.8 %4.8Iroquois CountyIroquois County: 4.8 %4.8Macoupin CountyMacoupin County: 4.8 %4.8
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesAugust 2025 (%)Change on August 2024
1Alexander County7.8+0.9 pts
2Pulaski County6.6-0.6 pts
3Pope County6.3+0.7 pts
4Hardin County6.2+0.9 pts
5Macon County6.1+0.2 pts
5Vermilion County6.1-0.4 pts
7Kankakee County5.6-0.1 pts
7Knox County5.6+0.4 pts
7LaSalle County5.6+0.1 pts
7Winnebago County5.60 pts
11Gallatin County5.4+0.3 pts
11Johnson County5.4-0.4 pts
11Peoria County5.40 pts
11Rock Island County5.4-0.1 pts
15Boone County5.2-0.3 pts
15Franklin County5.2-0.4 pts
15Jackson County5.20 pts
15Jefferson County5.2+0.2 pts
15Perry County5.2+0.1 pts
20Bureau County5.1-0.2 pts
20Calhoun County5.1+0.6 pts
20Clay County5.10 pts
20Henry County5.1+0.1 pts
20Marion County5.1-0.1 pts
25Lawrence County5-2.3 pts
25Logan County5-0.1 pts
25Marshall County5+0.3 pts
25McDonough County5+0.3 pts
25Stark County5+0.1 pts
25White County5+0.4 pts
31Champaign County4.9-0.2 pts
31Fayette County4.9+0.1 pts
31Saline County4.9+0.3 pts
31St. Clair County4.9-0.1 pts
31Whiteside County4.9+0.2 pts
36Cass County4.80 pts
36Clark County4.80 pts
36Hamilton County4.8+0.3 pts
36Iroquois County4.8+0.1 pts
36Macoupin County4.8+0.4 pts
36Mason County4.8+0.1 pts
36Mercer County4.8-0.1 pts
36Pike County4.8+0.2 pts
36Wayne County4.8+0.8 pts
45Carroll County4.7+0.4 pts
45Cook County4.7-1.3 pts
45DeKalb County4.7-0.1 pts
45Ford County4.7+0.1 pts
45Kane County4.7-0.1 pts
45Montgomery County4.7+0.2 pts
45Putnam County4.70 pts
45Sangamon County4.7+0.3 pts
45Warren County4.7-0.1 pts
54Edwards County4.6+0.1 pts
54Fulton County4.6-0.1 pts
54Lake County4.6-0.2 pts
54Lee County4.6-0.2 pts
54Massac County4.6+0.2 pts
54Ogle County4.6+0.1 pts
54Tazewell County4.6+0.1 pts
61Bond County4.5-0.4 pts
61Kendall County4.5-0.1 pts
61Schuyler County4.5-0.3 pts
61Stephenson County4.5-0.2 pts
61Union County4.5+0.2 pts
61Williamson County4.5-0.2 pts
67Christian County4.4+0.2 pts
67Madison County4.4-0.1 pts
67Scott County4.40 pts
70Coles County4.30 pts
70Crawford County4.3-0.9 pts
70McLean County4.30 pts
70Will County4.3-1.2 pts
74Edgar County4.2-0.2 pts
74Livingston County4.2+0.1 pts
74Morgan County4.2-0.3 pts
74Moultrie County4.2+0.3 pts
74Piatt County4.2+0.4 pts
74Randolph County4.2-0.1 pts
74Wabash County4.2-0.3 pts
81Grundy County4.1-1.5 pts
81Hancock County4.10 pts
81Henderson County4.10 pts
81Richland County4.1-0.6 pts
85Douglas County40 pts
85Jersey County4-0.2 pts
85Menard County40 pts
85Shelby County4+0.2 pts
89Greene County3.9+0.1 pts
89Woodford County3.9+0.1 pts
91De Witt County3.8-0.4 pts
91DuPage County3.8-1 pts
91Jasper County3.80 pts
94Adams County3.70 pts
94Effingham County3.7-0.2 pts
94McHenry County3.7-1 pts
97Jo Daviess County3.6-0.3 pts
98Clinton County3.5-0.1 pts
98Cumberland County3.5-0.1 pts
98Washington County3.5-0.1 pts
101Monroe County3.30 pts
102Brown County3.2-0.1 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 Illinois by unemployment rate using official data, and cite the source.
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Questions

Which county has the highest unemployment rate?

Alexander County, with 7.8% in August 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Brown County, with 3.2% in August 2025.

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 Illinois: more rankings