Counties in Wisconsin by unemployment rate

Iron County had the highest unemployment rate of 72 counties in May 2026, at 4.7%. Lafayette County had the lowest, at 2.2%. The median was 2.8% and the figure for Wisconsin was 3.4%. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Highest4.7Iron County
Median2.872 counties
Wisconsin3.4History

Top 40 counties, May 2026

CSVChart (SVG)

Iron CountyIron County: 4.7 %4.7Adams CountyAdams County: 4 %4Menominee CountyMenominee County: 4 %4Douglas CountyDouglas County: 3.9 %3.9Marinette CountyMarinette County: 3.7 %3.7Milwaukee CountyMilwaukee County: 3.7 %3.7Rusk CountyRusk County: 3.7 %3.7Burnett CountyBurnett County: 3.6 %3.6Price CountyPrice County: 3.5 %3.5Bayfield CountyBayfield County: 3.4 %3.4Crawford CountyCrawford County: 3.4 %3.4Polk CountyPolk County: 3.4 %3.4Washburn CountyWashburn County: 3.4 %3.4Forest CountyForest County: 3.3 %3.3Racine CountyRacine County: 3.3 %3.3Sawyer CountySawyer County: 3.3 %3.3Langlade CountyLanglade County: 3.2 %3.2Vilas CountyVilas County: 3.2 %3.2Barron CountyBarron County: 3.1 %3.1Jackson CountyJackson County: 3.1 %3.1Kenosha CountyKenosha County: 3.1 %3.1Rock CountyRock County: 3.1 %3.1Wood CountyWood County: 3.1 %3.1Florence CountyFlorence County: 3 %3Juneau CountyJuneau County: 3 %3Marquette CountyMarquette County: 3 %3Pierce CountyPierce County: 3 %3St. Croix CountySt. Croix County: 3 %3Buffalo CountyBuffalo County: 2.9 %2.9Lincoln CountyLincoln County: 2.9 %2.9Oconto CountyOconto County: 2.9 %2.9Waushara CountyWaushara County: 2.9 %2.9Ashland CountyAshland County: 2.8 %2.8Chippewa CountyChippewa County: 2.8 %2.8Dunn CountyDunn County: 2.8 %2.8Green Lake CountyGreen Lake County: 2.8 %2.8Oneida CountyOneida County: 2.8 %2.8Portage CountyPortage County: 2.8 %2.8Shawano CountyShawano County: 2.8 %2.8Taylor CountyTaylor County: 2.8 %2.8
%. Source: BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-08.

Full ranking

RankCountiesMay 2026 (%)Change on May 2025
1Iron County4.7-0.2 pts
2Adams County4-0.1 pts
2Menominee County4-0.1 pts
4Douglas County3.90 pts
5Marinette County3.7+0.1 pts
5Milwaukee County3.7-0.1 pts
5Rusk County3.7-0.4 pts
8Burnett County3.6-0.2 pts
9Price County3.5-0.4 pts
10Bayfield County3.4-0.2 pts
10Crawford County3.4+0.1 pts
10Polk County3.40 pts
10Washburn County3.4-0.1 pts
14Forest County3.3-0.4 pts
14Racine County3.3-0.2 pts
14Sawyer County3.30 pts
17Langlade County3.2-0.3 pts
17Vilas County3.2-0.2 pts
19Barron County3.1-0.3 pts
19Jackson County3.1-0.2 pts
19Kenosha County3.1-0.2 pts
19Rock County3.1-0.2 pts
19Wood County3.1-0.1 pts
24Florence County3-0.5 pts
24Juneau County3-0.2 pts
24Marquette County3-0.4 pts
24Pierce County3-0.1 pts
24St. Croix County3-0.1 pts
29Buffalo County2.9-0.1 pts
29Lincoln County2.9-0.3 pts
29Oconto County2.9-0.2 pts
29Waushara County2.9-0.5 pts
33Ashland County2.8-0.6 pts
33Chippewa County2.8-0.1 pts
33Dunn County2.8-0.2 pts
33Green Lake County2.8-0.3 pts
33Oneida County2.8-0.2 pts
33Portage County2.8-0.2 pts
33Shawano County2.8-0.2 pts
33Taylor County2.8-0.2 pts
41Brown County2.7-0.1 pts
41Columbia County2.7-0.1 pts
41Door County2.7-0.1 pts
41Grant County2.7-0.2 pts
41Manitowoc County2.7-0.1 pts
41Trempealeau County2.7-0.2 pts
41Vernon County2.7-0.1 pts
41Waukesha County2.7-0.2 pts
41Winnebago County2.7-0.1 pts
50Eau Claire County2.6-0.1 pts
50Fond du Lac County2.6-0.3 pts
50La Crosse County2.6-0.1 pts
50Marathon County2.6-0.1 pts
50Ozaukee County2.6-0.2 pts
50Richland County2.6-0.3 pts
50Sheboygan County2.6-0.2 pts
50Washington County2.6-0.2 pts
58Dane County2.5-0.1 pts
58Jefferson County2.5-0.2 pts
58Monroe County2.5-0.2 pts
58Outagamie County2.5-0.2 pts
58Sauk County2.5-0.1 pts
58Walworth County2.5-0.2 pts
58Waupaca County2.5-0.4 pts
65Dodge County2.4-0.2 pts
65Kewaunee County2.4-0.3 pts
65Pepin County2.4-0.5 pts
68Calumet County2.3-0.2 pts
68Clark County2.3-0.3 pts
68Green County2.3-0.3 pts
68Iowa County2.3-0.3 pts
72Lafayette County2.2-0.2 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?

Iron County, with 4.7% in May 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Which county has the lowest unemployment rate?

Lafayette County, with 2.2% in May 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 Wisconsin: more rankings