Texas added 5,600 nonfarm jobs in August 2026 and the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell one tenth of a point to 4.4 percent. Payroll employment reached 14,469,300. Over the prior 12 months the state added 159,400 jobs, a 1.1 percent annual pace that beat the national rate by 0.7 percentage points. The civilian labor force grew by 17,100 people over the month to 15,932,600. Those figures come from the TWC August release published September 18, 2026, with underlying series available on the Texas LMI site.
The month was not a boom. It was a modest rebound after a weak midsummer print. Leisure and hospitality, professional and business services, and manufacturing did the heavy lifting. Government payrolls also rose. Private payrolls, taken as a whole, were essentially flat. The jobless rate is still higher than it was a year earlier, and it remains above the national rate. That mix is why so many Texans describe the market as growing on paper and hard in practice.
What did the August 2026 Texas jobs report say?
Texas nonfarm employment rose by 5,600 in August to 14,469,300 positions, according to the Texas Workforce Commission working with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 12 month gain of 159,400 jobs was the largest among the states in the federal BLS state release. The annual growth rate of 1.1 percent outpaced the U.S. rate by 0.7 percentage points.
August 2026 Texas snapshot
| Measure | August 2026 | July 2026 | August 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nonfarm jobs | 14,469,300 | Revised lower after first print | 12 month gain of 159,400 |
| Monthly job change | +5,600 | Weak midsummer reading | n/a |
| Seasonally adjusted unemployment rate | 4.4% | 4.5% | 4.2% |
| Not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate | 4.6% | 4.8% | 4.6% |
| Civilian labor force, seasonally adjusted | 15,932,600 | 15,915,500 | Up 10,900 over the year |
| Labor force change over the month | +17,100 | n/a | n/a |
| U.S. seasonally adjusted unemployment rate | 4.1% | 4.1% | Below Texas both months |
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dropped from 4.5 percent in July to 4.4 percent in August. A year earlier, in August 2025, the Texas rate was 4.2 percent. So the monthly move was an improvement. The yearly comparison is not. About 707,500 Texans were unemployed on a seasonally adjusted basis, little changed from July.
TWC Chairman Joe Esparza framed the year as proof that employers still choose Texas. “The addition of more than 159,000 jobs over the year reinforces Texas’ status as a premier destination for employers and a source of ample opportunity for Texas workers,” he said in the official release.
Commissioner Alberto Treviño III pointed to industry breadth. Commissioner Brent Connett pointed to career and technical education as the pipeline for the next wave of openings.
All of these estimates are preliminary and subject to revision. July itself was revised in the federal tables after TWC first reported a small July gain. That is normal. Treat one month as a direction, not a verdict.
How does the Texas unemployment rate compare with the U.S. rate?
Texas sat at 4.4 percent in August. The United States sat at 4.1 percent. Texas is three tenths of a point higher. On the not seasonally adjusted household survey, Texas printed 4.6 percent and the nation printed 4.3 percent. You can track the seasonally adjusted Texas series on FRED Texas rate and the official state snapshot on the BLS Texas table.
The gap is not new. Texas unemployment has run a little above the U.S. rate for much of 2026 even while payrolls kept rising. Two things can be true at once. Employers are still adding jobs. More people are also in the labor force looking for those jobs. When the labor force grows faster than hiring in a given month, the unemployment rate can stall or rise even as the job count goes up.
Labor force participation in Texas held at 64.2 percent in August and ranked 14th among states, per the Joint Economic Committee state brief. That rate is well above the national participation rate, which was 61.6 percent in August. A high participation rate is usually a healthy sign. It also means Texas has a larger share of adults competing for openings, which is part of why local job searches can feel crowded.
Which Texas industries added jobs in August 2026?
Leisure and hospitality led the private sector with 4,900 jobs. Professional and business services added 4,500. Manufacturing added 2,200. Those three lines are the ones TWC highlighted in the August release.
Where August jobs showed up
| Industry | August change | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Leisure and hospitality | +4,900 | Strongest private gain of the month |
| Professional and business services | +4,500 | Still the reliable white collar engine |
| Manufacturing | +2,200 | Goods producing work is not dead |
| Construction | About +1,600 | Growing, just slower than early 2026 |
| Mining and logging | About +500 | Small lift after a choppy year |
| Government | About +5,900 | Helped the statewide total rise |
| Trade, transportation, and utilities | About −2,800 | A soft month for warehouses and stores |
| Information | About −1,700 | Continues the year long slide |
| Education and health services | About −1,700 | Down for the month, up over the year |
| Private payrolls overall | About −300 | Total jobs rose mainly on government |
Federal industry detail for Texas fills in that table. Construction added about 1,600 jobs. Mining and logging added about 500. Government added about 5,900, which is why total nonfarm rose even though private payrolls slipped by about 300. Trade, transportation, and utilities lost about 2,800. Information lost about 1,700. Education and health services lost about 1,700. Other services dropped sharply.
The year over year story is more stable than the monthly noise. Professional and business services is up about 3.1 percent from August 2025. Leisure and hospitality is up about 2.2 percent. Construction is up about 1.9 percent. Information is the clear weak spot, down about 5.3 percent over the year. That split matches what office workers and tech workers have been saying for months. Service jobs and many goods producing jobs are still expanding. White collar information work is not.
If you are choosing a field, the August print is a reminder to look at the 12 month column, not just the monthly change. One month can bounce. A year of declines in information and a year of gains in professional services and hospitality is a pattern.
How do Texas cities compare on unemployment?
Metro rates are not seasonally adjusted, so they move with school calendars, summer travel, and harvest cycles. Use them to compare cities with each other in the same month. Do not treat a one month metro drop as proof the local economy suddenly healed.
August 2026 metro unemployment rates (not seasonally adjusted)
| Area | August 2026 | July 2026 | August 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Midland | 3.3% | 3.4% in July print | Lowest large energy metro |
| San Angelo | 3.6% | Lower than July | Second lowest in August |
| Abilene | 3.7% | 3.9% | Tied for third lowest |
| Amarillo | 3.7% | 3.9% | Tied for third lowest |
| Austin Round Rock San Marcos | 3.9% | 4.0% | 3.8% a year earlier |
| College Station Bryan | 4.0% | 4.3% | 4.2% a year earlier |
| Fort Worth Arlington Grapevine | 4.3% | 4.6% | 4.2% a year earlier |
| Dallas Fort Worth Arlington | 4.4% | 4.6% | 4.3% a year earlier |
| Dallas Plano Irving | 4.4% | 4.6% | 4.3% a year earlier |
| El Paso | 4.6% | 4.8% | 4.7% a year earlier |
| Texas statewide | 4.6% | 4.8% | 4.6% a year earlier |
| Corpus Christi | 4.8% | 5.0% | 4.8% a year earlier |
| Houston Pasadena The Woodlands | 5.0% | 5.1% | 4.9% a year earlier |
| Killeen Temple | 5.2% | 5.4% | 5.0% a year earlier |
| Beaumont Port Arthur | 5.9% | 6.1% | 5.8% a year earlier |
| Brownsville Harlingen | 6.5% | 7.0% | 7.5% a year earlier |
| Eagle Pass | 7.1% | 8.3% | 8.6% a year earlier |
Midland had the lowest rate in August at 3.3 percent. San Angelo followed at 3.6 percent. Abilene and Amarillo each registered 3.7 percent. Austin was 3.9 percent. Dallas Fort Worth Arlington was 4.4 percent. Houston Pasadena The Woodlands was 5.0 percent. Those city figures are in the same TWC August release that published the statewide totals.
The not seasonally adjusted statewide rate was 4.6 percent in August, down from 4.8 percent in July and matching August 2025. Houston remains softer than Dallas and Austin. Energy metros in West Texas remain tighter. Border metros such as Brownsville Harlingen and Eagle Pass still carry much higher rates than the state average.
This geography matters if you are relocating. A 3.3 percent market and a 5.0 percent market are different job searches even though they sit in the same state. Housing costs, industry mix, and the size of the local labor force all change how long a search takes.
Is the Texas labor force still growing?
Yes, but slowly on a yearly basis. The seasonally adjusted civilian labor force reached 15,932,600 in August after a 17,100 person increase over the month. Over the year the labor force is up only 10,900 people. Employment on the household survey rose over the month as well.
That combination explains a puzzle people keep posting online. How can Texas add jobs and still feel competitive? Because population growth and labor force entry keep feeding the supply of applicants. TWC’s July metro tables already showed large civilian labor forces in Dallas Fort Worth and Houston. August continued that pattern. More people working and more people looking can show up as both job growth and a sticky unemployment rate.
The household survey and the payroll survey also tell slightly different stories. Payrolls count jobs. The household survey counts people. One person can hold two payroll jobs. A new resident can enter the labor force before a payroll job appears. When those two surveys diverge for a month, it is usually noise. When they diverge for a year, it is a signal to watch participation, multiple jobholding, and in migration.
What questions are people asking about the Texas job market?
Texas job threads on Reddit and local forums keep returning to the same few questions. The official data answers some of them directly. Others need context the monthly report does not print.
Why does the Texas job market feel worse than the headline rate?
The headline rate only counts people who are unemployed and actively looking. It does not count people who stopped searching. It does not count people who are employed but underpaid or stuck in a temporary role. It does not measure how many applications a single opening receives.
A recent Austin thread noted a cafe that drew 250 applications for one job. State agency seekers describe hundreds of applicants and long CAPPS timelines. Those stories can sit next to a 4.4 percent unemployment rate without contradiction. A 4.4 percent rate means most people who want work have work. It does not mean the next opening is easy to win.
Does a falling unemployment rate mean hiring is easy?
Not by itself. August’s one tenth drop arrived with only 5,600 payroll jobs. Government and a few private industries did most of the work. Information kept shrinking. If you are applying in a shrinking industry, the statewide rate is almost irrelevant. Look at the industry line and the metro line that match your commute.
Are Texas jobs growing faster than the rest of the country?
On payrolls, yes. Texas posted the largest 12 month job gain of any state at 159,400. The 1.1 percent growth rate beat the nation by 0.7 percentage points. On the unemployment rate, no. Texas is higher than the United States. Growth and slack can travel together when the labor force is large and still expanding.
Where are the openings if tech is slow?
August’s leaders were leisure and hospitality, professional and business services, and manufacturing. Over the year, professional and business services and private education and health services have been reliable. Construction is still growing, just more slowly than earlier in 2026. Energy metros such as Midland remain tight. If your skills transfer into operations, skilled trades, health, logistics, or hospitality management, the official counts are on your side.
How should job seekers read this report?
Start with three filters: industry, metro, and time horizon.
Industry first. If your target field is information, August did not change the trend. You need a wider net, a shift into professional services, or a market outside the usual tech corridors. If your target field is hospitality, manufacturing, construction, or professional services, the state is still adding seats.
Metro second. Midland, San Angelo, Abilene, Amarillo, and Austin printed the lower August rates. Houston printed 5.0 percent. That does not mean Houston has no jobs. Houston is huge. It means you should expect a longer queue and lean harder on referrals.
Time horizon third. A 5,600 job month will not clear a backlog of applicants. The 159,400 job year is the more useful number. It says Texas is still a net adder of work. It does not say your search will be short. Plan for months, not weeks, especially in white collar roles.
Use WorkInTexas and the tools on the Texas LMI site to check occupational wages and local unemployment before you relocate. Statewide averages hide county differences.
How should employers read this report?
The labor force is still deep. Participation is high. Private payrolls were flat in August even as the total job count rose. That is a caution against assuming every opening will fill on the first post.
Wage pressure will differ by industry. Hospitality just absorbed 4,900 new jobs in a single month. Those employers are competing for a workforce that can move between restaurants, hotels, and retail. Professional services added 4,500 and has been the strongest large sector over the year. Information employers are not in the same market. They are still shedding jobs.
Training is the policy bet TWC is making. The commissioners used the August release to point to adult education, literacy programs, and career and technical education. If you cannot find experienced hires, the data support building the next cohort instead of waiting for a looser market that may not arrive in 2026.
The Dallas Fed’s midyear outlook still pointed to about 1.7 percent Texas job growth for calendar 2026. The 12 month pace through August is 1.1 percent. That gap is the live question for planning. Either hiring picks up in the fall or the year lands closer to the current run rate.
When does the next Texas labor report come out?
TWC said September 2026 labor market information will be released Friday, October 16, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. Central Time. Statewide numbers post first. Some metro estimates can lag when TWC has to reconcile data with other states.
Until then, the working dataset lives on Texas LMI site. That portal is the official public home for Current Employment Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, and occupational wages. TWC is required to publish the state unemployment rate there as part of its agreement with BLS.
If you only remember five numbers from August 2026, remember these. Payrolls 14,469,300. Monthly jobs plus 5,600. Yearly jobs plus 159,400. Unemployment rate 4.4 percent. Labor force 15,932,600. Everything else is context for those five.
Quick answers people keep searching
What is the Texas unemployment rate in August 2026?
The seasonally adjusted rate is 4.4 percent. The not seasonally adjusted rate is 4.6 percent. Both come from TWC and BLS.
How many jobs did Texas add in August 2026?
Texas added 5,600 nonfarm jobs. Total nonfarm employment is 14,469,300.
Did Texas beat the national job market in August 2026?
Texas beat the nation on 12 month payroll growth. Texas did not beat the nation on the unemployment rate. The U.S. rate was 4.1 percent.
Which Texas metro had the lowest unemployment in August 2026?
Midland, at 3.3 percent, not seasonally adjusted.
Where can I verify these figures myself?
Use the TWC August release, the Texas LMI site, and the BLS Texas table. Those three sources are the primary record. News summaries are useful. They are not the official series.
