Counties in Nebraska by unemployment rate

Dawson County had the highest unemployment rate of 93 counties in April 2026, at 19.9%. Wheeler County had the lowest, at 1.5%. The median was 2.1% and the figure for Nebraska was 3%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest19.9Dawson County
Median2.193 counties
Nebraska3History

Top 40 counties, April 2026

CSVChart (SVG)

Dawson CountyDawson County: 19.9 %19.9Banner CountyBanner County: 4.5 %4.5Hooker CountyHooker County: 4.2 %4.2Logan CountyLogan County: 4.2 %4.2McPherson CountyMcPherson County: 4 %4Thomas CountyThomas County: 4 %4Loup CountyLoup County: 3.7 %3.7Gosper CountyGosper County: 3.6 %3.6Johnson CountyJohnson County: 3.1 %3.1Keya Paha CountyKeya Paha County: 3.1 %3.1Arthur CountyArthur County: 3 %3Deuel CountyDeuel County: 2.9 %2.9Saline CountySaline County: 2.9 %2.9Scotts Bluff CountyScotts Bluff County: 2.9 %2.9Burt CountyBurt County: 2.8 %2.8Douglas CountyDouglas County: 2.8 %2.8Pawnee CountyPawnee County: 2.8 %2.8Thurston CountyThurston County: 2.8 %2.8Garden CountyGarden County: 2.7 %2.7Hall CountyHall County: 2.7 %2.7Hitchcock CountyHitchcock County: 2.7 %2.7Box Butte CountyBox Butte County: 2.6 %2.6Dakota CountyDakota County: 2.6 %2.6Frontier CountyFrontier County: 2.6 %2.6Hayes CountyHayes County: 2.6 %2.6Dawes CountyDawes County: 2.5 %2.5Jefferson CountyJefferson County: 2.5 %2.5Morrill CountyMorrill County: 2.5 %2.5Nemaha CountyNemaha County: 2.5 %2.5Cass CountyCass County: 2.4 %2.4Cheyenne CountyCheyenne County: 2.4 %2.4Dodge CountyDodge County: 2.4 %2.4Greeley CountyGreeley County: 2.4 %2.4Lancaster CountyLancaster County: 2.4 %2.4Sarpy CountySarpy County: 2.4 %2.4Sherman CountySherman County: 2.4 %2.4Sioux CountySioux County: 2.4 %2.4Adams CountyAdams County: 2.2 %2.2Clay CountyClay County: 2.2 %2.2Colfax CountyColfax County: 2.2 %2.2
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesApril 2026 (%)Change on April 2025
1Dawson County19.9+17.3 pts
2Banner County4.5+1.7 pts
3Hooker County4.2-1.3 pts
3Logan County4.2+1.6 pts
5McPherson County4-0.8 pts
5Thomas County40 pts
7Loup County3.7-0.8 pts
8Gosper County3.6+0.8 pts
9Johnson County3.1-0.7 pts
9Keya Paha County3.10 pts
11Arthur County3-0.8 pts
12Deuel County2.9+0.1 pts
12Saline County2.9-0.1 pts
12Scotts Bluff County2.9-0.3 pts
15Burt County2.8-0.6 pts
15Douglas County2.8-0.4 pts
15Pawnee County2.8-0.3 pts
15Thurston County2.8-0.4 pts
19Garden County2.7-0.6 pts
19Hall County2.7-0.4 pts
19Hitchcock County2.7+0.5 pts
22Box Butte County2.6-0.2 pts
22Dakota County2.6-0.3 pts
22Frontier County2.6-0.2 pts
22Hayes County2.6+0.4 pts
26Dawes County2.5-0.1 pts
26Jefferson County2.5-0.5 pts
26Morrill County2.5+0.1 pts
26Nemaha County2.5-0.7 pts
30Cass County2.4-0.5 pts
30Cheyenne County2.4-0.2 pts
30Dodge County2.4-0.5 pts
30Greeley County2.4-0.8 pts
30Lancaster County2.4-0.3 pts
30Sarpy County2.4-0.3 pts
30Sherman County2.4-0.6 pts
30Sioux County2.4-0.3 pts
38Adams County2.2-0.3 pts
38Clay County2.2-0.2 pts
38Colfax County2.2-0.5 pts
38Dixon County2.2-0.1 pts
38Franklin County2.2-0.6 pts
38Gage County2.2-0.5 pts
38Keith County2.20 pts
38Polk County2.2-0.2 pts
38Wayne County2.2-0.4 pts
47Custer County2.1-0.2 pts
47Grant County2.1-0.6 pts
47Knox County2.1-0.7 pts
47Madison County2.1-0.4 pts
47Otoe County2.1-0.5 pts
47Valley County2.1-0.8 pts
53Boyd County2-0.8 pts
53Buffalo County2-0.2 pts
53Chase County2-0.8 pts
53Fillmore County2-0.1 pts
53Howard County2-0.7 pts
53Kearney County2-0.3 pts
53Lincoln County2-0.6 pts
53Merrick County20 pts
53Nuckolls County2-0.3 pts
53Perkins County2-0.3 pts
53Platte County2-0.6 pts
53Red Willow County2-0.2 pts
53Seward County2-0.4 pts
53Sheridan County20 pts
53Stanton County2-0.5 pts
53Thayer County2-0.3 pts
53Washington County2-0.5 pts
53Webster County2-0.5 pts
71Brown County1.9-0.1 pts
71Butler County1.9-0.5 pts
71Furnas County1.9-0.9 pts
71Kimball County1.9-0.5 pts
71Richardson County1.9-1 pts
71Saunders County1.9-0.3 pts
71York County1.9-0.6 pts
78Phelps County1.8-0.5 pts
78Pierce County1.8-0.4 pts
80Antelope County1.7-0.6 pts
80Blaine County1.7-1.9 pts
80Boone County1.7-0.3 pts
80Cedar County1.7-0.6 pts
80Garfield County1.7-0.9 pts
80Hamilton County1.7-0.5 pts
80Harlan County1.7-0.6 pts
87Cherry County1.6-0.5 pts
87Dundy County1.6-0.4 pts
87Holt County1.6-0.5 pts
87Nance County1.6-1.1 pts
87Rock County1.6-0.6 pts
92Cuming County1.5-0.5 pts
92Wheeler County1.5-1.8 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?

Dawson County, with 19.9% in April 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Wheeler County, with 1.5% in April 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 Nebraska: more rankings