Department of Numbers

Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, Illinois Job Growth

There were 4,419,100 jobs in Chicago, Illinois in May 2021 according to the CES survey of employers. The CPS survey of households showed 4,321,383 employed persons for the month. Chicago lost 5,300 jobs in May 2021 according to the CES survey while the broader CPS measure of employment rose by 12,062 (Comparing CES and CPS employment numbers.). You can also compare Chicago job growth to job growth in other cities.

Employment Survey May 2021 Month/Month Year/Year
CES 4,419,100 -5,300 +290,800
CPS 4,321,383 +12,062 +395,443

Note: The CPS survey data is now seasonally adjusted at the metropolitan level by with the new BLS SSA series.

Chicago, Illinois Employment Changes

The charts below show the monthly job growth for Chicago as measured by the CES and CPS surveys. To illustrate the trend, the 3 month moving average change in employment is shown in green.

CES Employment Change: 1 Month, Rolling 3 Month

CPS Employment Change: 1 Month, Rolling 3 Month

Total Employment for Chicago, Illinois

CES employment for Chicago peaked in February 2020 at 4,800,000. Since then 380,900 jobs have been lost in Chicago according to the employer survey. From a trough of 4,120,700 in April 2020, Chicago has gained 298,400 jobs according to CES employment figures.

CPS employment reached a maximum of 4,682,950 for Chicago in December 2018. 361,567 jobs have been lost in Chicago since then according to the household survey. From a April 2020 low of 3,786,484, Chicago has added 534,899 jobs according to the CPS survey.

Employment: CES, CPS

CES and CPS employment chart through May 2021

Chicago, Illinois Employment History

Date CES
Employment		 CES
Month/Month		 CPS
Employment		 CPS
Month/Month
May 2021 4,419,100 -5,300 4,321,383 12,062
April 2021 4,424,400 9,300 4,309,321 7,557
March 2021 4,415,100 14,700 4,301,764 -3,149
February 2021 4,400,400 20,000 4,304,913 -9,023
January 2021 4,380,400 14,000 4,313,936 -10,663
December 2020 4,366,400 -5,700 4,324,599 21,992
November 2020 4,372,100 -2,600 4,302,607 23,344
October 2020 4,374,700 22,300 4,279,263 20,791
September 2020 4,352,400 21,600 4,258,472 143,507
August 2020 4,330,800 57,200 4,114,965 59,883
July 2020 4,273,600 75,100 4,055,082 -23,620
June 2020 4,198,500 70,200 4,078,702 152,762

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