DataRead at source, 29 September 2026
Hiring Statistics 2026: Openings, Hires, Quits, the Forecast, and What an Applicant Costs
The key hiring statistics for 2026: U.S. employers had 7,079,000 job openings in August 2026 (preliminary, BLS JOLTS), made 5,192,000 hires that month and saw 3,066,000 quits, a 1.9% quits rate. Unemployment was 4.1%, with 7,031,000 people unemployed. BLS projects 17,461,800 openings a year through 2035. On social job ads, the median campaign in Boostpoint's 2026 benchmark cost $13.88 per applicant.
Hiring statistics 2026 at a glance
- 7,079,000 job openings on the last business day of August 2026, a 4.3% openings rate (BLS JOLTS, preliminary).
- 5,192,000 hires during August 2026, a 3.3% hires rate.
- 3,066,000 quits in August 2026, a 1.9% quits rate; 1,641,000 layoffs and discharges, 1.0%.
- 4.1% unemployment rate in August 2026, with 7,031,000 people unemployed (BLS Current Population Survey).
- 61.6% labor force participation rate in August 2026, against 62.3% in August 2025.
- 159,075,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in August 2026 (preliminary), against 158,472,000 a year earlier.
- 17,461,800 projected job openings a year across all occupations, 2025 to 2035 (BLS Employment Projections).
- 55% of Oregon job vacancies were difficult to fill in 2024, according to employers surveyed by the Oregon Employment Department.
- $13.88 median cost per applicant across 891 social recruitment campaigns in Boostpoint's 2026 benchmark; the volume-weighted average was $8.02.
Job openings, hires and quits in 2026
The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) is the federal measure of hiring activity. Openings are a count on the last business day of the month; hires, quits and layoffs are counted across the month. All figures are seasonally adjusted, in thousands.
| Month | Job openings | Hires | Quits | Layoffs and discharges |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 2026 (preliminary) | 7,079 (4.3%) | 5,192 (3.3%) | 3,066 (1.9%) | 1,641 (1.0%) |
| July 2026 | 7,335 (4.4%) | 5,146 (3.2%) | 3,089 (1.9%) | 1,702 (1.1%) |
| June 2026 | 7,182 (4.3%) | 5,332 (3.4%) | 3,213 (2.0%) | 1,785 (1.1%) |
| January 2026 | 7,240 (4.4%) | 5,347 (3.4%) | 3,131 (2.0%) | 1,660 (1.0%) |
| August 2025 | 6,919 (4.2%) | 5,145 (3.2%) | 3,095 (2.0%) | 1,832 (1.2%) |
Source: BLS JOLTS, series JTS000000000000000 (openings, hires, quits, layoffs and discharges; levels and rates), retrieved 29 September 2026. Recent months are revised as later data arrives, so a figure quoted in August may differ from the same month today.
Between January and August 2026, monthly openings ranged from 6,887,000 (March) to 7,585,000 (April), and monthly hires from 4,899,000 (February) to 5,535,000 (March). The quits rate held between 1.9% and 2.0% in every month of 2026 so far. In plain terms: the market in 2026 has been steady rather than tight, with fewer people quitting than in the post-2021 years and roughly as many openings as unemployed people.
Labor market statistics behind the hiring numbers
| Measure | August 2026 | August 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rate | 4.1% | 4.3% |
| Unemployed people | 7,031,000 | 7,380,000 |
| Labor force participation rate | 61.6% | 62.3% |
| Total nonfarm payroll employment | 159,075,000 (preliminary) | 158,472,000 |
Source: BLS Current Population Survey (unemployment, participation) and Current Employment Statistics (payrolls), retrieved 29 September 2026. BLS did not publish household survey figures for October 2025 because of the 2025 lapse in appropriations.
Set August's 7,031,000 unemployed people against 7,079,000 openings and there is roughly one unemployed person per opening. That is why the labor shortage story is more about specific roles and places than about the country as a whole.
Hiring forecast 2026 and beyond
There is no official one-year hiring forecast. The closest federal source is the BLS Employment Projections program, which projects employment and openings over ten years. The current edition covers 2025 to 2035:
- Total employment is projected to grow from 170,280,800 in 2025 to 176,198,500 in 2035, a 3.5% increase.
- Across all occupations, BLS projects 17,461,800 job openings a year on average. Most openings come from people leaving an occupation or the labor force, not from growth.
- Home health and personal care aides are projected to grow 18.1% over the decade, from 4,677,100 to 5,524,400 jobs.
The occupations with the most projected openings each year are almost all frontline roles:
| Occupation | Annual openings | Median annual wage, May 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Fast food and counter workers | 827,400 | $31,200 |
| Home health and personal care aides | 760,500 | $35,800 |
| Cashiers | 521,300 | $32,880 |
| Retail salespersons | 520,600 | $35,410 |
| Stockers and order fillers | 430,700 | $37,330 |
| Waiters and waitresses | 423,100 | $35,230 |
| Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand | 340,500 | $40,240 |
| Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners | 321,800 | $36,840 |
| Customer service representatives | 289,500 | $44,770 |
| General and operations managers | 285,000 | $105,770 |
Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 (detailed occupations) and May 2025 median annual wages. The ranking is ours, sorted from the BLS projections file.
Workforce statistics that shape who you hire
- Foreign-born workers: 19.1% of the U.S. civilian labor force in 2025. Foreign-born workers were more likely than native-born workers to be employed in service occupations (21.2% versus 15.6%), natural resources, construction and maintenance (13.3% versus 7.9%), and production, transportation and material moving (15.1% versus 11.4%). Source: BLS, Foreign-Born Workers: Labor Force Characteristics, 2025. See how to recruit immigrants and refugees.
- Older workers: BLS projects labor force participation of people aged 55 to 64 to rise from 66.6% in 2025 to 69.5% in 2035, of those 65 to 74 from 26.7% to 29.1%, and of those 75 and older from 8.5% to 10.1%. Source: BLS Employment Projections, Table 3.3. See how to recruit older workers.
- Difficult vacancies: Oregon employers cited a lack of qualified candidates (28%) and a lack of applicants (24%) as the top reasons their vacancies were hard to fill in 2024. See hard to fill positions.
Recruiting cost statistics for 2026
These figures are from Boostpoint's 2026 Social Job Advertising Benchmark: 891 Boostpoint-managed campaigns on Meta, 1,334 campaign-months. Costs are what advertisers paid for advertising only. Cost per applicant is not cost per hire. Survey and platform figures on social recruiting alone are collected on social media recruiting statistics.
| Role family | Median | Middle 50% | Apply rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| All campaigns | $13.88 | $6.48 to $29.74 | n/a |
| Customer service / admin | $2.71 | $2.14 to $7.47 | 25% |
| Caregiver / home care | $3.76 | $2.99 to $5.83 | 31% |
| Warehouse / production | $9.83 | $3.15 to $18.72 | 20% |
| CNA / nursing assistant | $7.72 | $6.18 to $12.06 | 18% |
| Registered nurse | $19.08 | $12.76 to $34.84 | 11% |
| CDL truck driver | $26.86 | $17.00 to $42.31 | 8% |
| Therapy (PT / OT / SLP) | $74.62 | $44.85 to $171.40 | 5% |
- The apply experience explained 70% of the variation in cost per applicant between campaigns; click-through rate explained 30% and cost per thousand impressions 18%.
- 41% of all budget ran in campaigns where fewer than one in ten clickers finished the application, and those campaigns returned 11% of all applicants.
- Campaigns with apply rates above 35% paid $1.61 per applicant; those under 5% paid $53.77.
- 33% of all budget ran above a monthly ad frequency of 3.0, where median cost per applicant rose to $18.76, and to $26.78 above 4.0.
- The median campaign-month ran on a budget of $334 and produced 20 applicants.
For full cost-per-hire figures, which include far more than advertising, see average cost per hire by industry, and for turnover by sector see employee turnover rates by industry.
What the 2026 hiring statistics mean for frontline employers
- The market is steady, not empty. Around 5 million hires a month and roughly one unemployed person per opening mean the people exist; the competition is for their attention and their first reply.
- Fewer quits means more employed candidates. With the quits rate at 1.9%, more of the people you want are in a job and not searching. Reaching them takes channels they already use, not only job boards.
- Frontline roles carry the openings. The occupations with the most projected openings are food service, care, retail and warehouse roles, where speed and a short mobile application decide who gets hired.
- The cheapest improvement is after the click. In Boostpoint's benchmark, the apply experience explained far more of the cost difference between campaigns than the price of ads did.
How to cite these hiring statistics
Cite the federal figures to their source: "BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, August 2026 (preliminary)", "BLS Employment Projections 2025-35" or "BLS Current Population Survey". Cite the cost figures as: Boostpoint, 2026 Social Job Advertising Benchmark, https://boostpoint.com/benchmarks/. We update this page when BLS publishes new monthly data.
Frequently asked questions
How many job openings are there in 2026?
BLS counted 7,079,000 job openings on the last business day of August 2026 (preliminary), an openings rate of 4.3%. Between January and August 2026, the monthly count ranged from 6,887,000 to 7,585,000.
How many people are hired each month in 2026?
About 5 million. BLS JOLTS counted 5,192,000 hires in August 2026 (preliminary) and 5,146,000 in July, with monthly hires between 4,899,000 and 5,535,000 from January to August.
What is the quits rate in 2026?
1.9% in August 2026 (preliminary), or 3,066,000 quits. The rate has stayed between 1.9% and 2.0% every month of 2026 so far.
What is the hiring forecast for 2026?
There is no official one-year forecast. BLS Employment Projections expect total employment to grow 3.5% from 2025 to 2035, with 17,461,800 openings a year on average, mostly from people leaving jobs rather than from growth.
Which jobs have the most openings?
In the BLS 2025-35 projections, fast food and counter workers (827,400 openings a year), home health and personal care aides (760,500), cashiers (521,300) and retail salespersons (520,600) lead the list.
Is there a labor shortage in 2026?
Not nationally. In August 2026 there were 7,031,000 unemployed people and 7,079,000 openings, roughly one per opening. Shortages exist in specific licensed roles and places; see our labor shortage analysis.
What does a job applicant cost in 2026?
On social job ads, the median campaign in Boostpoint's 2026 benchmark cost $13.88 per applicant, with half of campaigns between $6.48 and $29.74. Role medians ran from $2.71 for customer service to $74.62 for therapy roles. Cost per applicant is not cost per hire.
What share of the workforce is foreign-born?
19.1% of the U.S. civilian labor force in 2025, according to the BLS release Foreign-Born Workers: Labor Force Characteristics, 2025, published 19 May 2026.
Turn the statistics into applicants
Boostpoint Attract runs Facebook and Instagram job ads for frontline employers, with short mobile applications, and Boostpoint Programmatic 2.0 does the same for every job in your feed automatically.
Book a DemoSources: BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, Current Population Survey and Current Employment Statistics (national series through August 2026, via the BLS public data API); BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, Table 3.3 and May 2025 median annual wages; BLS, Foreign-Born Workers: Labor Force Characteristics, 2025; Oregon Employment Department, Difficult to Fill Job Openings in 2024; Boostpoint 2026 Social Job Advertising Benchmark. Read at source 29 September 2026.