Unemployment Rate Calculator

Compute the unemployment rate from unemployed people and the labor force.

Enter labor force size and the number of unemployed people to calculate the unemployment rate.

Compute the unemployment rate from unemployed people and the labor force.

Labor Force Size

Unemployed People

About the Unemployment Rate

The unemployment rate is the share of the labor force that is unemployed and available for work. It is not the share of the whole population that lacks a job, because retirees, students, and others outside the labor force are excluded from the denominator. The unemployment rate calculator divides unemployed people by labor force size and multiplies by 100. With 6 unemployed people in a labor force of 150, the rate is 4%. With 500,000 unemployed in a labor force of 10,000,000, the rate is 5%. With 9 unemployed in a labor force of 90, the rate is 10%. These examples work at household, plant, city, or national scale as long as both inputs use the same definition of “in the labor force.” The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics counts people as unemployed if they are jobless, available, and actively looking, or waiting to be recalled from layoff. The labor force is employed plus unemployed. Discouraged workers who have stopped looking are out of the labor force, so they do not raise the official rate even though they are jobless. That is why the U-6 underutilization rate is higher than the headline U-3 rate. Do not divide unemployed people by total population; that produces a different, lower figure that is not the unemployment rate. Do not treat “employed + unemployed” as optional: if you know both, the labor force should equal their sum. The calculator uses only the two fields shown. Recalculate when survey data are revised, and cite the as-of month whenever you publish a rate. Seasonal adjustment is another source of confusion. This calculator reports a raw ratio from the two numbers you type; it does not apply BLS seasonal factors. A resort town can post a high winter rate and a low summer rate without any change in the local trend. When you compare two months, say whether both series are seasonally adjusted. For classroom work, compute the rate first, then discuss participation separately as labor force divided by working-age population, which is a different statistic and is not shown here.

Unemployment Rate Worked Examples

The rate is unemployed people divided by labor force, times 100.

Inputs	Result	Interpretation
150 labor force, 6 unemployed	4	Six jobless people in a 150-person labor force are a 4% rate.
10,000,000 labor force, 500,000 unemployed	5	A large-area 5% unemployment rate on 10 million people in the labor force.
90 labor force, 9 unemployed	10	A small labor market with 9 unemployed out of 90 posts 10%.

How to Calculate the Unemployment Rate

Enter the labor force (employed plus unemployed) using a consistent definition.
Enter the number of unemployed people in that same group.
Select Calculate to divide unemployed by the labor force and multiply by 100.
Compare the percent with the prior period only if both use the same survey concepts.

Unemployment Rate Calculator FAQ

Why isn’t total population in the formula?

The official unemployment rate uses the labor force, not population. Using population would mix retirees and children into the denominator and understate the rate.

Are discouraged workers unemployed?

Not in the headline U-3 rate. They are out of the labor force. Broader U-6 measures include them and other marginally attached workers.

Should the labor force equal employed plus unemployed?

Yes, under BLS concepts. If your counts do not add up, fix the inputs before you treat the percent as an official-style rate.

Can I use this for a single company?

You can compute a plant-level jobless share among people who still count as attached to that labor pool, but that is not the BLS unemployment rate. Label it clearly.

How should I round the result?

The calculator displays up to two decimal places. BLS headline rates are often shown to one decimal, such as 4.2%.