Counties in Minnesota by unemployment rate

Clearwater County had the highest unemployment rate of 87 counties in February 2026, at 13%. Rock County had the lowest, at 4.1%. The median was 5.9% and the figure for Minnesota was 4.5%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Lowest4.1Rock County
Median5.987 counties
Minnesota4.5History

Top 40 counties, February 2026

CSVChart (SVG)

Clearwater CountyClearwater County: 13 %13Kanabec CountyKanabec County: 12.3 %12.3Pine CountyPine County: 11.2 %11.2Cass CountyCass County: 10.2 %10.2Aitkin CountyAitkin County: 9.6 %9.6Mille Lacs CountyMille Lacs County: 9.5 %9.5Pennington CountyPennington County: 9.5 %9.5Marshall CountyMarshall County: 9.4 %9.4Morrison CountyMorrison County: 9.2 %9.2Wadena CountyWadena County: 9.2 %9.2Red Lake CountyRed Lake County: 8.9 %8.9Hubbard CountyHubbard County: 8.7 %8.7Le Sueur CountyLe Sueur County: 8.4 %8.4Itasca CountyItasca County: 8.3 %8.3Mahnomen CountyMahnomen County: 8.1 %8.1Murray CountyMurray County: 8.1 %8.1Renville CountyRenville County: 7.8 %7.8Todd CountyTodd County: 7.8 %7.8Cook CountyCook County: 7.7 %7.7Grant CountyGrant County: 7.4 %7.4Isanti CountyIsanti County: 7.4 %7.4Crow Wing CountyCrow Wing County: 7.3 %7.3Otter Tail CountyOtter Tail County: 7.2 %7.2Sibley CountySibley County: 7.2 %7.2Carlton CountyCarlton County: 7 %7Benton CountyBenton County: 6.9 %6.9Lincoln CountyLincoln County: 6.9 %6.9Pipestone CountyPipestone County: 6.9 %6.9Becker CountyBecker County: 6.8 %6.8Big Stone CountyBig Stone County: 6.8 %6.8Meeker CountyMeeker County: 6.7 %6.7Beltrami CountyBeltrami County: 6.6 %6.6Koochiching CountyKoochiching County: 6.6 %6.6Faribault CountyFaribault County: 6.5 %6.5Waseca CountyWaseca County: 6.5 %6.5Chisago CountyChisago County: 6.4 %6.4Yellow Medicine CountyYellow Medicine County: 6.2 %6.2Kandiyohi CountyKandiyohi County: 6.1 %6.1Lake CountyLake County: 6.1 %6.1Steele CountySteele County: 6.1 %6.1
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesFebruary 2026 (%)Change on February 2025
1Clearwater County13+0.7 pts
2Kanabec County12.3+2.2 pts
3Pine County11.2+1.4 pts
4Cass County10.2+1.8 pts
5Aitkin County9.6+1.5 pts
6Mille Lacs County9.5+1.5 pts
6Pennington County9.5+2.8 pts
8Marshall County9.4+2 pts
9Morrison County9.2+1.7 pts
9Wadena County9.2+1.4 pts
11Red Lake County8.9+1.7 pts
12Hubbard County8.7+1.2 pts
13Le Sueur County8.4+1.6 pts
14Itasca County8.3+1.2 pts
15Mahnomen County8.1+1.3 pts
15Murray County8.1+1.8 pts
17Renville County7.8+1.4 pts
17Todd County7.8+1.5 pts
19Cook County7.7+1.7 pts
20Grant County7.4+1.1 pts
20Isanti County7.4+1 pts
22Crow Wing County7.3+1.3 pts
23Otter Tail County7.2+1.3 pts
23Sibley County7.2+1.4 pts
25Carlton County7+1 pts
26Benton County6.9+1.3 pts
26Lincoln County6.9+1.2 pts
26Pipestone County6.9+1.3 pts
29Becker County6.8+1.1 pts
29Big Stone County6.8+1.4 pts
31Meeker County6.7+0.8 pts
32Beltrami County6.6+1 pts
32Koochiching County6.6+1.6 pts
34Faribault County6.5+1.1 pts
34Waseca County6.5+1.2 pts
36Chisago County6.4+1.2 pts
37Yellow Medicine County6.2+1.5 pts
38Kandiyohi County6.1+1.2 pts
38Lake County6.1+1.1 pts
38Steele County6.1+1.3 pts
41Brown County6+1 pts
41McLeod County6+1 pts
41St. Louis County6+1.3 pts
44Sherburne County5.9+1.2 pts
45Chippewa County5.8+1.1 pts
45Dodge County5.8+1.2 pts
45Swift County5.8+1.1 pts
48Pope County5.7+0.7 pts
49Fillmore County5.6+0.8 pts
49Lake of the Woods County5.6+0.8 pts
49Stearns County5.6+1.2 pts
49Watonwan County5.6+1 pts
49Wright County5.6+1.2 pts
54Douglas County5.5+1.3 pts
54Lyon County5.5+1.1 pts
56Goodhue County5.4+1 pts
56Norman County5.4+0.5 pts
56Wabasha County5.4+0.9 pts
59Cottonwood County5.3+0.9 pts
59Freeborn County5.3+1.3 pts
59Kittson County5.3+0.6 pts
59Polk County5.3+0.8 pts
59Redwood County5.3+0.9 pts
59Rice County5.3+1.1 pts
65Jackson County5.2+1.1 pts
65Martin County5.2+1 pts
65Traverse County5.2+1.6 pts
68Anoka County5+1.1 pts
68Lac qui Parle County5+1.1 pts
70Clay County4.9+1.2 pts
70Mower County4.9+1.1 pts
70Roseau County4.9-0.3 pts
70Wilkin County4.9+0.8 pts
74Houston County4.8+0.8 pts
75Dakota County4.7+1.2 pts
75Ramsey County4.7+1.1 pts
77Scott County4.6+1.2 pts
78Blue Earth County4.5+1.1 pts
78Washington County4.5+1.2 pts
80Carver County4.4+1 pts
80Hennepin County4.4+1.1 pts
80Stevens County4.4+0.9 pts
83Nicollet County4.3+0.8 pts
83Winona County4.3+1 pts
85Nobles County4.1+0.8 pts
85Olmsted County4.1+0.7 pts
85Rock County4.1+1.2 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.

Use this data in your AI agent

Invokely serves this figure to AI assistants through MCP and to code through a REST API, with the source and citation attached. Ask your assistant:

Rank Counties in Minnesota by unemployment rate using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"unemployment_rate","level":"province","within":"Minnesota","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=unemployment_rate&level=province&within=Minnesota&limit=10

Connect Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor in one step. The trial answers 25 calls a day without an account.

Questions

Which county has the highest unemployment rate?

Clearwater County, with 13% in February 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Rock County, with 4.1% 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 Minnesota: more rankings