Washington, DC Has the Slowest Job Growth of Any Big City in America (2026)

Name: Fastest job growth by city and state, The Honest Local
Creator: The Honest Local
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Washington, DC has the slowest job growth of the 106 US cities we rank, with jobs down 2.0% in a year (BLS, August 2026). Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, Washington are next, each with jobs down 1.5% in a year.

By The Honest Local · 106 cities · every value links to its public source

-2.0%Washington, DC leads on the list, the lowest reading of 106 cities

The top five cities job growth in a year

No. 1Washington, DC-2.0%job growth in a year
No. 2Portland, Oregon-1.5%job growth in a year
No. 2Vancouver, Washington-1.5%job growth in a year
No. 4Rochester, New York-1.3%job growth in a year
No. 5Indianapolis, Indiana-1.1%job growth in a year

Slowest Job Growth by City on the map

Fastest job growth by city and state, cities hover for the numbers, click for every one

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Total nonfarm jobs, the latest month against the same month a year earlier, from the BLS Current Employment Statistics; fastest growth first.

Slowest Job Growth by City, all 106

The full ranking job growth in a year

	Place	job growth in a year
1	Washington, DCbig city	-2.0%
2	Portland, Oregonbig city	-1.5%
2	Vancouver, Washington	-1.5%
4	Rochester, New York	-1.3%
5	Indianapolis, Indianabig city	-1.1%
6	Madison, Wisconsinbig city	-0.9%
7	Richmond, Virginia	-0.8%
8	Poughkeepsie, New York	-0.8%
9	Toledo, Ohiobig city	-0.7%
10	Spokane, Washington	-0.6%
11	Virginia Beach, Virginiabig city	-0.6%
12	Albuquerque, New Mexicobig city	-0.5%
13	Syracuse, New York	-0.5%
14	Memphis, Tennesseebig city	-0.5%
15	Oxnard, California	-0.5%
16	Baltimore, Marylandbig city	-0.5%
17	Des Moines, Iowa	-0.5%
18	Atlanta, Georgiabig city	-0.5%
19	Stockton, Californiabig city	-0.4%
20	Ogden, Utah	-0.3%
21	Milwaukee, Wisconsinbig city	-0.3%
22	Detroit, Michiganbig city	-0.2%
23	Augusta, Georgia	-0.2%
24	Louisville, Kentuckybig city	-0.1%
25	Honolulu, Hawaiibig city	-0.1%
26	Akron, Ohio	-0.1%
27	Bakersfield, Californiabig city	-0.1%
28	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvaniabig city	-0.0%
29	Buffalo, New Yorkbig city	0.0%
30	Columbus, Ohiobig city	0.1%
31	Jacksonville, Floridabig city	0.1%
32	Jackson, Mississippi	0.1%
33	Denver, Coloradobig city	0.1%
34	Boston, Massachusettsbig city	0.2%
35	Chicago, Illinoisbig city	0.2%
36	Providence, Rhode Island	0.2%
37	New Orleans, Louisianabig city	0.3%
38	Tulsa, Oklahomabig city	0.3%
39	Cincinnati, Ohiobig city	0.3%
40	Knoxville, Tennessee	0.3%
41	Dayton, Ohio	0.3%
42	Miami, Floridabig city	0.4%
43	Chattanooga, Tennessee	0.4%
44	Cleveland, Ohiobig city	0.4%
45	Tucson, Arizonabig city	0.4%
46	Albany, New York	0.4%
47	Colorado Springs, Coloradobig city	0.4%
48	Durham, North Carolinabig city	0.5%
49	Cape Coral, Florida	0.5%
50	New York, New Yorkbig city	0.5%
51	Melbourne, Florida	0.5%
52	San Antonio, Texasbig city	0.5%
53	San Francisco, Californiabig city	0.6%
54	Los Angeles, Californiabig city	0.6%
55	Nashville, Tennesseebig city	0.7%
56	Grand Rapids, Michigan	0.7%
57	St. Louis, Missouribig city	0.7%
58	Portland, Maine	0.7%
59	Asheville, North Carolina	0.7%
60	San Diego, Californiabig city	0.7%
61	Kansas City, Missouribig city	0.7%
62	Oklahoma City, Oklahomabig city	0.7%
63	Riverside, Californiabig city	0.7%
64	Sacramento, Californiabig city	0.8%
65	Fresno, Californiabig city	0.8%
66	Savannah, Georgia	0.8%
67	Orlando, Floridabig city	0.8%
68	Harrisburg, Pennsylvania	0.8%
69	Philadelphia, Pennsylvaniabig city	0.8%
70	Reno, Nevadabig city	0.8%
71	Daytona Beach, Florida	0.9%
72	Seattle, Washingtonbig city	0.9%
73	El Paso, Texasbig city	0.9%
74	Columbia, South Carolina	0.9%
75	Phoenix, Arizonabig city	0.9%
76	Birmingham, Alabama	0.9%
77	Hartford, Connecticut	0.9%
78	Tampa, Floridabig city	0.9%
79	Greensboro, North Carolinabig city	0.9%
80	McAllen, Texas	1.0%
81	Dallas, Texasbig city	1.0%
82	Provo, Utah	1.0%
83	New Haven, Connecticut	1.0%
84	Sarasota, Florida	1.0%
85	Little Rock, Arkansas	1.1%
86	Boise, Idaho	1.1%
87	Austin, Texasbig city	1.2%
88	Bridgeport, Connecticut	1.2%
89	Omaha, Nebraskabig city	1.2%
90	Winston-Salem, North Carolinabig city	1.3%
91	Allentown, Pennsylvania	1.3%
92	Lakeland, Florida	1.3%
93	Houston, Texasbig city	1.3%
94	Minneapolis, Minnesotabig city	1.4%
95	Charleston, South Carolina	1.4%
96	Las Vegas, Nevadabig city	1.5%
97	Charlotte, North Carolinabig city	1.5%
98	San Jose, Californiabig city	1.6%
99	Huntsville, Alabama	1.8%
100	Greenville, South Carolina	1.9%
101	Worcester, Massachusetts	1.9%
102	Raleigh, North Carolinabig city	2.2%
103	Fayetteville, Arkansas	2.2%
104	Wichita, Kansasbig city	2.3%
105	Salt Lake City, Utah	2.5%
106	Baton Rouge, Louisiana	3.2%

Sources and method

BLS Current Employment Statistics (via tape_readings) · 2026-08

How we got this. Job growth comes from tape_readings, which src/tape/job-growth.ts refreshes monthly from the BLS Current Employment Statistics: total nonfarm employment, not seasonally adjusted, the latest month against the same month a year earlier, in percent. A metro reads its own CES series (Vancouver, Washington shares Portland's, the way BLS publishes it); a state reads its statewide series. Cities and states each rank on their own list, fastest growth first. It refreshes monthly.

Rankings by The Honest Local from public data, one page per list, refreshed on each source’s own cycle. Places with no reading are left out rather than estimated. Every value on this page carries its source in the page’s structured data.

Photos https://www.flickr.com/photos/dougtone/, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons · More Than Just Parks.