Department of Numbers

Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, Massachusetts Job Growth

There were 2,598,200 jobs in Boston, Massachusetts in February 2021 according to the CES survey of employers. The CPS survey of households showed 2,580,312 employed persons for the month. Boston added 13,100 jobs in February 2021 according to the CES survey while the broader CPS measure of employment rose by 3,175 (Comparing CES and CPS employment numbers.). You can also compare Boston job growth to job growth in other cities.

Employment Survey February 2021 Month/Month Year/Year
CES 2,598,200 +13,100 -249,600
CPS 2,580,312 +3,175 -190,597

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

Boston, Massachusetts Employment Changes

The charts below show the monthly job growth for Boston 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 Boston, Massachusetts

CES employment for Boston peaked in February 2020 at 2,847,800. Since then 249,600 jobs have been lost in Boston according to the employer survey. From a trough of 2,331,900 in April 2020, Boston has gained 266,300 jobs according to CES employment figures.

CPS employment reached a maximum of 2,776,599 for Boston in December 2019. 196,287 jobs have been lost in Boston since then according to the household survey. From a April 2020 low of 2,128,867, Boston has added 451,445 jobs according to the CPS survey.

Employment: CES, CPS

CES and CPS employment chart through February 2021

Boston, Massachusetts Employment History

Date CES
Employment		 CES
Month/Month		 CPS
Employment		 CPS
Month/Month
February 2021 2,598,200 13,100 2,580,312 3,175
January 2021 2,585,100 23,900 2,577,137 50,487
December 2020 2,561,200 -1,700 2,526,650 27,493
November 2020 2,562,900 9,700 2,499,157 -1,667
October 2020 2,553,200 -1,500 2,500,824 -30,204
September 2020 2,554,700 25,000 2,531,028 172,680
August 2020 2,529,700 45,900 2,358,348 52,915
July 2020 2,483,800 67,500 2,305,433 41,858
June 2020 2,416,300 54,700 2,263,575 63,598
May 2020 2,361,600 29,700 2,199,977 71,110
April 2020 2,331,900 -485,300 2,128,867 -599,813
March 2020 2,817,200 -30,600 2,728,680 -42,229

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