Counties in North Carolina by unemployment rate

Edgecombe County had the highest unemployment rate of 100 counties in July 2026, at 5.5%. Currituck County had the lowest, at 2.8%. The median was 3.7% and the figure for North Carolina was 3.6%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Median3.7100 counties
North Carolina3.6History

Top 40 counties, July 2026

CSVChart (SVG)

Edgecombe CountyEdgecombe County: 5.5 %5.5Halifax CountyHalifax County: 5.5 %5.5Robeson CountyRobeson County: 5.4 %5.4Bladen CountyBladen County: 5.2 %5.2Bertie CountyBertie County: 5.1 %5.1Wilson CountyWilson County: 5 %5Hyde CountyHyde County: 4.9 %4.9Scotland CountyScotland County: 4.9 %4.9Washington CountyWashington County: 4.9 %4.9Northampton CountyNorthampton County: 4.8 %4.8Tyrrell CountyTyrrell County: 4.8 %4.8Warren CountyWarren County: 4.8 %4.8Anson CountyAnson County: 4.7 %4.7Cumberland CountyCumberland County: 4.7 %4.7Hoke CountyHoke County: 4.7 %4.7Nash CountyNash County: 4.7 %4.7Vance CountyVance County: 4.7 %4.7Cleveland CountyCleveland County: 4.4 %4.4Columbus CountyColumbus County: 4.4 %4.4Rutherford CountyRutherford County: 4.4 %4.4Guilford CountyGuilford County: 4.3 %4.3Hertford CountyHertford County: 4.3 %4.3Martin CountyMartin County: 4.3 %4.3Pitt CountyPitt County: 4.3 %4.3Montgomery CountyMontgomery County: 4.2 %4.2Onslow CountyOnslow County: 4.2 %4.2Brunswick CountyBrunswick County: 4.1 %4.1Cherokee CountyCherokee County: 4.1 %4.1Harnett CountyHarnett County: 4.1 %4.1Lenoir CountyLenoir County: 4.1 %4.1Perquimans CountyPerquimans County: 4.1 %4.1Sampson CountySampson County: 4.1 %4.1Wayne CountyWayne County: 4.1 %4.1Wilkes CountyWilkes County: 4.1 %4.1Jones CountyJones County: 4 %4McDowell CountyMcDowell County: 4 %4Richmond CountyRichmond County: 4 %4Rockingham CountyRockingham County: 4 %4Alleghany CountyAlleghany County: 3.9 %3.9Craven CountyCraven County: 3.9 %3.9
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesJuly 2026 (%)Change on July 2025
1Edgecombe County5.5-0.7 pts
1Halifax County5.5-0.6 pts
3Robeson County5.4-0.8 pts
4Bladen County5.2-1.1 pts
5Bertie County5.1-0.2 pts
6Wilson County5-1 pts
7Hyde County4.9+0.1 pts
7Scotland County4.9-1 pts
7Washington County4.9-0.2 pts
10Northampton County4.8-0.9 pts
10Tyrrell County4.8-0.3 pts
10Warren County4.8-0.5 pts
13Anson County4.7-0.2 pts
13Cumberland County4.7-0.6 pts
13Hoke County4.7-0.1 pts
13Nash County4.7-0.7 pts
13Vance County4.7-0.3 pts
18Cleveland County4.4-0.4 pts
18Columbus County4.4-0.3 pts
18Rutherford County4.4-0.8 pts
21Guilford County4.3-0.5 pts
21Hertford County4.3-0.6 pts
21Martin County4.3-0.2 pts
21Pitt County4.3-0.4 pts
25Montgomery County4.2-0.3 pts
25Onslow County4.2-0.1 pts
27Brunswick County4.1-0.2 pts
27Cherokee County4.1-0.2 pts
27Harnett County4.1-0.3 pts
27Lenoir County4.1-0.3 pts
27Perquimans County4.1+0.1 pts
27Sampson County4.1-0.3 pts
27Wayne County4.10 pts
27Wilkes County4.1-0.3 pts
35Jones County4-0.6 pts
35McDowell County4-0.5 pts
35Richmond County4-0.7 pts
35Rockingham County4-0.5 pts
39Alleghany County3.9+0.1 pts
39Craven County3.9-0.2 pts
39Forsyth County3.9-0.4 pts
42Alamance County3.8-0.6 pts
42Caswell County3.8-0.1 pts
42Clay County3.8+0.1 pts
42Gaston County3.8-0.4 pts
42Gates County3.8-0.1 pts
42Lee County3.8-0.4 pts
42Pasquotank County3.8-0.5 pts
42Randolph County3.8-0.1 pts
50Alexander County3.7-0.1 pts
50Beaufort County3.70 pts
50Burke County3.7-0.3 pts
50Caldwell County3.7-0.3 pts
50Davidson County3.7-0.4 pts
50Greene County3.7-0.2 pts
50Mecklenburg County3.7-0.5 pts
50Rowan County3.7-0.3 pts
50Watauga County3.7-0.3 pts
59Catawba County3.6-0.3 pts
59Chowan County3.6-0.1 pts
59Davie County3.6-0.1 pts
59Duplin County3.6-0.1 pts
59Jackson County3.6-0.2 pts
59Macon County3.6+0.1 pts
59Mitchell County3.6-1.2 pts
59Pamlico County3.6-0.1 pts
59Stokes County3.6-0.4 pts
68Cabarrus County3.5-0.3 pts
68Graham County3.5-0.1 pts
68Granville County3.5-0.4 pts
68Iredell County3.5-0.3 pts
68Madison County3.5-0.9 pts
68Moore County3.5-0.1 pts
68Orange County3.5-0.2 pts
68Pender County3.5-0.3 pts
68Surry County3.5-0.2 pts
77Buncombe County3.4-1.1 pts
77Durham County3.4-0.3 pts
77Franklin County3.4-0.3 pts
77Haywood County3.4-0.3 pts
77Lincoln County3.4-0.1 pts
77New Hanover County3.4-0.3 pts
77Person County3.4-0.3 pts
77Polk County3.4-0.3 pts
77Transylvania County3.4-0.1 pts
77Union County3.4-0.2 pts
77Yadkin County3.4-0.1 pts
88Carteret County3.3-0.2 pts
88Chatham County3.3-0.2 pts
88Stanly County3.3-0.3 pts
88Yancey County3.3-0.9 pts
92Ashe County3.2-0.2 pts
92Avery County3.2-0.7 pts
92Henderson County3.2-0.1 pts
92Johnston County3.2-0.2 pts
92Wake County3.2-0.2 pts
97Camden County3.10 pts
97Dare County3.1-0.1 pts
97Swain County3.1-0.4 pts
100Currituck County2.80 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?

Edgecombe County, with 5.5% in July 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Currituck County, with 2.8% in July 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 North Carolina: more rankings