Madison's unemployment rate was 2.7% in August, up from 2.2% a year earlier, federal figures show. That is still below Huntsville, Madison County and Alabama.
Madison’s unemployment rate was 2.7% in August, up from 2.2% in August 2025. About 904 city residents were out of work and looking for a job, against 749 a year earlier.
The figures come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Local Area Unemployment Statistics for the city of Madison. The August numbers are preliminary and can be revised.
Even with the rise, Madison’s rate is lower than the rates for Huntsville, Madison County and the state.
How Madison compares
| Area | August 2025 | August 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Madison | 2.2% | 2.7% |
| Madison County | 2.5% | 3.0% |
| Huntsville | 2.6% | 3.2% |
| Alabama | 3.0% | 3.6% |
The rates are not seasonally adjusted, so the fair comparison is with the same month a year earlier. The sources are the BLS series for Madison County, Huntsville and Alabama.
Every area rose by half a percentage point or a little more, so Madison moved in step with the region and the state.
The numbers behind the rate
Madison’s labor force, the residents who are working or looking for work, was 33,559 in August. A year earlier it was 33,667.
So the labor force barely moved. The rise in the rate came from more residents looking for work: 904 in August, up 155 from 749.
Across Madison County, 6,861 people were unemployed in August, out of a labor force of 226,048. A year earlier it was 5,605 out of 226,795.
The past year, month by month
Madison’s rate fell to a low of 1.8% in December 2025. It then climbed to 3.1% in June 2026. It eased to 2.9% in July and 2.7% in August.
There is no figure for October 2025. The bureau did not produce one because of the 2025 lapse in federal appropriations.
What it means for you
Madison’s rate is the lowest of the four areas in the table. But slightly more residents are looking for work than a year ago, and the same is true across the Huntsville area.
If you are looking for work, the city posts its own openings on the City of Madison website. The state’s job service is Alabama Works.
For more on the local economy, see our pages on home prices in Madison and new businesses.
Updated Oct. 31: The bureau revised its August figures for Madison. The rate is unchanged at 2.7%; the number of unemployed residents is now 904, not 906, and the labor force 33,559, not 33,524. The Madison County August figures were revised to 6,861 unemployed out of 226,048. The September figures are in our story Madison jobless rate rises to 3% in September.
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