Counties in Tennessee by unemployment rate, August 2026

Hancock County had the highest unemployment rate of 95 counties in August 2026, at 5.5%. Sevier County had the lowest, at 2.9%. The median was 3.9% and the figure for Tennessee was 3.4%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest5.5Hancock County
Lowest2.9Sevier County
Median3.995 counties
Tennessee3.4History

Top 40 counties, August 2026

CSVChart (SVG)

Hancock CountyHancock County: 5.5 %5.5Perry CountyPerry County: 5.5 %5.5Pickett CountyPickett County: 5.2 %5.2Hardeman CountyHardeman County: 5.1 %5.1Meigs CountyMeigs County: 5 %5Shelby CountyShelby County: 5 %5Greene CountyGreene County: 4.9 %4.9Lake CountyLake County: 4.8 %4.8Lauderdale CountyLauderdale County: 4.8 %4.8Benton CountyBenton County: 4.7 %4.7Decatur CountyDecatur County: 4.7 %4.7Weakley CountyWeakley County: 4.7 %4.7McMinn CountyMcMinn County: 4.6 %4.6Chester CountyChester County: 4.5 %4.5Johnson CountyJohnson County: 4.5 %4.5Lewis CountyLewis County: 4.5 %4.5Giles CountyGiles County: 4.4 %4.4Hardin CountyHardin County: 4.4 %4.4Henry CountyHenry County: 4.4 %4.4Rhea CountyRhea County: 4.4 %4.4Scott CountyScott County: 4.4 %4.4Carroll CountyCarroll County: 4.3 %4.3Cocke CountyCocke County: 4.3 %4.3Lawrence CountyLawrence County: 4.3 %4.3Madison CountyMadison County: 4.3 %4.3Stewart CountyStewart County: 4.3 %4.3McNairy CountyMcNairy County: 4.2 %4.2Morgan CountyMorgan County: 4.2 %4.2Cumberland CountyCumberland County: 4.1 %4.1DeKalb CountyDeKalb County: 4.1 %4.1Marshall CountyMarshall County: 4.1 %4.1Maury CountyMaury County: 4.1 %4.1White CountyWhite County: 4.1 %4.1Bradley CountyBradley County: 4 %4Franklin CountyFranklin County: 4 %4Gibson CountyGibson County: 4 %4Grundy CountyGrundy County: 4 %4Hawkins CountyHawkins County: 4 %4Jackson CountyJackson County: 4 %4Montgomery CountyMontgomery County: 4 %4
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesAugust 2026 (%)Change on August 2025
1Hancock County Provisional5.5+1 pts
1Perry County Provisional5.5+0.3 pts
3Pickett County Provisional5.2+0.8 pts
4Hardeman County Provisional5.1-0.1 pts
5Meigs County Provisional5-0.1 pts
5Shelby County Provisional5+0.3 pts
7Greene County Provisional4.9+0.2 pts
8Lake County Provisional4.8-0.3 pts
8Lauderdale County Provisional4.8-0.1 pts
10Benton County Provisional4.7+0.1 pts
10Decatur County Provisional4.7+0.3 pts
10Weakley County Provisional4.7+0.6 pts
13McMinn County Provisional4.6+0.3 pts
14Chester County Provisional4.5+0.2 pts
14Johnson County Provisional4.5-0.4 pts
14Lewis County Provisional4.5+0.9 pts
17Giles County Provisional4.4+0.2 pts
17Hardin County Provisional4.4+0.5 pts
17Henry County Provisional4.4+0.4 pts
17Rhea County Provisional4.4+0.1 pts
17Scott County Provisional4.4+0.3 pts
22Carroll County Provisional4.3-0.1 pts
22Cocke County Provisional4.3-0.3 pts
22Lawrence County Provisional4.3+0.1 pts
22Madison County Provisional4.3+0.3 pts
22Stewart County Provisional4.3+0.5 pts
27McNairy County Provisional4.2+0.1 pts
27Morgan County Provisional4.2+0.2 pts
29Cumberland County Provisional4.1-0.1 pts
29DeKalb County Provisional4.10 pts
29Marshall County Provisional4.1+0.7 pts
29Maury County Provisional4.1+1 pts
29White County Provisional4.1-0.1 pts
34Bradley County Provisional4+0.1 pts
34Franklin County Provisional4-0.1 pts
34Gibson County Provisional4+0.2 pts
34Grundy County Provisional4-0.2 pts
34Hawkins County Provisional4+0.1 pts
34Jackson County Provisional4+0.2 pts
34Montgomery County Provisional4+0.1 pts
34Moore County Provisional4+0.6 pts
34Wayne County Provisional4+0.4 pts
43Carter County Provisional3.90 pts
43Claiborne County Provisional3.9-0.2 pts
43Henderson County Provisional3.9-0.3 pts
43Lincoln County Provisional3.9+0.1 pts
43Marion County Provisional3.9-0.1 pts
43Monroe County Provisional3.90 pts
43Sequatchie County Provisional3.9-0.3 pts
43Tipton County Provisional3.90 pts
43Warren County Provisional3.9-0.1 pts
52Campbell County Provisional3.8+0.4 pts
52Clay County Provisional3.8-0.4 pts
52Hamblen County Provisional3.80 pts
52Humphreys County Provisional3.8+0.1 pts
56Coffee County Provisional3.70 pts
56Fayette County Provisional3.7+0.1 pts
56Houston County Provisional3.7-0.3 pts
56Polk County Provisional3.7-0.1 pts
56Putnam County Provisional3.7+0.1 pts
61Bedford County Provisional3.6-0.1 pts
61Grainger County Provisional3.6+0.2 pts
61Hickman County Provisional3.6+0.4 pts
61Obion County Provisional3.60 pts
61Overton County Provisional3.6+0.3 pts
61Roane County Provisional3.60 pts
61Unicoi County Provisional3.6-0.6 pts
61Union County Provisional3.60 pts
69Anderson County Provisional3.5+0.2 pts
69Fentress County Provisional3.5-0.1 pts
69Hamilton County Provisional3.5+0.1 pts
69Haywood County Provisional3.5-0.3 pts
69Jefferson County Provisional3.50 pts
69Sullivan County Provisional3.50 pts
69Washington County Provisional3.5+0.1 pts
76Dyer County Provisional3.4-0.1 pts
76Van Buren County Provisional3.4+0.1 pts
78Crockett County Provisional3.3-0.2 pts
79Knox County Provisional3.2+0.1 pts
79Smith County Provisional3.20 pts
81Bledsoe County Provisional3.1-0.2 pts
81Blount County Provisional3.1+0.1 pts
81Cannon County Provisional3.1+0.2 pts
81Davidson County Provisional3.1+0.1 pts
81Loudon County Provisional3.1-0.1 pts
81Rutherford County Provisional3.1+0.1 pts
81Sumner County Provisional3.1+0.1 pts
81Trousdale County Provisional3.10 pts
89Dickson County Provisional3+0.1 pts
89Macon County Provisional30 pts
89Robertson County Provisional3-0.1 pts
89Williamson County Provisional3+0.1 pts
89Wilson County Provisional30 pts
94Cheatham County Provisional2.90 pts
94Sevier County Provisional2.9+0.1 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?

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

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Sevier County, with 2.9% in August 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 Tennessee: more rankings