New data released by the personal finance company WalletHub has revealed the states with the highest increase in unemployment claims week on week in August—as well as in comparison to this time last year.

WalletHub’s research also found that unemployment claims were increasing more in Democratic states than in Republican states, as blue states had a higher average rank for the increase in unemployment claims compared to red states.

Why It Matters

Since the start of his second term, President Donald Trump has been vocal about increasing employment in the U.S. and adding more opportunities to the jobs market. In June, the White House reported better-than-expected jobs figures as evidence that Trump had brought about “historic growth and prosperity for our workers.”

However, in August, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that the economy added only 73,000 jobs the previous month, falling short of the predicted 110,000. On Wednesday, the BLS also reported that job openings in the U.S. had fallen by 176,000 to 7.18 million, marking the lowest level since September 2024—well below forecasts of 7.4 million.

The last few months may therefore have exposed some cracks in the U.S. jobs market— and experts have warned that unemployment is likely to increase in the coming months as the labor market softens.

What To Know

New unemployment claims increased by 3.5 percent week-over-week on August 25, WalletHub reported.

The company found that 24 states, and the District of Columbia, had unemployment claims in the week of August 25 that were higher than in the previous week (of August 18).

Tennessee, Connecticut and Nebraska had the highest week-on-week increase in unemployment insurance claims, as well as the highest increase compared to the same week in 2024.

While Vermont, New Hampshire and Kentucky had the lowest week-on-week increase, it was North Dakota, Massachusetts and Wisconsin that had the lowest increase in unemployment insurance claims compared to the same week in 2024.

Using these two metrics—the week-on-week change and the week comparison between 2025 and 2024—as well as the change in the number of claims to date this year compared to last, and the rate of unemployment in each state, WalletHub also gave states an overall rank.

Each metric had a different weighting on the state’s overall ranking, and it was found that Connecticut was the state with the highest increase in unemployment claims, with Tennessee second and the District of Columbia third. Vermont, Wisconsin and New Hampshire sat at the bottom of the ranking.

When it came to the number of unemployment insurance claims per 100,000 people in the labor force, Connecticut, California and Oregon had the highest rates of unemployment, while Florida, New Hampshire and South Dakota had the lowest.

“The data simply says that one group of states had larger increases in UI-covered unemployment for one week than another batch,” Harry Holzer, a professor of public policy at Georgetown University, told Newsweek.

“Whether the same states will continue to have higher increases is hard to say,” he added, explaining it was difficult to determine “how much of it represents the business cycle rather than the normal churn of labor markets.”

What People Are Saying

Holzer also told Newsweek: “Unemployment is more likely to rise than fall in the coming months, as the labor market softens. But it is too soon to tell how much or exactly where. Currently, employers have cut way back on hiring but we are not yet seeing large layoffs across many industries – though that could change.”

What Happens Next

While the future of the U.S. jobs market remains uncertain, experts have said that unemployment is likely to rise in the coming months.