How many jobs were lost in California last month?
Refreshed monthly
California lost 20,500 jobs in July 2026, ranking it 48th among states in job growth. Those figures come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' state employment report, which tracks monthly job changes. Job numbers can swing month to month as local economies expand or contract, but over the past five years the state has averaged about 20,900 new jobs per month. These figures are often revised in later months as more complete data rolls in.
-20.5K
month to month change in number of jobs (July 2026)
48th
rank among states in monthly job growth (July 2026)
California’s job loss of 20,500 in July 2026 was a directional change from the previous month. The latest monthly job change was down from the 6,100 gain in June 2026.
During the latest five year period (August 2021 to July 2026), California gained jobs in 39 out of 60 months. July 2026 had the ninth-lowest job growth during this period. The highest gains during this period occurred in October 2021 (+244,600) while job growth was weakest in February 2024 (-71,200).
There were 20,500 fewer jobs in July 2026 in California than the previous month.
Monthly change in nonfarm employment, August 2021–July 2026, seasonally adjusted
Which California sectors and industries had the best and worst job growth in July 2026?
The three supersectors with the highest job growth in July 2026 were transportation, warehousing, and utilities, health care and social assistance, and construction. Transportation, warehousing, and utilities added 4,100 jobs, more than the entire economy. Health care and social assistance gained 3,500 jobs, while construction added 2,900. The remaining supersectors either posted smaller gains or lost jobs during the month.
The three lowest-performing supersectors were professional, scientific, and technical services, administrative and support and waste management and remediation services, and arts, entertainment, and recreation. professional, scientific, and technical services lost 9,200 jobs in July 2026, while administrative and support and waste management and remediation services lost 6,200 jobs and arts, entertainment, and recreation lost 3,800 jobs.
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The health care and social assistance sector gained 3,500 jobs during July 2026.
Change in jobs since previous month with circle size representing number of sector jobs in California (July 2026)
How has California's job growth changed over time?
In 2025, California gained an average of 4,717 jobs every month. That's lower than the 2024 average monthly increase of 8,067, and the lowest since 2020. The 2025 average ranks as 16th-highest in job growth since 2007.
When excluding the two pandemic-affected years of 2020 and 2021, job growth ranged from a loss of 63,000 on average every month in 2009 to a gain of 42,000 on average every month in 2015.
In 2025, California gained an average of 4,700 jobs every month.
Average monthly change in the number of jobs, seasonally adjusted
Job growth among 25 metro areas primarily in California during July 2026 ranged from a loss of 4,100 jobs in the Los Angeles, CA area to a gain of 3,300 jobs in the San Jose, CA area metro area.
Monthly job growth, by metro area
Metro areas where at least one of its primary counties are within California
| Metro area | Change in jobs | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | +3,300 | |
| 2. | +2,300 | |
| 3. | +1,400 | |
| 4. | +1,100 | |
| 5. | +600 | |
| 6. | +600 | |
| 7. | +300 | |
| 8. | +200 | |
| 9. | +200 | |
| 10. | +100 |
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Methodology
USAFacts standardizes data, in areas such as time and demographics, to make it easier to understand and compare.
Page sources
USAFacts endeavors to share the most up-to-date information available. We sourced the data on this page directly from government agencies; however, the intervals at which agencies publish updated data vary.
