Counties in Minnesota by unemployment rate

Clearwater County had the highest unemployment rate of 87 counties in March 2026, at 13.7%. Rock County had the lowest, at 3.4%. The median was 5.5% and the figure for Minnesota was 4.5%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Lowest3.4Rock County
Median5.587 counties
Minnesota4.5History

Top 40 counties, March 2026

CSVChart (SVG)

Clearwater CountyClearwater County: 13.7 %13.7Kanabec CountyKanabec County: 12.2 %12.2Pine CountyPine County: 10.9 %10.9Cass CountyCass County: 9.9 %9.9Aitkin CountyAitkin County: 9.7 %9.7Mille Lacs CountyMille Lacs County: 9.3 %9.3Morrison CountyMorrison County: 9.1 %9.1Wadena CountyWadena County: 9.1 %9.1Marshall CountyMarshall County: 9 %9Le Sueur CountyLe Sueur County: 8.2 %8.2Itasca CountyItasca County: 8.1 %8.1Pennington CountyPennington County: 8 %8Red Lake CountyRed Lake County: 8 %8Hubbard CountyHubbard County: 7.9 %7.9Mahnomen CountyMahnomen County: 7.7 %7.7Renville CountyRenville County: 7.7 %7.7Todd CountyTodd County: 7.7 %7.7Grant CountyGrant County: 7.1 %7.1Isanti CountyIsanti County: 7.1 %7.1Lincoln CountyLincoln County: 7.1 %7.1Cook CountyCook County: 7 %7Murray CountyMurray County: 7 %7Sibley CountySibley County: 7 %7Crow Wing CountyCrow Wing County: 6.9 %6.9Otter Tail CountyOtter Tail County: 6.9 %6.9Becker CountyBecker County: 6.7 %6.7Carlton CountyCarlton County: 6.7 %6.7Benton CountyBenton County: 6.6 %6.6Pipestone CountyPipestone County: 6.4 %6.4Beltrami CountyBeltrami County: 6.3 %6.3Koochiching CountyKoochiching County: 6.3 %6.3Meeker CountyMeeker County: 6.3 %6.3Big Stone CountyBig Stone County: 6.2 %6.2Faribault CountyFaribault County: 6.2 %6.2Chisago CountyChisago County: 6 %6Waseca CountyWaseca County: 6 %6Kandiyohi CountyKandiyohi County: 5.7 %5.7McLeod CountyMcLeod County: 5.7 %5.7Sherburne CountySherburne County: 5.7 %5.7Steele CountySteele County: 5.7 %5.7
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesMarch 2026 (%)Change on March 2025
1Clearwater County13.7+1.4 pts
2Kanabec County12.2+2 pts
3Pine County10.9+1.3 pts
4Cass County9.9+1.5 pts
5Aitkin County9.7+1.4 pts
6Mille Lacs County9.3+1.4 pts
7Morrison County9.1+2 pts
7Wadena County9.1+1.3 pts
9Marshall County9+1.7 pts
10Le Sueur County8.2+1.3 pts
11Itasca County8.1+1 pts
12Pennington County8+1.3 pts
12Red Lake County8+0.7 pts
14Hubbard County7.9+0.6 pts
15Mahnomen County7.7+0.9 pts
15Renville County7.7+0.7 pts
15Todd County7.7+1.3 pts
18Grant County7.1+0.8 pts
18Isanti County7.1+0.8 pts
18Lincoln County7.1+1.2 pts
21Cook County7+1.3 pts
21Murray County7+0.9 pts
21Sibley County7+1.3 pts
24Crow Wing County6.9+1 pts
24Otter Tail County6.9+1.1 pts
26Becker County6.7+1.2 pts
26Carlton County6.7+0.6 pts
28Benton County6.6+1.2 pts
29Pipestone County6.4+0.6 pts
30Beltrami County6.3+0.8 pts
30Koochiching County6.3+0.9 pts
30Meeker County6.3+0.4 pts
33Big Stone County6.2+1.1 pts
33Faribault County6.2+1 pts
35Chisago County6+0.9 pts
35Waseca County6+0.5 pts
37Kandiyohi County5.7+1 pts
37McLeod County5.7+0.7 pts
37Sherburne County5.7+1.2 pts
37Steele County5.7+0.4 pts
41Brown County5.5+0.7 pts
41Chippewa County5.5+1 pts
41Dodge County5.5+0.9 pts
41Lake County5.5+0.8 pts
41Pope County5.5+1 pts
41St. Louis County5.5+0.8 pts
41Yellow Medicine County5.5+0.9 pts
48Kittson County5.4+1.5 pts
48Norman County5.4+0.7 pts
50Swift County5.3+0.8 pts
50Watonwan County5.3+0.9 pts
50Wright County5.3+1 pts
53Goodhue County5.2+1.1 pts
53Lake of the Woods County5.2+0.5 pts
53Stearns County5.2+0.9 pts
56Douglas County5.1+1 pts
56Fillmore County5.1+0.7 pts
58Freeborn County5+0.8 pts
58Jackson County5+0.9 pts
58Polk County5+0.6 pts
61Lyon County4.9+0.7 pts
62Cottonwood County4.8+0.3 pts
62Martin County4.8+0.6 pts
62Redwood County4.8+0.7 pts
62Rice County4.8+0.6 pts
62Wabasha County4.8+0.4 pts
67Anoka County4.7+0.8 pts
67Lac qui Parle County4.7+0.9 pts
69Mower County4.6+0.7 pts
70Clay County4.5+1 pts
70Houston County4.5+0.8 pts
72Ramsey County4.4+0.8 pts
72Roseau County4.4-0.4 pts
72Traverse County4.4+0.8 pts
75Dakota County4.3+0.8 pts
75Wilkin County4.3+0.3 pts
77Blue Earth County4.2+0.8 pts
77Scott County4.2+0.8 pts
77Washington County4.2+0.8 pts
80Hennepin County4.1+0.7 pts
80Stevens County4.1+0.5 pts
82Carver County4+0.6 pts
82Nicollet County4+0.5 pts
84Olmsted County3.8+0.5 pts
84Winona County3.8+0.5 pts
86Nobles County3.7+0.4 pts
87Rock County3.4+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?

Clearwater County, with 13.7% in March 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Rock County, with 3.4% in March 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