Counties in Iowa by unemployment rate

Marshall County had the highest unemployment rate of 99 counties in June 2026, at 4.9%. Adair County had the lowest, at 1.9%. The median was 2.9% and the figure for Iowa was 3.2%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest4.9Marshall County
Lowest1.9Adair County
Median2.999 counties
Iowa3.2History

Top 40 counties, June 2026

CSVChart (SVG)

Marshall CountyMarshall County: 4.9 %4.9Black Hawk CountyBlack Hawk County: 4.4 %4.4Emmet CountyEmmet County: 4 %4Tama CountyTama County: 4 %4Wapello CountyWapello County: 4 %4Scott CountyScott County: 3.9 %3.9Bremer CountyBremer County: 3.8 %3.8Des Moines CountyDes Moines County: 3.8 %3.8Lucas CountyLucas County: 3.8 %3.8Clinton CountyClinton County: 3.7 %3.7Crawford CountyCrawford County: 3.7 %3.7Greene CountyGreene County: 3.7 %3.7Butler CountyButler County: 3.6 %3.6Webster CountyWebster County: 3.6 %3.6Allamakee CountyAllamakee County: 3.5 %3.5Buchanan CountyBuchanan County: 3.5 %3.5Franklin CountyFranklin County: 3.5 %3.5Pottawattamie CountyPottawattamie County: 3.5 %3.5Appanoose CountyAppanoose County: 3.4 %3.4Decatur CountyDecatur County: 3.4 %3.4Jackson CountyJackson County: 3.4 %3.4Lee CountyLee County: 3.4 %3.4Muscatine CountyMuscatine County: 3.4 %3.4Fayette CountyFayette County: 3.3 %3.3Floyd CountyFloyd County: 3.3 %3.3Henry CountyHenry County: 3.3 %3.3Jefferson CountyJefferson County: 3.3 %3.3Linn CountyLinn County: 3.3 %3.3Polk CountyPolk County: 3.3 %3.3Woodbury CountyWoodbury County: 3.3 %3.3Cerro Gordo CountyCerro Gordo County: 3.2 %3.2Louisa CountyLouisa County: 3.2 %3.2Monroe CountyMonroe County: 3.2 %3.2Story CountyStory County: 3.2 %3.2Davis CountyDavis County: 3.1 %3.1Dubuque CountyDubuque County: 3.1 %3.1Jasper CountyJasper County: 3.1 %3.1Jones CountyJones County: 3.1 %3.1Buena Vista CountyBuena Vista County: 3 %3Grundy CountyGrundy County: 3 %3
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesJune 2026 (%)Change on June 2025
1Marshall County4.9-0.9 pts
2Black Hawk County4.4+0.1 pts
3Emmet County4+0.2 pts
3Tama County4-0.2 pts
3Wapello County4-0.2 pts
6Scott County3.9-0.6 pts
7Bremer County3.8+0.6 pts
7Des Moines County3.8-0.3 pts
7Lucas County3.8-0.1 pts
10Clinton County3.7-0.9 pts
10Crawford County3.7-0.5 pts
10Greene County3.7-0.7 pts
13Butler County3.6-0.1 pts
13Webster County3.6-0.3 pts
15Allamakee County3.5+0.1 pts
15Buchanan County3.5+0.1 pts
15Franklin County3.5-0.3 pts
15Pottawattamie County3.5-0.5 pts
19Appanoose County3.4-0.4 pts
19Decatur County3.4-0.1 pts
19Jackson County3.4-0.2 pts
19Lee County3.4-0.3 pts
19Muscatine County3.4-0.2 pts
24Fayette County3.3-0.3 pts
24Floyd County3.3-0.9 pts
24Henry County3.3-0.4 pts
24Jefferson County3.3-0.5 pts
24Linn County3.3-0.5 pts
24Polk County3.3-0.4 pts
24Woodbury County3.3-0.2 pts
31Cerro Gordo County3.2-0.2 pts
31Louisa County3.2-0.5 pts
31Monroe County3.2-0.9 pts
31Story County3.2+0.2 pts
35Davis County3.1-0.1 pts
35Dubuque County3.1-0.3 pts
35Jasper County3.1-0.5 pts
35Jones County3.1-0.9 pts
39Buena Vista County3-0.3 pts
39Grundy County3-0.1 pts
39Pocahontas County3-0.6 pts
39Union County3-0.6 pts
39Van Buren County3-0.5 pts
44Benton County2.9-0.2 pts
44Boone County2.9-0.5 pts
44Clayton County2.9-0.6 pts
44Dallas County2.9-0.3 pts
44Fremont County2.9-0.5 pts
44Iowa County2.9-0.5 pts
44Mills County2.9-1 pts
44Monona County2.9+0.2 pts
44Warren County2.9-0.2 pts
44Winnebago County2.9-0.5 pts
44Wright County2.9-0.5 pts
55Calhoun County2.8-0.5 pts
55Cass County2.8-0.3 pts
55Cedar County2.8-0.2 pts
55Clay County2.8-0.4 pts
55Hardin County2.8-0.1 pts
55Humboldt County2.8-0.4 pts
55Johnson County2.8-0.1 pts
55Keokuk County2.8-0.6 pts
55Kossuth County2.80 pts
55Madison County2.8-0.4 pts
55Poweshiek County2.8-0.6 pts
55Sac County2.8-0.4 pts
67Clarke County2.7-0.2 pts
67Guthrie County2.7-0.7 pts
67Mahaska County2.7-0.5 pts
67Mitchell County2.70 pts
67Wayne County2.7-0.4 pts
72Delaware County2.6-0.1 pts
72Dickinson County2.6-0.2 pts
72Hamilton County2.6-0.4 pts
72Hancock County2.6-0.7 pts
72Harrison County2.6-0.1 pts
72Howard County2.6-0.2 pts
72Marion County2.60 pts
72Montgomery County2.6-0.2 pts
80Chickasaw County2.5-0.1 pts
80Ida County2.5-0.4 pts
80Palo Alto County2.50 pts
80Shelby County2.5-0.2 pts
80Winneshiek County2.5-0.5 pts
85Adams County2.4-0.4 pts
85Osceola County2.40 pts
85Page County2.4-0.4 pts
85Plymouth County2.4-0.2 pts
85Sioux County2.4+0.2 pts
85Washington County2.4-0.3 pts
91Carroll County2.3-0.1 pts
91Lyon County2.3-0.2 pts
91Ringgold County2.3-0.6 pts
91Taylor County2.3-0.3 pts
91Worth County2.3-0.5 pts
96O'Brien County2.2-0.5 pts
97Audubon County2.1-0.6 pts
97Cherokee County2.1-0.3 pts
99Adair County1.9-0.5 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 4.9% in June 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Adair County, with 1.9% 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 Iowa: more rankings