Counties in Ohio by unemployment rate

Ottawa County had the highest unemployment rate of 88 counties in December 2025, at 6.7%. Mercer County had the lowest, at 2.8%. The median was 4.3% and the figure for Ohio was 4.4%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest6.7Ottawa County
Lowest2.8Mercer County
Median4.388 counties
Ohio4.4History

Top 40 counties, December 2025

CSVChart (SVG)

Ottawa CountyOttawa County: 6.7 %6.7Pike CountyPike County: 6.7 %6.7Meigs CountyMeigs County: 6.3 %6.3Noble CountyNoble County: 6.3 %6.3Huron CountyHuron County: 6.2 %6.2Adams CountyAdams County: 6.1 %6.1Vinton CountyVinton County: 6.1 %6.1Monroe CountyMonroe County: 5.9 %5.9Scioto CountyScioto County: 5.8 %5.8Ross CountyRoss County: 5.7 %5.7Morgan CountyMorgan County: 5.6 %5.6Guernsey CountyGuernsey County: 5.3 %5.3Henry CountyHenry County: 5.3 %5.3Jackson CountyJackson County: 5.3 %5.3Fulton CountyFulton County: 5.2 %5.2Erie CountyErie County: 5.1 %5.1Sandusky CountySandusky County: 5.1 %5.1Trumbull CountyTrumbull County: 5.1 %5.1Highland CountyHighland County: 5 %5Lucas CountyLucas County: 5 %5Athens CountyAthens County: 4.9 %4.9Hocking CountyHocking County: 4.8 %4.8Jefferson CountyJefferson County: 4.8 %4.8Mahoning CountyMahoning County: 4.8 %4.8Perry CountyPerry County: 4.8 %4.8Richland CountyRichland County: 4.8 %4.8Brown CountyBrown County: 4.7 %4.7Belmont CountyBelmont County: 4.6 %4.6Columbiana CountyColumbiana County: 4.6 %4.6Crawford CountyCrawford County: 4.6 %4.6Gallia CountyGallia County: 4.6 %4.6Hardin CountyHardin County: 4.6 %4.6Harrison CountyHarrison County: 4.5 %4.5Lawrence CountyLawrence County: 4.5 %4.5Williams CountyWilliams County: 4.5 %4.5Allen CountyAllen County: 4.4 %4.4Carroll CountyCarroll County: 4.4 %4.4Coshocton CountyCoshocton County: 4.4 %4.4Fayette CountyFayette County: 4.4 %4.4Seneca CountySeneca County: 4.4 %4.4
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesDecember 2025 (%)Change on December 2024
1Ottawa County6.7-1.7 pts
1Pike County6.7+0.2 pts
3Meigs County6.3-1 pts
3Noble County6.3-1.3 pts
5Huron County6.2-0.2 pts
6Adams County6.1-1 pts
6Vinton County6.1+0.4 pts
8Monroe County5.9-1.8 pts
9Scioto County5.8-0.7 pts
10Ross County5.7+0.4 pts
11Morgan County5.6-1.3 pts
12Guernsey County5.3-0.9 pts
12Henry County5.3-0.4 pts
12Jackson County5.3-0.3 pts
15Fulton County5.2-0.2 pts
16Erie County5.1-0.7 pts
16Sandusky County5.1-0.3 pts
16Trumbull County5.1-0.5 pts
19Highland County5-0.2 pts
19Lucas County5-1.2 pts
21Athens County4.9-0.2 pts
22Hocking County4.8-0.4 pts
22Jefferson County4.8-1.1 pts
22Mahoning County4.8-0.5 pts
22Perry County4.8-1.2 pts
22Richland County4.8-0.6 pts
27Brown County4.7-0.7 pts
28Belmont County4.6-0.9 pts
28Columbiana County4.6-0.5 pts
28Crawford County4.6-0.9 pts
28Gallia County4.6-1.1 pts
28Hardin County4.6-0.1 pts
33Harrison County4.5-0.7 pts
33Lawrence County4.5-0.5 pts
33Williams County4.5-0.4 pts
36Allen County4.4-0.2 pts
36Carroll County4.4-0.7 pts
36Coshocton County4.4-0.5 pts
36Fayette County4.4-0.3 pts
36Seneca County4.4-0.5 pts
36Stark County4.4-0.5 pts
42Ashland County4.3-0.6 pts
42Clark County4.3-0.8 pts
42Montgomery County4.3-0.6 pts
42Muskingum County4.3-0.8 pts
42Portage County4.3-0.4 pts
42Summit County4.3-0.6 pts
42Washington County4.3-0.9 pts
49Marion County4-0.7 pts
50Butler County3.9-0.4 pts
50Defiance County3.9-0.2 pts
50Knox County3.9-0.5 pts
50Logan County3.9-0.3 pts
50Morrow County3.9-0.4 pts
50Pickaway County3.9-0.5 pts
50Tuscarawas County3.9-0.5 pts
50Wood County3.9-0.7 pts
58Ashtabula County3.8-0.3 pts
58Champaign County3.8-0.4 pts
58Darke County3.8-0.4 pts
58Hamilton County3.8-0.5 pts
62Clermont County3.7-0.5 pts
62Clinton County3.7-0.6 pts
62Greene County3.7-0.4 pts
62Lorain County3.7+0.1 pts
62Miami County3.7-0.5 pts
62Paulding County3.7-0.7 pts
62Preble County3.7-0.4 pts
69Fairfield County3.6-0.7 pts
69Franklin County3.6-0.6 pts
69Hancock County3.6-0.6 pts
69Licking County3.6-0.5 pts
69Madison County3.6-0.3 pts
74Shelby County3.5-0.6 pts
74Van Wert County3.5-0.4 pts
74Warren County3.5-0.4 pts
74Wayne County3.5-0.6 pts
78Cuyahoga County3.4-0.1 pts
78Lake County3.40 pts
78Putnam County3.4-0.5 pts
78Wyandot County3.4-0.9 pts
82Delaware County3.3-0.3 pts
83Auglaize County3.2-0.4 pts
84Geauga County3-0.1 pts
84Union County3-0.4 pts
86Medina County2.90 pts
87Holmes County2.8-0.4 pts
87Mercer County2.8-0.3 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?

Ottawa County, with 6.7% in December 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Mercer County, with 2.8% in December 2025.

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 Ohio: more rankings