With the U.S. gaining 661,000 jobs in September and the national unemployment rate at 7.9% compared to the nearly historic high of 14.7% at the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, WalletHub today released updated rankings for the States Whose September Unemployment Rates Are Bouncing Back Most, along with accompanying videos and audio files, to illustrate which areas of the country have had the best recovery so far.
This report examines unemployment rates on a monthly basis, complementing the weekly analysis in WalletHub’s report on the States Whose Weekly Unemployment Claims Are Recovering the Quickest.
In order to identify the states with the best recovery in unemployment, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia based on four key metrics. We looked at the change in each state’s unemployment during the latest month for which we have data (September 2020) compared to September 2019 and January 2020. We also compared not seasonally adjusted continued claims in September 2020 to September 2019. Finally, we considered each state’s overall unemployment rate.
Below, you can see highlights from the report, along with a WalletHub Q&A.| Bounced Back Most | Bounced Back Least |
| 1. Nebraska | 42. Texas |
| 2. South Dakota | 43. Michigan |
| 3. Missouri | 44. New Mexico |
| 4. Iowa | 45. Illinois |
| 5. Montana | 46. New York |
| 6. North Dakota | 47. Rhode Island |
| 7. Wisconsin | 48. Massachusetts |
| 8. Kentucky | 49. California |
| 9. Alaska | 50. Nevada |
| 10. Vermont | 51. Hawaii |
