Counties with the highest unemployment in Alabama

Despite a relatively low unemployment rate, the fear of job losses remains amid ongoing economic uncertainty.

Stacker compiled a list of counties with the highest unemployment rates in Alabama using Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Counties are ranked by their preliminary unemployment rate in May 2024, with initial ties broken by the number of unemployed people within that county, though some ties may remain. County-level unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted.

Economists forecast a waning risk of recession and predict that the U.S. may instead be headed for an incremental slowdown in growth known as a “soft landing.” Still, layoffs among major U.S. employers like Amazon to Tesla have sparked concern among Americans. What’s more, unemployment has spiked in nearly half the country’s states, which often indicates a looming recession, a chief global economist at Piper Sandler told Business Insider. And with sky-high prices after a period of record inflation, savings and unemployment payments may not cover basic expenses for jobless Americans for long.

For comparison, the Great Recession of 2007-09 sent unemployment rates up to 10% as of October 2009, and a full recovery took years. At the height of the COVID-19 recession in April 2020, unemployment hit 14.7%.

Still, as of June 2024, the national unemployment rate remains relatively low at 4.1%, with little change from the previous month. Regional and state employment range widely depending on local economies. Seasonally adjusted unemployment rates by state vary, ranging from just 2% in the Dakotas to 5.3% in Washington D.C.

Read on to see the counties with the highest unemployment in Alabama.

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#50. Clay County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.3%
— 1-month change: No change
— 1-year change: Up 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 5,887 people (136 unemployed)

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#49. Bibb County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.3%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 8,839 people (205 unemployed)

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#48. Jackson County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.3%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 23,642 people (549 unemployed)

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#47. Houston County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.3%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 48,989 people (1,149 unemployed)

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#46. Lee County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.3%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 83,264 people (1,890 unemployed)

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#45. Tuscaloosa County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.3%
— 1-month change: Down 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 107,726 people (2,531 unemployed)

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#44. Jefferson County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.3%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 329,340 people (7,713 unemployed)

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#43. Geneva County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.4%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 11,180 people (264 unemployed)

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#42. Marion County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.4%
— 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 13,396 people (325 unemployed)

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#41. Chambers County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.4%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 16,573 people (396 unemployed)

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#40. Dale County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.4%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 21,333 people (516 unemployed)

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#39. Lauderdale County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.4%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 43,973 people (1,058 unemployed)

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#38. Coosa County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,472 people (110 unemployed)

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#37. Bullock County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.5%
— 1-month change: No change
— 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,468 people (112 unemployed)

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#36. Crenshaw County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.8 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 6,114 people (155 unemployed)

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#35. Washington County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 9,023 people (229 unemployed)

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#34. Randolph County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 9,715 people (241 unemployed)

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#33. Tallapoosa County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 17,594 people (433 unemployed)

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#32. Walker County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 26,011 people (655 unemployed)

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#31. Talladega County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 36,175 people (902 unemployed)

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#30. Montgomery County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 109,584 people (2,759 unemployed)

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#29. Lamar County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 5,776 people (149 unemployed)

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#28. Pike County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 15,990 people (422 unemployed)

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#27. Coffee County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 22,011 people (582 unemployed)

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#26. Russell County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 23,857 people (619 unemployed)

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#25. Colbert County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 24,315 people (629 unemployed)

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#24. Calhoun County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 46,184 people (1,194 unemployed)

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#23. Henry County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 7,146 people (194 unemployed)

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#22. Winston County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 9,990 people (271 unemployed)

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#21. Covington County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 14,847 people (394 unemployed)

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#20. Etowah County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 39,938 people (1,060 unemployed)

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#19. Butler County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.8%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 9,060 people (255 unemployed)

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#18. Escambia County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.8%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 14,586 people (404 unemployed)

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#17. Hale County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.9%
— 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 5,838 people (171 unemployed)

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#16. Fayette County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.9%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 6,467 people (188 unemployed)

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#15. Pickens County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.9%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 7,802 people (228 unemployed)

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#14. Mobile County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 2.9%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 190,111 people (5,523 unemployed)

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#13. Macon County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.1%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 8,083 people (251 unemployed)

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#12. Conecuh County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.2%
— 1-month change: Down 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,260 people (138 unemployed)

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#11. Marengo County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.2%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 7,587 people (239 unemployed)

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#10. Choctaw County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,001 people (145 unemployed)

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#9. Barbour County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: No change
– Total labor force: 7,707 people (275 unemployed)

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#8. Sumter County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.8 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,470 people (166 unemployed)

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#7. Monroe County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.8%
— 1-month change: Down 0.6 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 6,776 people (255 unemployed)

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#6. Greene County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.9%
— 1-month change: Down 0.6 percentage points
— 1-year change: No change
– Total labor force: 2,929 people (115 unemployed)

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#5. Lowndes County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
— 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 3,501 people (146 unemployed)

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#4. Clarke County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.3%
— 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: No change
– Total labor force: 7,514 people (320 unemployed)

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#3. Dallas County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
— 1-month change: Down 0.6 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 13,286 people (588 unemployed)

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#2. Perry County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.7 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,876 people (128 unemployed)

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#1. Wilcox County

– May unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.8%
— 1-month change: Down 0.9 percentage points
— 1-year change: Up 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,470 people (169 unemployed)

This story features data reporting by Paxtyn Merten and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 50 states.

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