How many jobs were added in Illinois last month?
Refreshed monthly
Illinois gained 1,500 jobs in June 2026, ranking it 16th among states in job growth. Those figures comes 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 6,400 new jobs per month. These figures are often revised in later months as more complete data rolls in.
+1.5K
month to month change in number of jobs (June 2026)
16th
rank among states in monthly job growth (June 2026)
June 2026's gain of 1,500 jobs was the 4th consecutive month of positive job growth in Illinois. Monthly job growth was down from the 4,100 new jobs in May 2026.
During the latest five year period (July 2021 to June 2026), Illinois gained jobs in 37 out of 60 months. June 2026 had the 24th-lowest job growth during this period. The highest gains during this period occurred in October 2021 (+60,800) while job growth was weakest in July 2023 (-24,400).
There were 1,500 more jobs in June 2026 in Illinois than the previous month.
Monthly change in nonfarm employment, July 2021–June 2026, seasonally adjusted
Which Illinois sectors and industries had the best and worst job growth in June 2026?
The three supersectors with the highest job growth in June 2026 were professional, scientific, and technical services, accommodation and food services, and arts, entertainment, and recreation. Professional, scientific, and technical services added 3,300 jobs, more than the entire economy. Accommodation and food services gained 1,600 jobs, while arts, entertainment, and recreation added 1,400. The remaining supersectors either posted smaller gains or lost jobs during the month.
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The health care and social assistance sector gained 200 jobs during June 2026.
Change in jobs since previous month with circle size representing number of sector jobs in Illinois (June 2026)
How does Illinois's job growth in 2026 compare to previous years?
In 2025, Illinois lost an average of 525 jobs every month. That's lower than the 2024 average monthly increase of 3,100, and the lowest since 2020. The 2025 average ranks as fourth-worst in job growth since 2007.
When excluding the two pandemic-affected years of 2020 and 2021, job growth ranged from a loss of 22,400 on average every month in 2009 to a gain of 7,200 on average every month in 2014.
In 2025, Illinois lost an average of 525 jobs every month.
Average monthly change in the number of jobs, seasonally adjusted
Job growth among eight metro areas primarily in Illinois during June 2026 ranged from a loss of 3,300 jobs in the Chicago, IL area to a gain of 700 jobs in the Bloomington, IL area metro area
Monthly job growth, by metro area
Metro areas where at least one of its primary counties are within Illinois
| Metro area | Change in jobs | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | +700 | |
| 2. | +300 | |
| 3. | +200 | |
| 4. | +0 | |
| 5. | -100 | |
| 6. | -300 | |
| 7. | -300 | |
| 8. | -300 | |
| 9. | -800 | |
| 10. | -3,300 |
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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.
