Miami job market

Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL · CBSA 33100

Monthly picture ·

Preliminary estimates

Miami employers reported 2,965,600 payroll jobs in September 2026, an estimated 13,000 more than in September 2025.

Payroll jobs2,965,600September 2026 · Jobs at workplaces
Annual jobs change+13,000Compared with September 2025
Annual payroll growth+0.4%Compared with September 2025
Unemployment rate3.2%September 2026 · 0.4 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 does not mark 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 Miami

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 2,869,134 jobs in the Miami metro at the start of 2025 Q3, up 0.4% 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 quarter2,869,134+0.4% vs. 2024 Q3
Hires in the quarter395,73813.8 per 100 jobs · -0.5% vs. 2024 Q3
Avg. monthly earnings$6,511Stable workers, nominal · +6.2% vs. 2024 Q3
Occupations with local data640BLS OEWS May 2025
  1. JobsCensus QWI · 2024 Q3 to 2025 Q3

    +0.4%

    Jobs rose 0.4% from 2024 Q3 to 2025 Q3

    Beginning-of-quarter employment was 2,869,134 in 2025 Q3, against 2,856,894 in 2024 Q3, a change of +12,240 jobs. That change was larger than in 24 of the 49 other covered metros with matching data for the same quarters.

    How this was calculated

    (2,869,134 - 2,856,894) / 2,856,894 = +0.4%. Same quarter, one year apart; all industries, all ownership, not seasonally adjusted.

    See the underlying numbers · About Census QWI

  2. Industry driverCensus QWI · 2024 Q3 to 2025 Q3

    +9,035 jobs

    Health care and social assistance had the largest job gain of any major industry

    Health care and social assistance added 9,035 jobs (+2.2%) between 2024 Q3 and 2025 Q3, and holds 14.6% of metro jobs. 9 of 15 industries with at least 2% of metro jobs grew. One year-over-year comparison is not a trend.

    How this was calculated

    417,700 - 408,665 = +9035 jobs; ranked by absolute change among sectors with at least 2% of 2025 Q3 employment and published values in both quarters.

    See the underlying numbers · About Census QWI

  3. PayBLS OEWS May 2025

    71%

    71% of comparable occupations have local medians below the U.S. median

    Of 629 occupations with a published annual median both here and nationally, 181 have a higher local median, 448 a lower one and 0 the same. The largest such occupation, retail salespersons (91,370 jobs), has a median of $34,330 versus $35,410 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: 181/629 = 28.8%; below: 448/629 = 71.2%; equal: 0/629. Occupations with both metro and national annual medians published (top-coded or suppressed values excluded), OEWS May 2025.

    See the underlying numbers · About BLS OEWS

  • Industry mixCensus QWI · 2025 Q3

    Wholesale trade is a larger part of the job base than in most covered metros

    5.5% of jobs here are in wholesale trade, compared with a median of 4.1% across 49 other covered metros in 2025 Q3, about 1.3 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.

    See the underlying numbers · About Census QWI

  • HiringCensus QWI · 2025 Q3

    13.8 hires per 100 jobs in 2025 Q3, at or below the comparison median

    Employers recorded 395,738 hires during 2025 Q3 against 2,869,134 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.

    How this was calculated

    395,738 / 2,869,134 x 100 = 13.8.

    See the underlying numbers · About Census QWI

Jobs and worker flows over the last three years

Jobs changed +0.4% and hires -0.5% between the same quarter one year apart. During 2025 Q3 employers recorded 395,738 hires and 401,514 separations, a difference of -5,776. That difference is a flow measure and is not the same as the official change in employment.

Beginning-of-quarter employment, 2023 Q1 to 2025 Q3. 2023 Q1: 2,760,763; 2023 Q2: 2,794,172; 2023 Q3: 2,798,471; 2023 Q4: 2,819,282; 2024 Q1: 2,846,259; 2024 Q2: 2,862,861; 2024 Q3: 2,856,894; 2024 Q4: 2,864,418; 2025 Q1: 2,877,845; 2025 Q2: 2,884,442; 2025 Q3: 2,869,134.23 Q123 Q223 Q323 Q424 Q124 Q224 Q324 Q425 Q125 Q225 Q3
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
QuarterEmploymentHiresSeparations
2023 Q12,760,763454,749419,160
2023 Q22,794,172446,652441,862
2023 Q32,798,471457,301435,683
2023 Q42,819,282450,481424,712
2024 Q12,846,259421,365402,513
2024 Q22,862,861403,174411,851
2024 Q32,856,894397,773388,696
2024 Q42,864,418427,689413,428
2025 Q12,877,845378,538368,445
2025 Q22,884,442397,068411,904
2025 Q32,869,134395,738401,514

Careers · BLS OEWS May 2025

Explore careers in Miami

640 detailed occupations with local estimates, 633 with a published local median wage. Figures describe one survey reference period, not growth, openings or forecasts.

Showing 1 to 25 of 640 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, Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL metro area (CBSA 33100). Unknown values sort last.
OccupationLocal jobsAnnual medianHourly medianvs. U.S. medianNational context
Retail salespersons41-2031 · Sales and related91,370$34,330$16.50/hr-3.0%U.S. profile
General and operations managers11-1021 · Management74,960$105,640$50.79/hr-0.1%U.S. profile
Customer service representatives43-4051 · Office and administrative support63,440$39,560$19.02/hr-11.6%U.S. profile
Registered nurses29-1141 · Healthcare practitioners and technical61,670$91,380$43.93/hr-6.3%U.S. profile
Office clerks, general43-9061 · Office and administrative support61,160$44,730$21.51/hr-0.6%U.S. profile
Waiters and waitresses35-3031 · Food preparation and serving related57,830$36,070$17.34/hr+2.4%U.S. profile
Fast food and counter workers35-3023 · Food preparation and serving related56,900$29,600$14.23/hr-5.1%U.S. profile
Cashiers41-2011 · Sales and related56,340$30,250$14.54/hr-8.0%U.S. profile
Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand53-7062 · Transportation and material moving48,860$38,580$18.55/hr-4.1%U.S. profile
Stockers and order fillers53-7065 · Transportation and material moving45,270$36,110$17.36/hr-3.3%U.S. profile
Security guards33-9032 · Protective service41,530$36,040$17.33/hr-5.2%U.S. profile
Cooks, restaurant35-2014 · Food preparation and serving related37,210$36,920$17.75/hr-1.3%U.S. profile
Secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executive43-6014 · Office and administrative support33,380$47,450$22.81/hr-0.2%U.S. profile
Maintenance and repair workers, general49-9071 · Installation, maintenance, and repair31,890$46,290$22.26/hr-6.7%U.S. profile
Accountants and auditors13-2011 · Business and financial operations30,950$80,920$38.91/hr-3.3%U.S. profile
Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, except technical and scientific products41-4012 · Sales and related30,740$62,400$30.00/hr-13.4%U.S. profile
Sales representatives of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services, and travel41-3091 · Sales and related30,300$62,090$29.85/hr-11.3%U.S. profile
Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers53-3032 · Transportation and material moving29,060$51,580$24.80/hr-12.0%U.S. profile
Home health and personal care aides31-1120 · Healthcare support28,350$32,890$15.81/hr-8.1%U.S. profile
Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks43-3031 · Office and administrative support25,910$50,300$24.18/hr-0.7%U.S. profile
First-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers35-1012 · Food preparation and serving related24,770$45,500$21.88/hr+3.2%U.S. profile
Nursing assistants31-1131 · Healthcare support23,490$38,010$18.28/hr-10.1%U.S. profile
Lawyers23-1011 · Legal23,270$160,320$77.08/hr+0.4%U.S. profile
Maids and housekeeping cleaners37-2012 · Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance22,370$34,360$16.52/hr-3.2%U.S. profile
First-line supervisors of retail sales workers41-1011 · Sales and related22,220$50,250$24.16/hr+3.6%U.S. profile
How to read these estimates
  • Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates for the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL metro area (CBSA 33100), one survey reference period. They show levels, not growth, openings or forecasts.
  • Largest occupations by local jobs: retail salespersons (91,370), general and operations managers (74,960), customer service representatives (63,440), registered nurses (61,670), office clerks, general (61,160).
  • 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. 629 occupations have published annual medians both here and nationally. 7 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. 4 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 Miami figures.

Compare metros

How Miami 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.
MetroPayroll jobsAnnual jobs changeAnnual growthUnemployment
Miami (selected)2,965,600+13,000+0.4%3.2%
Boston2,733,800+2,300+0.1%3.9%
Washington, DC3,292,000−61,000−1.8%3.7%
Philadelphia3,146,800+15,400+0.5%3.6%

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 Miami with Boston, Washington, DC, Philadelphia. Default: the 3 covered metros closest in total employment (Boston, Washington, DC, Philadelphia).

Choose metros (3 of 49 selected)
Metros to compare with Miami
Census QWI, 2025 Q3 compared with 2024 Q3 for Miami and selected metros.
MetroEmploymentEmployment change, 1 yrHires per 100 jobsAvg. monthly earningsEarnings change, 1 yr
Miami (this metro)2,869,134+0.4%13.8$6,511+6.2%
Boston2,792,984-1.9%13.7$8,434+4.6%
Washington, DC3,000,760+1.6%14.4$8,119+5.7%
Philadelphia3,062,969+1.2%14.1$6,547+3.4%

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

  • Health care and social assistance+9,035 jobs+2.2%
  • Professional, scientific, and technical services+4,952 jobs+2.1%
  • Transportation and warehousing+3,970 jobs+2.7%

Largest job declines, 2024 Q3 to 2025 Q3

  • Retail trade-4,617 jobs-1.4%
  • Administrative and support and waste management-3,974 jobs-1.7%
  • Finance and insurance-3,279 jobs-2.4%
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.
IndustryEmploymentShare of jobsEmployment change, 1 yrHiresHires change, 1 yrAvg. monthly earnings
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting15,2840.5%+0.5%2,113+0.5%$4,150
Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction9690.0%-7.4%101-15.1%$7,788
Utilities6,1290.2%+0.2%447-3.2%$12,126
Construction160,0225.6%+0.9%23,881-6.4%$6,316
Manufacturing98,8713.4%-0.1%10,575+1.4%$6,982
Wholesale trade157,7745.5%+0.4%14,032+1.2%$8,439
Retail trade323,31711.3%-1.4%50,482+10.5%$4,120
Transportation and warehousing152,5325.3%+2.7%21,110+5.7%$6,206
Information53,3911.9%-3.9%5,850+1.3%$12,793
Finance and insurance135,6644.7%-2.4%11,910+4.5%$11,846
Real estate and rental and leasing78,1222.7%-1.4%8,192-5.4%$6,160
Professional, scientific, and technical services240,5028.4%+2.1%30,065+8.3%$10,661
Management of companies and enterprises36,4541.3%+1.2%3,978-3.5%$11,750
Administrative and support and waste management231,9658.1%-1.7%56,947-4.8%$5,073
Educational services182,7296.4%-0.1%17,544-3.2%$4,899
Health care and social assistance417,70014.6%+2.2%49,912-0.9%$6,223
Arts, entertainment, and recreation60,5772.1%+3.3%9,578-5.2%$5,438
Accommodation and food services299,23210.4%+0.7%59,969+0.7%$3,366
Other services (except public administration)96,9043.4%+0.4%13,672-6.6%$4,473
Public administration120,9964.2%+2.6%5,381-42.6%$7,190

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.

Payroll month
September 2026, compared with September 2025
Source published
2026-10-28
Retrieved
2026-10-30
Status
Preliminary, subject to revision
Official BLS metro payroll table

Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) measures unemployment among residents of the metro. Its rate is shown separately from workplace payroll employment.

Unemployment month
September 2026, compared with September 2025
Source published
2026-10-28
Retrieved
2026-10-30
Status
Preliminary, subject to revision
Official BLS metro unemployment source

Census QWI

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.

Quarter
2025 Q3, compared with 2024 Q3
Retrieved
2026-10-30
About QWI

BLS OEWS

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Employment and wages by occupation for Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL.

Estimates
OEWS May 2025
Release last checked
2026-10-27
About OEWS
What we can't tell from this data
  • 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.
  • Both sources use the metro boundary shown above. Census labels follow the 2023 metro definitions.
  • Single-quarter swings in an industry can reflect employer reclassification or reporting changes. Compare several quarters before drawing conclusions.