California Unemployment

According to the BLS current population survey (CPS), the unemployment rate for California rose 10.0 percentage points in April 2020 to 15.5%. The state unemployment rate was 0.8 percentage points higher than the national rate for the month. The unemployment rate for California in April 2020 is at a new high. You can also see California unemployment compared to other states.

Unemployment Rate	April 2020	Month/Month	Year/Year
National	14.7%	+10.3	+11.1
California	15.5%	+10.0	+11.3

Unemployment Rate: California, National

Note: Recessions shown in gray

California Unemployed

The number of people unemployed in California in April 2020 is at a new high of 2,885,334. California job growth data is also available.

Unemployed Persons	April 2020	Month/Month	Year/Year
California	2,885,334	+1,833,171	+2,078,873

Number of Unemployed Persons

California Unemployment History

Date	National Unemployment Rate	California Unemployment Rate	California Unemployed
April 2020	14.7%	15.5%	2,885,334
March 2020	4.4%	5.5%	1,052,163
February 2020	3.5%	3.9%	759,328
January 2020	3.6%	3.9%	753,269
December 2019	3.5%	3.9%	754,716
November 2019	3.5%	3.9%	753,741
October 2019	3.6%	3.9%	753,978
September 2019	3.5%	3.9%	757,881
August 2019	3.7%	3.9%	763,836
July 2019	3.7%	4.0%	771,612
June 2019	3.7%	4.0%	780,966
May 2019	3.6%	4.1%	792,799