The labor force — people who are working or have actively looked for work in the past month — totaled 1,670,292. Statewide employment fell by 3,052, while the number of people counted as unemployed declined by 2,291. When people stop actively looking for work, they are no longer counted as unemployed, which can push the jobless rate down without a corresponding increase in employment.

Nevada recorded a net gain of 1,300 jobs in September. The Las Vegas metropolitan area added 1,500, meaning job losses elsewhere offset part of the regional increase.

The state’s unemployment rate has fallen from 5.3% in April to 4.7% in September. It first moved below 5% since the pandemic in August. Hotel and restaurant employment, classified as leisure and hospitality, is near its pre-pandemic level; growth in other industries has contributed more to the broader employment gains.

Nevada’s employment growth rate was 1.29%, the seventh-fastest in the country, after leading the nation earlier in 2026. New Mexico and South Carolina had the highest growth rates, at 1.62% each. The most recent available state comparisons from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics were for August: Nevada was below Washington, D.C., at 5.7%, and states including California, Connecticut and Oregon, each at 5.1%.

A total of 11,106 Nevadans filed initial unemployment insurance claims in September, 386 fewer than in August, a 3.4% decline.