Unemployment rates have continued to rise across U.S. metropolitan areas, provoking alarm throughout the nation and guiding the Federal Reserve’s decision to cut interest rates last month.

As of August, unemployment rates had increased from the previous year in 315 out of 389 U.S. metros areas—including 45 of the 51 largest metros, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

To get a glimpse of regional variations in employment, Stacker compiled a list of counties with the highest unemployment rates in Mississippi, using BLS data. Counties are ranked by their preliminary unemployment rate in August 2024, with initial ties broken by the number of unemployed people within that county, though some ties may remain. County-level unemployment rates are not seasonally adjusted.

The national unemployment rate remains relatively low at 4.1% in September , down slightly from the previous month. Still, it’s up substantially from 3.8% during the same month last year and remains higher than it had otherwise been since December 2021. By comparison, unemployment rates surged to 10% in October 2009 during the Great Recession, and a full recovery took years. At the height of the brief COVID-19 recession in April 2020, unemployment hit 14.7%.

The Federal Reserve has shifted its focus from curbing inflation to unemployment, cutting interest rates to alleviate economic strain and spur job growth.

Since last year, unemployment has spiked in half of states—a signal often indicating a looming recession, as Piper Sandler Chief Global Economist Nancy Lazar told Business Insider . These jobless rates, paired with layoffs among major U.S. employers like Google and Tesla, have sparked concern among Americans. Minus a major economic blow, economists continue to forecast that the U.S. is tracking toward an incremental slowdown in growth known as a “ soft landing .” The Fed plans to continue cutting rates to achieve this.

To get a better idea of your community’s current economy, read on to see the counties with the highest unemployment in Mississippi.

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#50. Montgomery County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.3%
— 1-month change: Down 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 3,803 people (124 unemployed)

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#49. Stone County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.3%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 7,103 people (234 unemployed)

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#48. Winston County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.3%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 7,204 people (235 unemployed)

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#47. Newton County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.3%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.8 percentage points
– Total labor force: 7,786 people (258 unemployed)

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#46. Jones County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.3%
— 1-month change: No change
— 1-year change: Down 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 25,259 people (827 unemployed)

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#45. Lowndes County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.3%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 24,872 people (833 unemployed)

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#44. Yalobusha County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.4%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,770 people (161 unemployed)

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#43. Tishomingo County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.4%
— 1-month change: Up 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 8,229 people (277 unemployed)

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#42. Tate County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.4%
— 1-month change: No change
— 1-year change: Down 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 11,908 people (406 unemployed)

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#41. Greene County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 1.0 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,347 people (150 unemployed)

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#40. Attala County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 6,924 people (243 unemployed)

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#39. Clay County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.6 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 9,405 people (327 unemployed)

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#38. Neshoba County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 10,146 people (355 unemployed)

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#37. Monroe County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.5%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 14,593 people (511 unemployed)

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#36. Benton County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.6%
— 1-month change: No change
— 1-year change: Down 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,983 people (108 unemployed)

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#35. Jasper County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 5,896 people (212 unemployed)

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#34. Wayne County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 7,011 people (253 unemployed)

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#33. Yazoo County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 8,924 people (318 unemployed)

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#32. Copiah County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 10,923 people (389 unemployed)

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#31. Bolivar County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 11,372 people (409 unemployed)

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#30. Marshall County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 13,965 people (502 unemployed)

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#29. Oktibbeha County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 22,010 people (795 unemployed)

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#28. Perry County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.8 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,264 people (157 unemployed)

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#27. Lawrence County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,821 people (177 unemployed)

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#26. Clarke County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.7%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 5,508 people (206 unemployed)

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#25. Tunica County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.8%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: No change
– Total labor force: 4,093 people (154 unemployed)

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#24. Amite County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.8%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 1.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,287 people (161 unemployed)

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#23. Carroll County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.9%
— 1-month change: Down 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 3,086 people (119 unemployed)

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#22. Walthall County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.9%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.8 percentage points
– Total labor force: 4,849 people (188 unemployed)

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#21. George County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.9%
— 1-month change: Down 0.5 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 8,999 people (348 unemployed)

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#20. Pike County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 3.9%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 14,105 people (557 unemployed)

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#19. Panola County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.0%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.2 percentage points
– Total labor force: 12,395 people (501 unemployed)

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#18. Chickasaw County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.1%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 6,050 people (248 unemployed)

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#17. Franklin County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.2%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,690 people (112 unemployed)

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#16. Kemper County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.3%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 3,181 people (136 unemployed)

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#15. Jefferson Davis County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
— 1-month change: Down 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 3,898 people (172 unemployed)

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#14. Adams County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.4%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 10,611 people (462 unemployed)

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#13. Quitman County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,279 people (105 unemployed)

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#12. Sunflower County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.4 percentage points
– Total labor force: 7,705 people (353 unemployed)

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#11. Leflore County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 4.8%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.6 percentage points
– Total labor force: 8,721 people (422 unemployed)

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#10. Noxubee County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.0%
— 1-month change: Down 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 3,372 people (170 unemployed)

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#9. Wilkinson County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.1%
— 1-month change: Down 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 1.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,553 people (130 unemployed)

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#8. Coahoma County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.1%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.3 percentage points
– Total labor force: 7,427 people (381 unemployed)

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#7. Washington County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.1%
— 1-month change: Down 0.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 14,220 people (719 unemployed)

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#6. Sharkey County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.4%
— 1-month change: Down 0.3 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 1.0 percentage points
– Total labor force: 1,128 people (61 unemployed)

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#5. Holmes County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 5.6%
— 1-month change: Down 0.4 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 1.0 percentage points
– Total labor force: 5,034 people (284 unemployed)

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#4. Humphreys County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.5%
— 1-month change: Down 1.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 1.0 percentage points
– Total labor force: 1,910 people (124 unemployed)

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#3. Issaquena County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 6.6%
— 1-month change: Up 0.2 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 0.7 percentage points
– Total labor force: 304 people (20 unemployed)

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#2. Claiborne County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 7.7%
— 1-month change: Down 1.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 1.1 percentage points
– Total labor force: 2,881 people (222 unemployed)

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#1. Jefferson County

– August unemployment rate (preliminary): 11.9%
— 1-month change: Down 1.1 percentage points
— 1-year change: Down 2.5 percentage points
– Total labor force: 1,813 people (216 unemployed)

This story features data reporting and writing by Paxtyn Merten and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 50 states.

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