SALT LAKE CITY — Utah’s nonfarm payroll employment for August 2026 increased an estimated 1.2% across the past 12 months, with the state’s economy adding a cumulative 20,600 jobs since August 2025. Utah’s current job count stands at 1,788,800.

August’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate is estimated at 3.5%, down a tenth of a percentage point from its level in July. Approximately 64,100 Utahns are unemployed. The August national unemployment rate is estimated at 4.1%, unchanged from its level in July.

“Utah’s economy continues to demonstrate fundamental stability as our prime-age workforce expands and secures employment at very high rates,” said Ben Crabb, chief economist with the Department of Workforce Services. “However, the broader hiring landscape has cooled around the edges, leading to a more competitive environment for secondary hours, part-time shifts, and those just entering the workforce.”

Utah’s August private sector employment recorded a year-over-year expansion of 1.6%, or a 23,600-job increase. Eight of the 10 major private-sector industry groups posted net year-over-year job gains. The overall gains are led by professional and business services (8,500 jobs), education and health services (4,900 jobs), and leisure and hospitality (4,000 jobs). Information (-2,300 jobs) and natural resources

(-200 jobs) experienced the year-over-year job losses.