Idaho’s March unemployment rate decreases to 3.6%

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: May 4, 2026
Media Contact: [email protected] or [email protected]

Idaho's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate decreased between February and March, from 3.7% to 3.6%.

March's labor force decreased by 2,286 (-0.2%) people to 1,005,848 while the labor force participation rate - the percentage of people 16 years or older who are either employed or looking for work - decreased by 0.3 percentage points between February and March, down to 62.4%.

Total employment decreased by 1,921 (-0.2%) to 969,265 and unemployment decreased by 365 (-1.0%) to 36,583.

Idaho's nonfarm jobs had a net increase of 2,100 (0.2%) for a total of 877,800 in March. Industry sectors with the greatest over-the-month gains included Administrative, Support and Waste Management Services (3.0%); Private Educational Services (1.7%); Other Services (1.0%); Construction (0.9%); Transportation, Warehousing and Utilities (0.9%); Federal Government (0.7%) and Retail Trade (0.5%).

Industries that experienced job decreases in March included Information (-2.3%); Arts, Entertainment and Recreation (-2.1%); Accommodation and Food Services (-0.6%); Nondurable Goods Manufacturing (-0.6%); Wholesale Trade (-0.6%) and Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (-0.5%).

All of Idaho's six Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) had over-the-month nonfarm job gains in March. Pocatello saw the largest increase at 1.3%, followed by Boise (0.5%), Coeur d'Alene (0.4%), Lewiston (0.3%), Idaho Falls (0.2%) and Twin Falls (0.2%).

Year over Year

Idaho's 3.6% unemployment rate for March 2026 was the same as in 2025. The labor force shrunk by 0.1% (560), as the number of employed Idahoans decreased by 539 (-0.1%). The number of unemployed Idahoans decreased by 21 (-0.1%).

Total nonfarm jobs increased by 0.6% (4,900). Most major industry sectors gained jobs except Arts, Entertainment and Recreation (-14.4%); Federal Government (-6.2%); Information (-5.6%); Wholesale Trade (-3.0%); Nondurable Goods Manufacturing (-2.8%); State Government (-1.9%) and Accommodation and Food Services (-1.4%).

Four of Idaho's MSAs had year-over-year nonfarm job gains in March. Lewiston had the greatest increase at 1.4%, followed by Coeur d'Alene (1.3%), Twin Falls (1.2%) and Boise (1.0%). Pocatello experienced a decrease of 1.5%, while Idaho Falls saw a decrease of 0.6%.

National Comparisons

Nationally, the unemployment rate decreased between February and March, down from 4.4% to 4.3%. The number of unemployed decreased by 332,000 (-4.4%) to 7.2 million. Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 178,000 (0.1%) to 158.6 million.

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Upcoming Idaho Release Schedule:

May 22, 2026 - Statewide labor force and nonfarm jobs data for April 2026
June 18, 2026 - Statewide labor force and nonfarm jobs data for May 2026

Find more labor market information at lmi.idaho.gov.

This project is 100% funded by the U.S. Department of Labor as part of an Employment and Training Administration award totaling $714,542.

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