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Initial Jobless Claims
New unemployment-insurance claims filed each week.
197K
Number · latest, Jul 2026
vs prior month▼ 9.2%
vs year ago▼ 10.0%
| Year | Initial Jobless Claims |
|---|---|
| 1967 | 216K |
| 1968 | 223K |
| 1969 | 223K |
| 1970 | 321K |
| 1971 | 244K |
| 1972 | 225K |
| 1973 | 300K |
| 1974 | 537K |
| 1975 | 391K |
| 1976 | 333K |
| 1977 | 364K |
| 1978 | 358K |
| 1979 | 428K |
| 1980 | 399K |
| 1981 | 556K |
| 1982 | 489K |
| 1983 | 372K |
| 1984 | 379K |
| 1985 | 390K |
| 1986 | 345K |
| 1987 | 316K |
| 1988 | 304K |
| 1989 | 358K |
| 1990 | 454K |
| 1991 | 441K |
| 1992 | 313K |
| 1993 | 290K |
| 1994 | 319K |
| 1995 | 359K |
| 1996 | 357K |
| 1997 | 303K |
| 1998 | 336K |
| 1999 | 268K |
| 2000 | 353K |
| 2001 | 421K |
| 2002 | 409K |
| 2003 | 349K |
| 2004 | 320K |
| 2005 | 302K |
| 2006 | 341K |
| 2007 | 360K |
| 2008 | 533K |
| 2009 | 468K |
| 2010 | 404K |
| 2011 | 376K |
| 2012 | 362K |
| 2013 | 332K |
| 2014 | 285K |
| 2015 | 276K |
| 2016 | 244K |
| 2017 | 248K |
| 2018 | 238K |
| 2019 | 231K |
| 2020 | 773K |
| 2021 | 217K |
| 2022 | 205K |
| 2023 | 200K |
| 2024 | 212K |
| 2025 | 203K |
| 2026 | 197K |
Hover the line to read any month. Drag across the chart to zoom; double-click to reset.
Source: FRED · ICSA · series · Jan 1967 to Jul 2026 · latest-revised
Refreshed Jul 31, 2026 from FRED.
New unemployment-insurance claims filed each week.
New filings for unemployment insurance, seasonally adjusted, weekly.
Source: FRED · Jul 2026 · Full lesson → Learn
About the bands. Shaded spans are NBER-dated US recessions, drawn as factual overlays. They mark when the economy contracted, not why. Lining an event up with a move is not evidence it caused the move.
Read across
No single number is the economy. These measure nearby parts of it — add one to compare, or open it on its own.
- Unemployment Rate The monthly stock of joblessness this weekly flow feeds into.
- Nonfarm Payrolls The net change in jobs.
- Job Openings Unfilled demand on the other side of layoffs.