Dec. 29, 2025

The unemployment rate for the Sioux Falls metro area fell to 1.8 percent in September from 2.2 percent in August.

That’s the lowest rate for U.S. metros, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Rapid City’s rate also fell from 2.2 percent in August, but to 1.9 percent in September. No other metro areas in the U.S. have rates of less than 2 percent. The highest jobless figure was 21.5 percent in El Centro, California.

Publication of September data was delayed for more than six weeks because of the federal government shutdown. Much of the data for October was not collected, so the next report will be for November.

For the Sioux Falls metro area, which includes Minnehaha, Lincoln, McCook and Turner counties and Rock County in Minnesota, the 1.8 percent rate in September represents 3,181 unemployed people, according to the South Dakota Department of Labor & Regulation. In August, the number of unemployed was 3,814.

The jobless rate, which is not seasonally adjusted and is preliminary, represents residents who do not have jobs, have actively looked for one in the past four weeks and are available to work. It also includes those who have been laid off temporarily.

The total labor force for the Sioux Falls MSA, those who are employed and unemployed, was 177,052 in September, an increase from 176,989 in August.

A year ago, the metro area jobless rate was 1.4 percent, with 2,401 unemployed people.

The labor supply, those who would be available to staff a new or expanding business, was estimated at 17,670 people in the metro area, down from 18,270 in August. That includes people who are not working and those who would like to change jobs.

The number of job openings in the Sioux Falls MSA dropped to 10,935 in September, according to the state’s virtual labor market data system. There were 11,012 open positions the previous month. A year ago, there were 12,648 openings.

Nonfarm wage and salaried worker levels in the Sioux Falls MSA rose by 500 people to 181,300 in September compared with the previous month. The largest increase was 10 percent in government, a gain of 1,600 jobs. The biggest percentage decline – 5 percent — was in the leisure and hospitality category with 900 fewer jobs.

Compared with a year ago, the overall nonfarm wage and salaried worker level in the MSA was down by 100 people.

South Dakota’s unemployment rate rose from 1.9 percent in August to 2 percent in September, remaining the lowest rate in the country.

The next-lowest rate was 2.5 percent in Hawaii and Vermont. The District of Columbia had the highest unemployment rate at 6.2 percent, and the next-highest rate was in California at 5.6 percent.

South Dakota’s jobless rate, which is seasonally adjusted, represents 9,700 people who do not have jobs, have actively looked for one in the past four weeks and are available to work, along with those laid off temporarily, according to the state Labor Department. A year ago, the rate was 1.8 percent, and there were 9,100 unemployed South Dakotans.

In September, South Dakota’s labor force dropped by 300 people to 492,400 from the previous month. A year ago, it was 490,500.

The labor supply, those who would be available to staff a new or expanding business, was estimated at 50,830 people. That’s down from 52,805 in August and includes people who are not working and those who would like to change jobs.

The national unemployment rate rose to 4.4 percent in September from 4.3 percent the previous month. A year ago, it was 4.1 percent.