Charlotte employers reported 1,407,000 payroll jobs in September 2026, an estimated 25,400 more than in September 2025.
Payroll jobs1,407,000September 2026 · Jobs at workplaces
Annual jobs change+25,400Compared with September 2025
Annual payroll growth+1.8%Compared with September 2025
Unemployment rate3.3%September 2026 · 0.6 percentage points lower than September 2025
BLS total nonfarm payroll · Not seasonally adjusted. Payroll counts jobs at workplaces; unemployment measures residents. These are different measures.
BLS marks this annual payroll change statistically significant at 90% confidence. This does not establish a statistically significant difference between metros.
Historical detail below: Census QWI 2025 Q3 · BLS OEWS May 2025 occupation estimates. Each source keeps its own date and coverage.
Historical workforce detail · Census QWI 2025 Q3
Hiring, worker flows and pay in Charlotte
Census workforce data arrive with a publication lag. These findings compare 2025 Q3 with 2024 Q3 and do not describe later conditions. Open "How this was calculated" for the arithmetic.
Census recorded 1,419,466 jobs in the Charlotte metro at the start of 2025 Q3, down 0.9% from the same quarter a year earlier. This is historical workforce detail from the latest complete Census quarter saved for this metro. QWI covers private employers and state and local government; federal jobs are excluded. Its job counts differ from monthly BLS payroll coverage.
Jobs, start of quarter1,419,466-0.9% vs. 2024 Q3
Hires in the quarter237,37616.7 per 100 jobs · -3.6% vs. 2024 Q3
Avg. monthly earnings$6,266Stable workers, nominal · +1.8% vs. 2024 Q3
Occupations with local data621BLS OEWS May 2025
JobsCensus QWI · 2024 Q3 to 2025 Q3
-0.9%
Jobs fell 0.9% from 2024 Q3 to 2025 Q3
Beginning-of-quarter employment was 1,419,466 in 2025 Q3, against 1,432,439 in 2024 Q3, a change of -12,973 jobs. That change was larger than in 4 of the 49 other covered metros with matching data for the same quarters.
How this was calculated
(1,419,466 - 1,432,439) / 1,432,439 = -0.9%. Same quarter, one year apart; all industries, all ownership, not seasonally adjusted.
Health care and social assistance shows the largest reported job decline, an unusually large change
Census QWI reports that health care and social assistance lost 32,105 jobs (-19.3%) between 2024 Q3 and 2025 Q3, and holds 9.5% of metro jobs. 12 of 16 industries with at least 2% of metro jobs grew. A change this large in one year can reflect employer reclassification, reporting or geography changes rather than actual hiring or job losses; it does not establish layoffs.
How this was calculated
134,475 - 166,580 = -32105 jobs; ranked by absolute change among sectors with at least 2% of 2025 Q3 employment and published values in both quarters.
64% of comparable occupations have local medians below the U.S. median
Of 611 occupations with a published annual median both here and nationally, 214 have a higher local median, 394 a lower one and 3 the same. The largest such occupation, laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand (40,540 jobs), has a median of $38,850 versus $40,240 nationally. Annual figures are published annualized OEWS wage estimates, not actual annual take-home pay; pay is nominal and not adjusted for cost of living.
How this was calculated
Above: 214/611 = 35.0%; below: 394/611 = 64.5%; equal: 3/611. Occupations with both metro and national annual medians published (top-coded or suppressed values excluded), OEWS May 2025.
Finance and insurance is a larger part of the job base than in most covered metros
8.6% of jobs here are in finance and insurance, compared with a median of 4.8% across 49 other covered metros in 2025 Q3, about 1.8 times the typical share.
How this was calculated
Sector employment / all-industry employment for 2025 Q3; compared with the median share of the same sector in the other covered metros with the same quarter. Only sectors with at least 3% of local jobs are considered.
16.7 hires per 100 jobs in 2025 Q3, above the comparison median
Employers recorded 237,376 hires during 2025 Q3 against 1,419,466 jobs at the start of the quarter. The median across 49 other covered metros was 15.8. This is a flow ratio, not a chance of being hired, and hires are not job openings.
Jobs changed -0.9% and hires -3.6% between the same quarter one year apart. During 2025 Q3 employers recorded 237,376 hires and 238,531 separations, a difference of -1,155. That difference is a flow measure and is not the same as the official change in employment.
Census QWI beginning-of-quarter employment, all industries, private employers and state and local government; federal jobs excluded. Not seasonally adjusted. The axis is truncated: bars start above zero to show change. Compare the same quarter across years because seasonal patterns repeat. The highlighted bar is 2025 Q3.Show as a table
Quarter
Employment
Hires
Separations
2023 Q1
1,371,134
259,863
233,338
2023 Q2
1,396,905
273,815
250,239
2023 Q3
1,419,244
262,738
264,829
2023 Q4
1,416,299
244,556
260,090
2024 Q1
1,408,942
226,548
223,510
2024 Q2
1,412,975
253,866
234,868
2024 Q3
1,432,439
246,238
251,000
2024 Q4
1,429,779
231,109
231,996
2025 Q1
1,428,782
204,735
200,326
2025 Q2
1,433,436
248,722
264,189
2025 Q3
1,419,466
237,376
238,531
Careers · BLS OEWS May 2025
Explore careers in Charlotte
621 detailed occupations with local estimates, 613 with a published local median wage. Figures describe one survey reference period, not growth, openings or forecasts.
Try:
Showing 1 to 25 of 621 matching occupations. Local jobs are OEWS employment estimates; medians are for all workers in the occupation in this metro, compared with the U.S. median for the same occupation and pay basis.
BLS OEWS May 2025, Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC metro area (CBSA 16740). Unknown values sort last.
Occupation
Local jobs
Annual median
Hourly median
vs. U.S. median
National context
Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand53-7062 · Transportation and material moving
Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates for the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC metro area (CBSA 16740), one survey reference period. They show levels, not growth, openings or forecasts.
Largest occupations by local jobs: laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand (40,540), retail salespersons (35,150), cashiers (27,350), fast food and counter workers (27,050), registered nurses (27,010).
Medians are for all workers in the occupation in this metro. "vs. U.S." compares with the national median for the same occupation, same release and same pay basis. 611 occupations have published annual medians both here and nationally. 8 have no published local median.
Annual figures are published annualized OEWS wage estimates, not actual annual take-home pay. Pay is nominal and not adjusted for cost of living.
Some occupations are paid and published on an hourly or annual basis only; the other column then says so rather than showing a converted figure.
"Not released" means BLS did not publish that local estimate. 3 occupations have a median above the BLS reporting ceiling, shown as such rather than as a number. Nothing is filled in or treated as zero.
"U.S. profile" links open national data for the occupation, not Charlotte figures.
Compare metros
How Charlotte compares with similar metros
Monthly payroll comparison · September 2026
All payroll rows compare September 2026 with September 2025 from the same BLS release, not seasonally adjusted. These are the same suggested peers used in the quarterly profiles. Estimates do not establish statistically significant differences between metros.
Payroll measures jobs at workplaces. Unemployment rates measure residents and are shown only when a validated estimate matches the same month and metro.
Historical comparison · Census QWI 2025 Q3
Quarterly hiring, jobs and earnings
Every metro in this historical table uses 2025 Q3 and 2024 Q3, from one saved Census release. Monthly payroll comparisons above use a separate BLS source and are not combined with these measures.
Showing Charlotte with Baltimore, Austin, San Diego. Default: the 3 covered metros closest in total employment (Baltimore, Austin, San Diego).
Choose metros (3 of 49 selected)
Census QWI, 2025 Q3 compared with 2024 Q3 for Charlotte and selected metros.
Census QWI, 2025 Q3 compared with 2024 Q3 for every metro. Hires per 100 jobs is hires during the quarter divided by beginning-of-quarter employment, times 100: a flow ratio, not a chance of being hired. Earnings are average monthly earnings of stable workers, nominal, not adjusted for cost of living.
Suggested peers are the covered metros closest in total QWI employment (smallest ratio difference) for the same quarter. Differences of a few tenths of a point are within normal revision and should not be read as a ranking.
By industry · Census QWI 2025 Q3
Industries behind the numbers
Hires are a count of hires made during the quarter, not unique people or job openings. A large count reflects industry size and turnover.
Largest job gains, 2024 Q3 to 2025 Q3
Construction+4,537 jobs+5.6%
Professional, scientific, and technical services+4,290 jobs+4.2%
Administrative and support and waste management+3,970 jobs+3.8%
Largest job declines, 2024 Q3 to 2025 Q3
Health care and social assistance-32,105 jobs-19.3%
Manufacturing-3,847 jobs-3.4%
Retail trade-1,842 jobs-1.2%
Show all 20 industry sectors
Census QWI NAICS sectors, private employers and state and local government; federal jobs excluded. Not seasonally adjusted. Change compares 2025 Q3 with 2024 Q3, the same quarter a year earlier. Not published = not published for every state portion or no matching prior-year quarter. Sectors do not add exactly to the total.
Industry
Employment
Share of jobs
Employment change, 1 yr
Hires
Hires change, 1 yr
Avg. monthly earnings
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting
3,662
0.3%
+0.9%
506
+7.2%
$4,497
Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction
1,707
0.1%
-4.2%
192
+18.5%
$8,851
Utilities
6,184
0.4%
-0.5%
245
+21.3%
$8,589
Construction
85,695
6.0%
+5.6%
12,424
+2.8%
$6,843
Manufacturing
110,311
7.8%
-3.4%
10,445
-13.9%
$6,187
Wholesale trade
78,410
5.5%
+0.9%
8,109
+5.8%
$8,516
Retail trade
151,925
10.7%
-1.2%
30,158
-8.4%
$3,724
Transportation and warehousing
75,900
5.3%
-1.6%
15,004
-5.9%
$5,302
Information
30,471
2.1%
+1.6%
2,430
-20.5%
$10,131
Finance and insurance
121,442
8.6%
+2.7%
9,966
+18.5%
$10,356
Real estate and rental and leasing
25,230
1.8%
+0.6%
2,931
-19.0%
$7,026
Professional, scientific, and technical services
105,825
7.5%
+4.2%
12,544
-6.6%
$9,373
Management of companies and enterprises
45,827
3.2%
+0.1%
3,777
-11.5%
$9,112
Administrative and support and waste management
109,231
7.7%
+3.8%
37,360
+6.0%
$5,404
Educational services
82,380
5.8%
+4.0%
11,201
+3.4%
$3,989
Health care and social assistance
134,475
9.5%
-19.3%
23,245
-6.7%
$5,591
Arts, entertainment, and recreation
36,692
2.6%
+3.6%
6,636
-12.5%
$4,256
Accommodation and food services
131,057
9.2%
+2.1%
40,363
-5.6%
$2,514
Other services (except public administration)
38,808
2.7%
+2.4%
6,773
-3.0%
$4,471
Public administration
44,234
3.1%
+1.8%
3,065
-12.4%
$6,157
Sources and limits
Where these numbers come from
Monthly BLS payroll estimates cover September 2026. Census workforce detail covers 2025 Q3, and the wage survey covers OEWS May 2025. Each source retains its own observation period, coverage and publication dates. None is a real-time measure.
BLS monthly metro estimates
Current Employment Statistics (CES) total nonfarm payroll employment. Jobs at workplaces, not unique people, job openings or forecasts. Compare the same month one year apart because these estimates are not seasonally adjusted.
Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) measures unemployment among residents of the metro. Its rate is shown separately from workplace payroll employment.
U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Quarterly Workforce Indicators. Jobs, hires, separations and earnings by industry for private employers and state and local government. Federal jobs are excluded.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Employment and wages by occupation for Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC.
Monthly payroll estimates measure nonfarm jobs at workplaces, not hiring events, job openings or resident employment. Annual changes are estimates, may be revised and do not establish acceleration or statistically significant differences between metros.
Hires are not job openings and not your odds of being hired. We make no claim about layoffs, AI or other causes behind any change.
Census QWI covers private employers and state and local government; federal jobs are excluded. Its data typically run about three quarters behind publication. This report uses the latest complete saved quarter, 2025 Q3; any newer partial measures are not substituted for the complete quarterly package.
QWI earnings are averages for workers who held the same job all quarter, before taxes, in nominal dollars. They are not salary offers and are not adjusted for cost of living.
BLS OEWS figures (OEWS May 2025) describe one survey reference period. They show levels, not growth, and are a different period from the QWI quarter, so the two are never combined into one measure.
BLS does not release some local estimates; they appear as "Not released", and wages above its reporting ceiling appear as such rather than as a number. None is filled in or treated as zero.
Census publishes this metro as separate NC and SC portions; QWI values here are their sum. BLS OEWS publishes the whole metro directly.
Single-quarter swings in an industry can reflect employer reclassification or reporting changes. Compare several quarters before drawing conclusions.