Counties in Iowa by unemployment rate

Marshall County had the highest unemployment rate of 99 counties in February 2026, at 7.8%. Taylor County had the lowest, at 2.2%. The median was 3.4% and the figure for Iowa was 3.4%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest7.8Marshall County
Lowest2.2Taylor County
Median3.499 counties
Iowa3.4History

Top 40 counties, February 2026

CSVChart (SVG)

Marshall CountyMarshall County: 7.8 %7.8Allamakee CountyAllamakee County: 6.1 %6.1Tama CountyTama County: 5.7 %5.7Crawford CountyCrawford County: 5.4 %5.4Iowa CountyIowa County: 5.4 %5.4Clayton CountyClayton County: 5.1 %5.1Jackson CountyJackson County: 4.6 %4.6Butler CountyButler County: 4.4 %4.4Clinton CountyClinton County: 4.4 %4.4Jones CountyJones County: 4.4 %4.4Benton CountyBenton County: 4.1 %4.1Fayette CountyFayette County: 4.1 %4.1Linn CountyLinn County: 4.1 %4.1Louisa CountyLouisa County: 4.1 %4.1Pottawattamie CountyPottawattamie County: 4.1 %4.1Des Moines CountyDes Moines County: 4 %4Howard CountyHoward County: 4 %4Muscatine CountyMuscatine County: 4 %4Scott CountyScott County: 4 %4Appanoose CountyAppanoose County: 3.9 %3.9Black Hawk CountyBlack Hawk County: 3.9 %3.9Floyd CountyFloyd County: 3.9 %3.9Franklin CountyFranklin County: 3.9 %3.9Lucas CountyLucas County: 3.9 %3.9Wapello CountyWapello County: 3.9 %3.9Emmet CountyEmmet County: 3.8 %3.8Lee CountyLee County: 3.8 %3.8Union CountyUnion County: 3.8 %3.8Winneshiek CountyWinneshiek County: 3.8 %3.8Woodbury CountyWoodbury County: 3.8 %3.8Buchanan CountyBuchanan County: 3.7 %3.7Dickinson CountyDickinson County: 3.7 %3.7Dubuque CountyDubuque County: 3.7 %3.7Madison CountyMadison County: 3.7 %3.7Delaware CountyDelaware County: 3.6 %3.6Guthrie CountyGuthrie County: 3.6 %3.6Jasper CountyJasper County: 3.6 %3.6Keokuk CountyKeokuk County: 3.6 %3.6Monona CountyMonona County: 3.6 %3.6Polk CountyPolk County: 3.6 %3.6
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesFebruary 2026 (%)Change on February 2025
1Marshall County7.8-0.3 pts
2Allamakee County6.1-0.1 pts
3Tama County5.7-0.6 pts
4Crawford County5.4-0.2 pts
4Iowa County5.4+1.1 pts
6Clayton County5.1-1.2 pts
7Jackson County4.6-0.5 pts
8Butler County4.4-0.5 pts
8Clinton County4.4-0.3 pts
8Jones County4.4-0.7 pts
11Benton County4.1+0.4 pts
11Fayette County4.1-0.5 pts
11Linn County4.1+0.2 pts
11Louisa County4.1-0.5 pts
11Pottawattamie County4.1+0.1 pts
16Des Moines County4-0.5 pts
16Howard County4-0.3 pts
16Muscatine County4-0.2 pts
16Scott County4-0.2 pts
20Appanoose County3.9-0.5 pts
20Black Hawk County3.9-0.4 pts
20Floyd County3.9-0.5 pts
20Franklin County3.90 pts
20Lucas County3.90 pts
20Wapello County3.9-0.4 pts
26Emmet County3.8-0.2 pts
26Lee County3.8-0.4 pts
26Union County3.8-0.1 pts
26Winneshiek County3.8-0.6 pts
26Woodbury County3.80 pts
31Buchanan County3.7-0.4 pts
31Dickinson County3.7-0.5 pts
31Dubuque County3.7-0.5 pts
31Madison County3.7-0.5 pts
35Delaware County3.6-1 pts
35Guthrie County3.6-0.9 pts
35Jasper County3.6-0.5 pts
35Keokuk County3.6-0.5 pts
35Monona County3.6-0.1 pts
35Polk County3.6-0.3 pts
35Webster County3.6-0.1 pts
42Bremer County3.5-0.1 pts
42Cedar County3.5-0.2 pts
42Clarke County3.5-0.4 pts
42Greene County3.50 pts
42Poweshiek County3.5-0.3 pts
42Wayne County3.5-0.2 pts
48Cass County3.4-0.4 pts
48Cerro Gordo County3.4-0.1 pts
48Grundy County3.4-0.3 pts
48Humboldt County3.4-0.3 pts
48Van Buren County3.4-0.4 pts
53Calhoun County3.3-0.2 pts
53Chickasaw County3.3-0.3 pts
53Decatur County3.3-0.5 pts
53Fremont County3.3-0.6 pts
53Henry County3.3-0.6 pts
53Ida County3.3-0.6 pts
53Pocahontas County3.3-0.5 pts
53Sac County3.3-0.5 pts
53Warren County3.3-0.4 pts
62Hardin County3.2-0.5 pts
62Jefferson County3.2-0.3 pts
62Mills County3.2-0.5 pts
62Monroe County3.2-1.1 pts
66Clay County3.1-0.4 pts
66Montgomery County3.1-0.1 pts
66Washington County3.1-0.4 pts
66Winnebago County3.1-0.4 pts
66Worth County3.1-0.3 pts
71Dallas County3-0.3 pts
71Davis County3-0.5 pts
71Hancock County3-0.4 pts
71Lyon County3-0.2 pts
71Shelby County3-0.1 pts
71Story County3+0.1 pts
77Boone County2.9-0.5 pts
77Harrison County2.9-0.2 pts
77Johnson County2.9+0.2 pts
77Marion County2.9-0.2 pts
77Page County2.9-0.3 pts
77Palo Alto County2.9-0.2 pts
77Wright County2.9-0.4 pts
84Adair County2.8-0.6 pts
84Adams County2.8-0.6 pts
84Buena Vista County2.8-0.2 pts
84Cherokee County2.8-0.5 pts
84Hamilton County2.8-0.3 pts
84Kossuth County2.8-0.7 pts
84Mitchell County2.8-0.5 pts
84Ringgold County2.8-0.5 pts
84Sioux County2.8-0.1 pts
93Audubon County2.7-0.5 pts
93Mahaska County2.7-0.3 pts
93Plymouth County2.70 pts
96Carroll County2.6-0.1 pts
96O'Brien County2.6-0.4 pts
98Osceola County2.5+0.1 pts
99Taylor County2.2-0.3 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?

Marshall County, with 7.8% in February 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Taylor County, with 2.2% in February 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 Iowa: more rankings