Counties in Illinois by unemployment rate

Edwards County had the highest unemployment rate of 102 counties in June 2026, at 8.6%. Monroe County had the lowest, at 3%. The median was 4.4% and the figure for Illinois was 5.1%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest8.6Edwards County
Median4.4102 counties
Illinois5.1History

Top 40 counties, June 2026

CSVChart (SVG)

Edwards CountyEdwards County: 8.6 %8.6Alexander CountyAlexander County: 6.5 %6.5Pulaski CountyPulaski County: 6.2 %6.2Pope CountyPope County: 5.9 %5.9Cook CountyCook County: 5.8 %5.8Macon CountyMacon County: 5.8 %5.8Will CountyWill County: 5.4 %5.4Jackson CountyJackson County: 5.3 %5.3Grundy CountyGrundy County: 5.2 %5.2Jefferson CountyJefferson County: 5.2 %5.2McDonough CountyMcDonough County: 5.2 %5.2Vermilion CountyVermilion County: 5.2 %5.2Johnson CountyJohnson County: 5.1 %5.1Knox CountyKnox County: 5.1 %5.1Perry CountyPerry County: 5.1 %5.1Winnebago CountyWinnebago County: 5.1 %5.1Boone CountyBoone County: 5 %5Franklin CountyFranklin County: 5 %5Kankakee CountyKankakee County: 5 %5DuPage CountyDuPage County: 4.9 %4.9McHenry CountyMcHenry County: 4.9 %4.9Peoria CountyPeoria County: 4.9 %4.9LaSalle CountyLaSalle County: 4.8 %4.8Clark CountyClark County: 4.7 %4.7Fayette CountyFayette County: 4.7 %4.7Hardin CountyHardin County: 4.7 %4.7Marion CountyMarion County: 4.7 %4.7Wabash CountyWabash County: 4.7 %4.7Wayne CountyWayne County: 4.7 %4.7Champaign CountyChampaign County: 4.6 %4.6Gallatin CountyGallatin County: 4.6 %4.6Lawrence CountyLawrence County: 4.6 %4.6Massac CountyMassac County: 4.6 %4.6Saline CountySaline County: 4.6 %4.6Stark CountyStark County: 4.6 %4.6Bond CountyBond County: 4.5 %4.5Lee CountyLee County: 4.5 %4.5Logan CountyLogan County: 4.5 %4.5Marshall CountyMarshall County: 4.5 %4.5Rock Island CountyRock Island County: 4.5 %4.5
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesJune 2026 (%)Change on June 2025
1Edwards County8.6+4.7 pts
2Alexander County6.5-0.5 pts
3Pulaski County6.2+0.8 pts
4Pope County5.9+0.4 pts
5Cook County5.8+0.8 pts
5Macon County5.8+0.2 pts
7Will County5.4+0.7 pts
8Jackson County5.3+0.5 pts
9Grundy County5.2+0.6 pts
9Jefferson County5.2+0.7 pts
9McDonough County5.2+0.1 pts
9Vermilion County5.20 pts
13Johnson County5.1+0.3 pts
13Knox County5.1+0.4 pts
13Perry County5.1+0.4 pts
13Winnebago County5.1+0.1 pts
17Boone County5+0.2 pts
17Franklin County5+0.3 pts
17Kankakee County5+0.2 pts
20DuPage County4.9+0.7 pts
20McHenry County4.9+0.8 pts
20Peoria County4.9+0.1 pts
23LaSalle County4.80 pts
24Clark County4.7+0.6 pts
24Fayette County4.7+0.5 pts
24Hardin County4.7-0.9 pts
24Marion County4.7+0.3 pts
24Wabash County4.7+1 pts
24Wayne County4.7+0.8 pts
30Champaign County4.6+0.4 pts
30Gallatin County4.6+0.1 pts
30Lawrence County4.6+0.5 pts
30Massac County4.6+0.4 pts
30Saline County4.60 pts
30Stark County4.6-0.2 pts
36Bond County4.5+0.5 pts
36Lee County4.5+0.3 pts
36Logan County4.50 pts
36Marshall County4.5+0.1 pts
36Rock Island County4.5-0.1 pts
36White County4.5+0.1 pts
36Whiteside County4.5+0.2 pts
43Bureau County4.4+0.1 pts
43DeKalb County4.4+0.2 pts
43Fulton County4.4+0.2 pts
43Henry County4.4-0.2 pts
43Iroquois County4.4+0.3 pts
43Kane County4.4+0.3 pts
43Kendall County4.4+0.4 pts
43Sangamon County4.4+0.3 pts
43Schuyler County4.40 pts
43St. Clair County4.4+0.1 pts
53Ford County4.3+0.1 pts
53Lake County4.3+0.2 pts
53Macoupin County4.3+0.2 pts
53Montgomery County4.3+0.3 pts
53Putnam County4.3+0.3 pts
53Union County4.3+0.1 pts
53Warren County4.30 pts
60Hamilton County4.2+0.1 pts
60Mercer County4.2+0.1 pts
60Ogle County4.2+0.1 pts
60Tazewell County4.2+0.1 pts
60Williamson County4.2+0.1 pts
65Calhoun County4.1-0.3 pts
65Christian County4.1+0.1 pts
65Coles County4.1+0.2 pts
65Madison County4.1+0.2 pts
65Mason County4.1-0.1 pts
65Pike County4.10 pts
65Richland County4.1+0.5 pts
72Clay County4-0.5 pts
72Crawford County4+0.4 pts
72Edgar County4+0.3 pts
72McLean County4+0.2 pts
72Menard County4+0.4 pts
72Randolph County4+0.2 pts
78Carroll County3.9-0.2 pts
78Jersey County3.9+0.2 pts
78Morgan County3.9+0.2 pts
78Stephenson County3.9-0.1 pts
82Cass County3.8-0.2 pts
82De Witt County3.8+0.3 pts
84Douglas County3.7+0.1 pts
84Livingston County3.7+0.2 pts
84Scott County3.7-0.2 pts
84Shelby County3.7+0.2 pts
88Greene County3.6+0.2 pts
88Woodford County3.6+0.2 pts
90Hancock County3.5+0.1 pts
90Moultrie County3.5-0.1 pts
90Piatt County3.50 pts
90Washington County3.5+0.3 pts
94Effingham County3.4+0.2 pts
94Henderson County3.40 pts
96Adams County3.3+0.1 pts
97Clinton County3.2+0.2 pts
97Cumberland County3.2+0.1 pts
97Jasper County3.20 pts
97Jo Daviess County3.2+0.2 pts
101Brown County3+0.1 pts
101Monroe County30 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?

Edwards County, with 8.6% in June 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Monroe County, with 3% in June 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 Illinois: more rankings