Counties in Illinois by unemployment rate

Edwards County had the highest unemployment rate of 102 counties in July 2026, at 7.2%. Monroe County had the lowest, at 2.5%. The median was 3.7% and the figure for Illinois was 4.9%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest7.2Edwards County
Lowest2.5Monroe County
Median3.7102 counties
Illinois4.9History

Top 40 counties, July 2026

CSVChart (SVG)

Edwards CountyEdwards County: 7.2 %7.2Alexander CountyAlexander County: 5.8 %5.8Pulaski CountyPulaski County: 5.5 %5.5Cook CountyCook County: 5.4 %5.4Pope CountyPope County: 5.3 %5.3Macon CountyMacon County: 4.9 %4.9Will CountyWill County: 4.9 %4.9Grundy CountyGrundy County: 4.7 %4.7Jefferson CountyJefferson County: 4.6 %4.6Vermilion CountyVermilion County: 4.6 %4.6DuPage CountyDuPage County: 4.5 %4.5Johnson CountyJohnson County: 4.4 %4.4McDonough CountyMcDonough County: 4.4 %4.4McHenry CountyMcHenry County: 4.4 %4.4Perry CountyPerry County: 4.4 %4.4Winnebago CountyWinnebago County: 4.4 %4.4Hardin CountyHardin County: 4.3 %4.3Knox CountyKnox County: 4.3 %4.3Boone CountyBoone County: 4.2 %4.2Franklin CountyFranklin County: 4.2 %4.2Jackson CountyJackson County: 4.2 %4.2LaSalle CountyLaSalle County: 4.2 %4.2Marion CountyMarion County: 4.2 %4.2Peoria CountyPeoria County: 4.2 %4.2Wayne CountyWayne County: 4.2 %4.2Kankakee CountyKankakee County: 4.1 %4.1Fayette CountyFayette County: 4 %4Gallatin CountyGallatin County: 4 %4Lawrence CountyLawrence County: 4 %4Saline CountySaline County: 4 %4Clark CountyClark County: 3.9 %3.9Fulton CountyFulton County: 3.9 %3.9Marshall CountyMarshall County: 3.9 %3.9Wabash CountyWabash County: 3.9 %3.9Bond CountyBond County: 3.8 %3.8Bureau CountyBureau County: 3.8 %3.8Clay CountyClay County: 3.8 %3.8Logan CountyLogan County: 3.8 %3.8Massac CountyMassac County: 3.8 %3.8Putnam CountyPutnam County: 3.8 %3.8
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesJuly 2026 (%)Change on July 2025
1Edwards County7.2+2.8 pts
2Alexander County5.8-2.3 pts
3Pulaski County5.5-1.3 pts
4Cook County5.4+0.4 pts
5Pope County5.3-1 pts
6Macon County4.9-1.2 pts
6Will County4.9+0.3 pts
8Grundy County4.7+0.1 pts
9Jefferson County4.6-0.6 pts
9Vermilion County4.6-1.5 pts
11DuPage County4.5+0.4 pts
12Johnson County4.4-0.9 pts
12McDonough County4.4-1.4 pts
12McHenry County4.4+0.3 pts
12Perry County4.4-1.1 pts
12Winnebago County4.4-1.1 pts
17Hardin County4.3-1.9 pts
17Knox County4.3-0.9 pts
19Boone County4.2-1.1 pts
19Franklin County4.2-1.1 pts
19Jackson County4.2-1 pts
19LaSalle County4.2-1.2 pts
19Marion County4.2-0.9 pts
19Peoria County4.2-1.1 pts
19Wayne County4.2-0.4 pts
26Kankakee County4.1-1.1 pts
27Fayette County4-0.8 pts
27Gallatin County4-1 pts
27Lawrence County4-0.9 pts
27Saline County4-1 pts
31Clark County3.9-0.7 pts
31Fulton County3.9-0.9 pts
31Marshall County3.9-0.9 pts
31Wabash County3.9-0.4 pts
35Bond County3.8-0.9 pts
35Bureau County3.8-1.2 pts
35Clay County3.8-1.5 pts
35Logan County3.8-1.1 pts
35Massac County3.8-0.9 pts
35Putnam County3.8-0.7 pts
35St. Clair County3.8-1 pts
35Whiteside County3.8-1 pts
43Calhoun County3.7-1 pts
43Champaign County3.7-1.1 pts
43DeKalb County3.7-1 pts
43Hamilton County3.7-1.2 pts
43Iroquois County3.7-1 pts
43Kane County3.7-0.9 pts
43Kendall County3.7-0.7 pts
43Lee County3.7-1 pts
43Macoupin County3.7-1 pts
43Rock Island County3.7-1.4 pts
43Schuyler County3.7-0.9 pts
43Stark County3.7-1.5 pts
43Union County3.7-0.9 pts
43Warren County3.7-1.1 pts
43White County3.7-1.1 pts
58Edgar County3.6-0.6 pts
58Ford County3.6-1.2 pts
58Lake County3.6-0.9 pts
58Mason County3.6-1.2 pts
58Montgomery County3.6-1.1 pts
58Ogle County3.6-0.9 pts
58Sangamon County3.6-1 pts
58Tazewell County3.6-1 pts
66Christian County3.5-1 pts
66Henry County3.5-1.9 pts
66Madison County3.5-0.9 pts
66Williamson County3.5-1 pts
70Cass County3.4-1.3 pts
70Coles County3.4-1.1 pts
70Crawford County3.4-0.8 pts
70Mercer County3.4-1.2 pts
70Morgan County3.4-0.8 pts
70Pike County3.4-1.5 pts
70Richland County3.4-0.8 pts
77Jersey County3.3-0.8 pts
77McLean County3.3-1.1 pts
77Menard County3.3-0.7 pts
77Stephenson County3.3-1.2 pts
81Carroll County3.2-1.4 pts
81Livingston County3.2-0.9 pts
81Randolph County3.2-1.1 pts
84De Witt County3.1-0.7 pts
84Douglas County3.1-1 pts
84Shelby County3.1-1 pts
87Greene County3-0.9 pts
87Hancock County3-0.8 pts
87Piatt County3-1 pts
87Washington County3-0.7 pts
91Effingham County2.9-0.7 pts
91Henderson County2.9-0.8 pts
91Jasper County2.9-0.9 pts
91Moultrie County2.9-1.3 pts
91Scott County2.9-1.4 pts
91Woodford County2.9-0.9 pts
97Adams County2.7-1 pts
97Cumberland County2.7-0.9 pts
97Jo Daviess County2.7-0.7 pts
100Clinton County2.6-1 pts
101Brown County2.5-1 pts
101Monroe County2.5-0.8 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 7.2% in July 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Monroe County, with 2.5% in July 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