Labor Force Participation Rate by State
District of Columbia has the highest Participation Rate in 2026 (71.0%), followed by Nebraska (69.6%) and North Dakota (69.6%). West Virginia has the lowest (54.3%).
Participation Rate, 2026
Darker green is better (higher is better). Click a place to highlight it.
All 51 ranked
Best first.
Distribution Median and middle halfThe median is the middle value: half of places are above it, half below. The middle half is the range holding the central 50% of places.More in the glossary →
Each dot is one state; the lines mark the median and the middle half.
Over time · 2022–2026
The top 5 in 2026, against the median.
- Median of all states
- District of Columbia
- Nebraska
- North Dakota
- Iowa
- Minnesota
Data
Click a column to sort, a row to highlight that place on the charts.
| # | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  District of Columbia | 71.0% | 70.2% |
| 2 |  Nebraska | 69.6% | 69.4% |
| 2 |  North Dakota | 69.6% | 69.2% |
| 4 |  Iowa | 67.3% | 67.1% |
| 5 |  Minnesota | 67.2% | 66.9% |
| 5 |  South Dakota | 67.2% | 66.8% |
| 7 |  Kansas | 67.0% | 66.7% |
| 8 |  Alaska | 66.8% | 65.7% |
| 9 |  Utah | 66.7% | 66.3% |
| 10 |  Massachusetts | 66.1% | 65.3% |
| 11 |  Colorado | 65.9% | 65.5% |
| 12 |  New Hampshire | 65.7% | 65.0% |
| 13 |  Wisconsin | 65.6% | 64.5% |
| 14 |  Texas | 64.4% | 64.2% |
| 15 |  New Jersey | 64.3% | 63.5% |
| 16 |  Maryland | 64.1% | 63.8% |
| 17 |  Missouri | 64.0% | 63.3% |
| 18 |  Indiana | 63.5% | 63.1% |
| 19 |  Illinois | 63.4% | 63.3% |
| 20 |  Virginia | 63.3% | 63.0% |
| 21 |  Pennsylvania | 63.0% | 62.5% |
| 21 |  Connecticut | 63.0% | 62.2% |
| 23 |  Oregon | 62.8% | 62.4% |
| 23 |  Vermont | 62.8% | 62.1% |
| 25 |  Rhode Island | 62.7% | 62.1% |
| 26 |  Nevada | 62.5% | 62.8% |
| 26 |  Montana | 62.5% | 61.5% |
| 28 |  Oklahoma | 62.3% | 61.9% |
| 29 |  Idaho | 61.9% | 61.6% |
| 30 |  Ohio | 61.8% | 61.4% |
| 31 |  Washington | 61.7% | 62.1% |
| 32 |  New York | 61.5% | 61.3% |
| 33 |  California | 61.0% | 61.6% |
| 33 |  Hawaii | 61.0% | 61.0% |
| 35 |  Georgia | 60.9% | 60.9% |
| 36 |  Wyoming | 60.8% | 60.3% |
| 37 |  Arizona | 59.7% | 60.1% |
| 38 |  Arkansas | 59.6% | 59.2% |
| 38 |  Maine | 59.6% | 58.8% |
| 40 |  Tennessee | 59.5% | 59.3% |
| 41 |  South Carolina | 59.3% | 58.8% |
| 42 |  Michigan | 59.0% | 59.1% |
| 43 |  Kentucky | 58.4% | 57.7% |
| 44 |  Louisiana | 58.3% | 58.5% |
| 45 |  Delaware | 58.2% | 58.1% |
| 46 |  North Carolina | 57.6% | 58.0% |
| 47 |  Florida | 57.3% | 57.5% |
| 48 |  New Mexico | 56.9% | 56.7% |
| 49 |  Alabama | 56.7% | 56.9% |
| 50 |  Mississippi | 54.9% | 55.0% |
| 51 |  West Virginia | 54.3% | 53.8% |
What correlates with Participation Rate (2026)?
Pearson r against 2,095 other state metrics sharing at least 31 states. Ranks are read by standing: a better rank counts as higher, whether rank 1 is the best place on a list or the worst. Correlation is not causation.
Higher together
Places that have a higher Participation Rate tend to score higher on these (or rank better)
Opposite directions
Places that have a higher Participation Rate tend to score lower on these (or rank worse)
Quick answers
- Which state has the highest Participation Rate?
- District of Columbia has the highest Participation Rate in 2026, at 71.0%, followed by Nebraska (69.6%) and North Dakota (69.6%).
- Which state has the lowest Participation Rate?
- West Virginia has the lowest Participation Rate in 2026, at 54.3%.
- What is the median Participation Rate across US states?
- The median is 62.5% across the 51 US states with data in 2026.
- Where does this labor force participation rate by state data come from?
- Rankodex compiles it from World Population Review and the primary sources it cites: Labor Force Participation Rate - Fred Economic Data.