TALLAHASSEE — Florida’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate climbed to 4.5 percent in January 2026, up 0.2 percentage point from December and 1.0 percentage point higher than the same month a year earlier, according to benchmarked data released Wednesday by the Florida Department of Commerce.
The state had 499,000 unemployed residents out of a civilian labor force of 11,124,000. Nationally, the U.S. seasonally adjusted unemployment rate stood at 4.3 percent.
Florida’s total nonagricultural employment totaled 9,975,300 jobs in January. That figure represented a gain of 21,400 jobs over the month but a net loss of 20,600 jobs — or 0.2 percent — compared with January 2025. Nationally, employment rose 0.2 percent over the year.
Private-sector employment rose 23,800 jobs (+0.3 percent) over the month but fell 9,000 jobs (-0.1 percent) over the year.
Only two of the state’s ten major industry sectors added jobs over the year. Education and health services led the way with an increase of 45,700 jobs (+2.9 percent). Manufacturing recorded a modest gain of 800 jobs (+0.2 percent).
Job losses occurred in the other eight sectors. The largest declines were in professional and business services (–15,900 jobs, –1.0 percent), total government (–11,600 jobs, –1.0 percent), financial activities (–9,200 jobs, –1.3 percent), construction (–8,800 jobs, –1.3 percent), other services (–7,900 jobs, –2.1 percent), trade, transportation and utilities (–6,200 jobs, –0.3 percent), leisure and hospitality (–4,800 jobs, –0.4 percent), and information (–2,800 jobs, –1.8 percent).
Among Florida’s counties, Miami-Dade posted the lowest not-seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate in January at 2.6 percent, followed by Monroe County (3.6 percent) and Wakulla County (4.6 percent). Taylor County recorded the highest rate at 10.3 percent, followed by Sumter County (9.0 percent) and Citrus County (7.5 percent).
Eleven of Florida’s 25 metropolitan areas gained jobs over the year. The largest increases were in the Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford metro area (+6,800 jobs, +0.5 percent), North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota (+3,500 jobs, +1.0 percent), and Lakeland-Winter Haven (+3,100 jobs, +1.1 percent).
Thirteen metro areas lost jobs, with the biggest declines in Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach-Sunrise (–9,900 jobs, –1.1 percent), Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall (–5,700 jobs, –0.4 percent), West Palm Beach-Boca Raton-Delray Beach (–5,300 jobs, –0.7 percent), Cape Coral-Fort Myers (–4,900 jobs, –1.5 percent), and Naples-Marco Island (–4,200 jobs, –2.3 percent).
The Homosassa Springs metro area was unchanged.
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