New York job market

New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ · CBSA 35620

Monthly picture ·

Preliminary estimates

New York employers reported 10,019,900 payroll jobs in September 2026, an estimated 24,600 more than in September 2025.

Payroll jobs10,019,900September 2026 · Jobs at workplaces
Annual jobs change+24,600Compared with September 2025
Annual payroll growth+0.2%Compared with September 2025
Unemployment rate4.5%September 2026 · 0.8 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 New York

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 9,914,831 jobs in the New York metro at the start of 2025 Q3, down 0.1% 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 quarter9,914,831-0.1% vs. 2024 Q3
Hires in the quarter1,593,92716.1 per 100 jobs · +2.3% vs. 2024 Q3
Avg. monthly earnings$7,792Stable workers, nominal · +4.3% vs. 2024 Q3
Occupations with local data707BLS OEWS May 2025
  1. JobsCensus QWI · 2024 Q3 to 2025 Q3

    -0.1%

    Jobs fell 0.1% from 2024 Q3 to 2025 Q3

    Beginning-of-quarter employment was 9,914,831 in 2025 Q3, against 9,924,991 in 2024 Q3, a change of -10,160 jobs. That change was larger than in 11 of the 49 other covered metros with matching data for the same quarters.

    How this was calculated

    (9,914,831 - 9,924,991) / 9,924,991 = -0.1%. 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

    +77,461 jobs

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

    Health care and social assistance added 77,461 jobs (+4.0%) between 2024 Q3 and 2025 Q3, and holds 20.3% of metro jobs. 6 of 16 industries with at least 2% of metro jobs grew. One year-over-year comparison is not a trend.

    How this was calculated

    2,014,997 - 1,937,536 = +77461 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

    89%

    89% of comparable occupations have local medians above the U.S. median

    Of 697 occupations with a published annual median both here and nationally, 619 have a higher local median, 75 a lower one and 3 the same. The largest such occupation, home health and personal care aides (644,700 jobs), has a median of $39,680 versus $35,800 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: 619/697 = 88.8%; below: 75/697 = 10.8%; equal: 3/697. 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

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

    3.4% of jobs here are in information, compared with a median of 1.7% across 49 other covered metros in 2025 Q3, about 2.0 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

    16.1 hires per 100 jobs in 2025 Q3, above the comparison median

    Employers recorded 1,593,927 hires during 2025 Q3 against 9,914,831 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

    1,593,927 / 9,914,831 x 100 = 16.1.

    See the underlying numbers · About Census QWI

Jobs and worker flows over the last three years

Jobs changed -0.1% and hires +2.3% between the same quarter one year apart. During 2025 Q3 employers recorded 1,593,927 hires and 1,599,493 separations, a difference of -5,566. 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: 9,430,487; 2023 Q2: 9,419,499; 2023 Q3: 9,646,813; 2023 Q4: 9,664,804; 2024 Q1: 9,611,792; 2024 Q2: 9,750,444; 2024 Q3: 9,924,991; 2024 Q4: 9,893,393; 2025 Q1: 9,807,938; 2025 Q2: 9,754,617; 2025 Q3: 9,914,831.23 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 Q19,430,4871,289,3371,296,893
2023 Q29,419,4991,572,2961,348,626
2023 Q39,646,8131,621,5631,602,238
2023 Q49,664,8041,455,9751,511,463
2024 Q19,611,7921,327,5191,178,174
2024 Q29,750,4441,460,9451,286,834
2024 Q39,924,9911,558,2691,591,765
2024 Q49,893,3931,470,3841,555,081
2025 Q19,807,9381,186,3381,239,785
2025 Q29,754,6171,601,5421,438,874
2025 Q39,914,8311,593,9271,599,493

Careers · BLS OEWS May 2025

Explore careers in New York

707 detailed occupations with local estimates, 700 with a published local median wage. Figures describe one survey reference period, not growth, openings or forecasts.

Showing 1 to 25 of 707 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, New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area (CBSA 35620). Unknown values sort last.
OccupationLocal jobsAnnual medianHourly medianvs. U.S. medianNational context
Home health and personal care aides31-1120 · Healthcare support644,700$39,680$19.08/hr+10.8%U.S. profile
Retail salespersons41-2031 · Sales and related202,080$38,280$18.40/hr+8.1%U.S. profile
Registered nurses29-1141 · Healthcare practitioners and technical197,740$119,720$57.56/hr+22.7%U.S. profile
General and operations managers11-1021 · Management177,850$157,000$75.48/hr+48.4%U.S. profile
Cashiers41-2011 · Sales and related173,830$35,950$17.28/hr+9.3%U.S. profile
Fast food and counter workers35-3023 · Food preparation and serving related166,040$35,420$17.03/hr+13.5%U.S. profile
Security guards33-9032 · Protective service142,760$43,980$21.15/hr+15.7%U.S. profile
Waiters and waitresses35-3031 · Food preparation and serving related138,720$47,610$22.89/hr+35.1%U.S. profile
Office clerks, general43-9061 · Office and administrative support136,580$47,670$22.92/hr+5.9%U.S. profile
Stockers and order fillers53-7065 · Transportation and material moving131,080$38,600$18.56/hr+3.4%U.S. profile
Teaching assistants, except postsecondary25-9045 · Educational instruction and library126,920$38,890Annual only+5.7%U.S. profile
Customer service representatives43-4051 · Office and administrative support125,570$49,590$23.84/hr+10.8%U.S. profile
Secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executive43-6014 · Office and administrative support122,680$51,440$24.73/hr+8.2%U.S. profile
Software developers15-1252 · Computer and mathematical121,000$166,830$80.21/hr+22.7%U.S. profile
Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand53-7062 · Transportation and material moving118,290$43,290$20.81/hr+7.6%U.S. profile
Accountants and auditors13-2011 · Business and financial operations111,930$105,650$50.80/hr+26.3%U.S. profile
Maintenance and repair workers, general49-9071 · Installation, maintenance, and repair108,700$59,550$28.63/hr+20.1%U.S. profile
Elementary school teachers, except special education25-2021 · Educational instruction and library98,900$96,900Annual only+51.5%U.S. profile
Lawyers23-1011 · Legal94,610$208,880$100.42/hr+30.8%U.S. profile
Sales representatives of services, except advertising, insurance, financial services, and travel41-3091 · Sales and related91,680$93,750$45.07/hr+33.9%U.S. profile
Financial managers11-3031 · Management89,960$221,010$106.26/hr+32.7%U.S. profile
Nursing assistants31-1131 · Healthcare support79,480$49,270$23.69/hr+16.6%U.S. profile
Market research analysts and marketing specialists13-1161 · Business and financial operations79,290$100,520$48.33/hr+27.6%U.S. profile
Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks43-3031 · Office and administrative support77,010$60,640$29.15/hr+19.7%U.S. profile
Secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical education25-2031 · Educational instruction and library75,780$100,800Annual only+39.9%U.S. profile
How to read these estimates
  • Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates for the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area (CBSA 35620), one survey reference period. They show levels, not growth, openings or forecasts.
  • Largest occupations by local jobs: home health and personal care aides (644,700), retail salespersons (202,080), registered nurses (197,740), general and operations managers (177,850), cashiers (173,830).
  • 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. 697 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. Nothing is filled in or treated as zero.
  • "U.S. profile" links open national data for the occupation, not New York figures.

Compare metros

How New York 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
New York (selected)10,019,900+24,600+0.2%4.5%
Los Angeles6,282,100+30,200+0.5%4.4%
Chicago4,768,500−3,800−0.1%4.4%
Dallas4,352,100+43,900+1.0%4.1%

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 New York with Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas. Default: the 3 covered metros closest in total employment (Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas).

Choose metros (3 of 49 selected)
Metros to compare with New York
Census QWI, 2025 Q3 compared with 2024 Q3 for New York and selected metros.
MetroEmploymentEmployment change, 1 yrHires per 100 jobsAvg. monthly earningsEarnings change, 1 yr
New York (this metro)9,914,831-0.1%16.1$7,792+4.3%
Los Angeles6,612,016+0.1%14.6$6,904+3.9%
Chicago4,719,796+0.5%14.5$6,706+3.9%
Dallas4,301,267+1.5%16.6$6,935+3.1%

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+77,461 jobs+4.0%
  • Accommodation and food services+14,313 jobs+1.9%
  • Management of companies and enterprises+8,885 jobs+5.1%

Largest job declines, 2024 Q3 to 2025 Q3

  • Transportation and warehousing-55,618 jobs-10.3%
  • Public administration-19,705 jobs-4.5%
  • Information-10,854 jobs-3.1%
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 hunting8,6340.1%-5.0%2,029+5.8%$4,526
Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction1,6180.0%+1.4%114-14.9%$9,631
Utilities41,9220.4%+3.2%1,679-15.2%$11,703
Construction380,4803.8%-1.9%70,615-2.9%$7,835
Manufacturing326,7273.3%-1.8%27,551-2.7%$7,568
Wholesale trade377,3163.8%-2.0%32,581+0.1%$9,397
Retail trade806,5808.1%-0.5%120,757-1.3%$4,593
Transportation and warehousing485,0694.9%-10.3%84,541+0.7%$5,791
Information338,0903.4%-3.1%73,510+21.6%$15,001
Finance and insurance606,4806.1%+1.3%50,597-11.1%$17,283
Real estate and rental and leasing220,3652.2%-0.9%20,799-1.7%$7,304
Professional, scientific, and technical services840,8728.5%+0.2%99,527-0.7%$12,805
Management of companies and enterprises183,9131.9%+5.1%16,492+7.3%$12,947
Administrative and support and waste management605,9846.1%-1.6%147,813+3.6%$5,700
Educational services922,5159.3%+0.5%141,708+4.3%$6,247
Health care and social assistance2,014,99720.3%+4.0%275,392+0.3%$5,719
Arts, entertainment, and recreation221,9542.2%+2.0%63,661-1.2%$6,414
Accommodation and food services758,5477.7%+1.9%170,694+1.2%$3,489
Other services (except public administration)352,2903.6%-1.9%52,099-4.8%$5,058
Public administration420,4794.2%-4.5%141,768+18.7%$8,737

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 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ.

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.
  • Census publishes this metro as separate NJ and NY 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.