Counties with the highest unemployment in California
Counties with the highest unemployment in California
Despite a relatively low unemployment rate just shy of 4%, as compared to the COVID-19 pandemic peak of 14.7% in April 2020, the fear of job losses remains amid ongoing economic uncertainty.
Stacker compiled a list of counties with the highest unemployment rates in California using Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Counties are ranked by their preliminary unemployment rate in April 2024, with initial ties broken by the number of unemployed people within that county, though some ties may remain. County-level unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted.
Economists forecast a waning risk of recession and predict that the U.S. may instead be headed for an incremental slowdown in growth known as a "soft landing." Still, layoffs among major U.S. employers like Amazon to Tesla have sparked concern among Americans. What's more, unemployment has spiked in nearly half the country's states, which often indicates a looming recession, an economist told Business Insider. And with sky-high prices after a period of record inflation, savings and unemployment payments may not cover basic expenses for jobless Americans for long.
For comparison, the Great Recession of 2007-09 sent unemployment rates up to 10% as of October 2009, and a full recovery took years.
Still, as of April 2024, the national unemployment rate remains relatively low at 3.9%—little changed from the previous month. Regional and state employment varies widely depending on local economies. Seasonally adjusted unemployment rates by state vary, ranging from just 2% in North Dakota to 5.3% in California.
Read on to see the counties with the highest unemployment in California.
#58. San Mateo County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.3%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 437,466 people (14,251 unemployed)
#57. Marin County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.4%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 131,340 people (4,527 unemployed)
#56. San Francisco County/city
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.4%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 552,707 people (19,008 unemployed)
#55. San Luis Obispo County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.5%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 135,709 people (4,801 unemployed)
#54. Mono County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.6%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 9,165 people (326 unemployed)
#53. Orange County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.7%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1.6 million people (57,845 unemployed)
#52. Inyo County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.8%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 8,422 people (322 unemployed)
#51. Napa County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.8%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 72,008 people (2,708 unemployed)
#50. Sonoma County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.8%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 248,671 people (9,558 unemployed)
#49. Santa Clara County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.8%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1.0 million people (39,199 unemployed)
#48. Placer County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.9%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 196,108 people (7,714 unemployed)
#47. San Diego County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.1%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1.6 million people (65,237 unemployed)
#46. Nevada County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 48,903 people (2,048 unemployed)
#45. El Dorado County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 94,471 people (4,005 unemployed)
#44. Santa Barbara County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 219,982 people (9,296 unemployed)
#43. Ventura County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 413,404 people (17,501 unemployed)
#42. Contra Costa County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 546,717 people (24,106 unemployed)
#41. Alameda County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 819,330 people (35,650 unemployed)
#40. Sacramento County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.5%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 735,316 people (33,337 unemployed)
#39. Los Angeles County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.5%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 5.0 million people (224,336 unemployed)
#38. Calaveras County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.7%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 22,186 people (1,043 unemployed)
#37. San Bernardino County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.8%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1.0 million people (47,938 unemployed)
#36. Humboldt County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.9%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 60,083 people (2,917 unemployed)
#35. Solano County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.9%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 203,391 people (10,040 unemployed)
#34. Riverside County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.9%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1.2 million people (55,934 unemployed)
#33. Mendocino County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.0%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 37,315 people (1,869 unemployed)
#32. Yolo County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.1%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 110,606 people (5,592 unemployed)
#31. Amador County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.2%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
- Total labor force: 14,463 people (752 unemployed)
#30. Mariposa County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.4%
--- 1-month change: Down 1.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 7,341 people (393 unemployed)
#29. Alpine County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.5%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
- Total labor force: 579 people (32 unemployed)
#28. Tuolumne County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.5%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 19,763 people (1,078 unemployed)
#27. Shasta County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.5%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 74,171 people (4,107 unemployed)
#26. Butte County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.7%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 92,621 people (5,318 unemployed)
#25. Del Norte County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.8%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 9,041 people (523 unemployed)
#24. Lake County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.0%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 28,404 people (1,692 unemployed)
#23. Lassen County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.1%
--- 1-month change: Down 1.0 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 8,584 people (524 unemployed)
#22. Tehama County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.3%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.6 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 25,838 people (1,632 unemployed)
#21. Sierra County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.5%
--- 1-month change: Down 1.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 1,310 people (85 unemployed)
#20. Trinity County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.5%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 4,523 people (292 unemployed)
#19. San Joaquin County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.6%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.6 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 346,689 people (22,884 unemployed)
#18. Siskiyou County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.7%
--- 1-month change: Down 1.6 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 16,268 people (1,090 unemployed)
#17. San Benito County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.7%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.1 percentage points
- Total labor force: 32,169 people (2,163 unemployed)
#16. Santa Cruz County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.7%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 132,408 people (8,908 unemployed)
#15. Glenn County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.8%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 12,687 people (866 unemployed)
#14. Stanislaus County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.0%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 247,703 people (17,394 unemployed)
#13. Modoc County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.1%
--- 1-month change: Down 1.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 3,236 people (231 unemployed)
#12. Yuba County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.3%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 32,587 people (2,370 unemployed)
#11. Monterey County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 8.0%
--- 1-month change: Down 2.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 222,416 people (17,817 unemployed)
#10. Madera County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 8.3%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
- Total labor force: 65,118 people (5,425 unemployed)
#9. Fresno County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 8.4%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 462,451 people (38,910 unemployed)
#8. Sutter County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 8.8%
--- 1-month change: Down 1.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
- Total labor force: 47,674 people (4,178 unemployed)
#7. Plumas County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 9.1%
--- 1-month change: Down 2.5 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 0.9 percentage points
- Total labor force: 7,273 people (662 unemployed)
#6. Kings County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 9.2%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 58,858 people (5,395 unemployed)
#5. Kern County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 9.3%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.9 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 396,790 people (36,799 unemployed)
#4. Merced County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 10.5%
--- 1-month change: Down 1.1 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.2 percentage points
- Total labor force: 120,463 people (12,651 unemployed)
#3. Tulare County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 10.8%
--- 1-month change: Down 1.2 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.3 percentage points
- Total labor force: 214,737 people (23,222 unemployed)
#2. Colusa County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 15.4%
--- 1-month change: Down 3.8 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 1.4 percentage points
- Total labor force: 10,785 people (1,664 unemployed)
#1. Imperial County
- April unemployment rate (preliminary): 15.7%
--- 1-month change: Down 0.7 percentage points
--- 1-year change: Up 2.0 percentage points
- Total labor force: 71,462 people (11,205 unemployed)
This story features data reporting by Paxtyn Merten and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 50 states.
