LinkedIn Workforce Report | United States | April 2026
With over 252 million LinkedIn members in the United States, we have unique insight into the real-time dynamics of Americans starting new jobs and moving to new cities. This month’s LinkedIn Workforce Report looks at our latest national data on hiring and migration trends through March 2026. Whether you’re a worker, an employer, a new grad, or a policymaker, we hope you’ll use these insights to better understand and navigate the dynamics of today’s economy.
For more insight into localized employment trends in 20 of the largest U.S. metro areas, check out this month’s reports for: Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland-Akron, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Nashville, New York City, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, St. Louis, and Washington, D.C.
Key Insights:
National hiring fell 1.3% from February and is down 6.3% from March 2025, leaving hiring 24% below its pre‑pandemic pace (February 2020). Hiring in March marked the third consecutive month of slowing.
From February to March, hiring accelerated in 9 of 20 industries, led by Wholesale (+5.2%), Farming, Ranching, and Forestry (+4.1%), and Utilities (+2.7%). Year-over-year, hiring in Technology, Information, and Media was relatively flat (–1%). However, hiring in Technology, Information, and Media (–28%), Financial Services (–20%), and Professional Services (–30%) remains well below its pre‑pandemic (February 2020) pace.
From February to March, hiring decelerated in 14 of the 20 metros tracked, while Austin (+3.5%), Cleveland (+2.6%), and St. Louis (+2.0%) posted gains. Year-over-year, hiring fell in all 20 metros, with the smallest declines in Austin (–2.5%) and San Francisco (–3.1%). Despite stabilizing, hiring in San Francisco remains weak overall, down 36% from February 2020.
Hiring in the U.S.
The LinkedIn hiring rate is a measure of hires divided by LinkedIn membership. Nationally, across all industries, hiring in the U.S. was 1.3% lower in March 2026 compared to last month February 2026. National hiring was 6.3% lower in March 2026 compared to last year March 2025.
SEASONALLY ADJUSTED HIRING
The industries with the most notable hiring shifts month-to-month in March 2026 were Holding Companies (11.2% higher); Wholesale (5.2% higher); and Farming, Ranching, Forestry (4.1% higher).
Table 1: Hiring on LinkedIn, by Industry, through March 2026
Industry | Mar-25 | ··· | Dec-25 | Jan-26 | Feb-26 | Mar-26 | MoM% Change | YoY% Change
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Accommodation and Food Services | 0.90 | ··· | 0.91 | 0.89 | 0.91 | 0.86 | -4.9 | -4.2 |
Administrative and Support Services | 0.83 | ··· | 0.79 | 0.78 | 0.77 | 0.77 | +0.6 | -6.7 |
Construction | 1.24 | ··· | 1.26 | 1.28 | 1.17 | 1.18 | +0.5 | -4.6 |
Consumer Services | 1.12 | ··· | 1.10 | 1.09 | 1.09 | 1.08 | -0.8 | -4.2 |
Education | 1.13 | ··· | 1.07 | 1.05 | 1.05 | 1.05 | 0 | -7.1 |
Entertainment Providers | 0.91 | ··· | 0.90 | 0.89 | 0.86 | 0.88 | +1.9 | -4 |
Farming, Ranching, Forestry | 0.99 | ··· | 0.94 | 0.89 | 0.86 | 0.90 | +4.1 | -9 |
Financial Services | 1.03 | ··· | 1.04 | 1.02 | 1.01 | 0.95 | -5.5 | -7.6 |
Government Administration | 0.98 | ··· | 0.87 | 0.87 | 0.87 | 0.88 | +1.3 | -10.9 |
Holding Companies | 0.75 | ··· | 0.71 | 0.74 | 0.69 | 0.77 | +11.2 | +2.5 |
Hospitals and Health Care | 1.11 | ··· | 1.06 | 1.05 | 1.01 | 1.00 | -0.6 | -9.8 |
Manufacturing | 0.89 | ··· | 0.91 | 0.87 | 0.81 | 0.83 | +2.5 | -6.6 |
Oil, Gas, and Mining | 0.93 | ··· | 0.84 | 0.81 | 0.77 | 0.77 | -0.3 | -17 |
Professional Services | 0.87 | ··· | 0.87 | 0.85 | 0.83 | 0.82 | -1.5 | -6 |
Real Estate and Equipment Rental Services | 0.92 | ··· | 0.90 | 0.86 | 0.84 | 0.80 | -5.2 | -12.7 |
Retail | 0.80 | ··· | 0.80 | 0.76 | 0.77 | 0.75 | -2.9 | -6.3 |
Technology, Information and Media | 0.88 | ··· | 0.95 | 0.89 | 0.89 | 0.87 | -1.7 | -0.7 |
Transportation, Logistics, Supply Chain and Storage | 1.03 | ··· | 0.99 | 1.00 | 0.96 | 0.94 | -1.9 | -8.4 |
Utilities | 1.23 | ··· | 1.17 | 1.15 | 1.06 | 1.09 | +2.7 | -11.2 |
Wholesale | 0.81 | ··· | 0.82 | 0.76 | 0.74 | 0.78 | +5.2 | -4.3 |
Methodology: “Hiring Rate” is the count of hires (LinkedIn members in each industry who added a new employer to their profile in the same month the new job began), divided by the total number of LinkedIn members in the U.S. By only analyzing the timeliest data, we can make accurate month-to-month comparisons and account for any potential lags in members updating their profiles. This number is indexed to the average month in 2016 for each industry; for example, an index of 1.05 indicates a hiring rate that is 5% higher than the average month in 2016.