Change countryChange indicator
6.5%up 0.1 points from Aug 2026September 2026 · released 9 Oct 2026
−0.5 ptsover 5 years
Get Canada unemployment rate updates by webhook
GET /v1/economics/CAN/unemployment
// webhook: { "type": "release.updated" }Read historical data and the release calendar by API.
Get an API keyKey data points
- Last release
- 9 Oct 2026
- Observation period
- September 2026
- Next release
- 6 Nov 2026, 13:30 UTC
- Previous
- 6.4% Aug 2026
- Highest
- 14.2% May 2020
- Lowest
- 4.8% Jul 2022
- A year ago
- 7.1%
- Data since
- 1976
Canada unemployment rate by year
| Year | Average | High | Low | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | 6.6% | 6.9%April 2026 | 6.4%July 2026 | 0.0 |
| 2025 | 6.9% | 7.1%August 2025 | 6.6%February 2025 | ▲ +0.1 |
| 2024 | 6.4% | 7.0%November 2024 | 5.7%January 2024 | ▲ +1.0 |
| 2023 | 5.4% | 5.8%November 2023 | 5.1%January 2023 | ▲ +0.7 |
| 2022 | 5.3% | 6.4%January 2022 | 4.8%July 2022 | ▼ −1.4 |
| 2021 | 7.5% | 9.2%January 2021 | 5.9%December 2021 | ▼ −3.3 |
| 2020 | 9.7% | 14.2%May 2020 | 5.5%January 2020 | ▲ +3.4 |
| 2019 | 5.7% | 5.9%November 2019 | 5.5%May 2019 | ▼ −0.1 |
| 2018 | 5.8% | 6.0%February 2018 | 5.6%October 2018 | ▼ −0.3 |
| 2017 | 6.4% | 6.9%January 2017 | 6.0%December 2017 | ▼ −0.9 |
| 2016 | 7.1% | 7.3%February 2016 | 6.8%November 2016 | ▼ −0.3 |
| 2015 | 7.0% | 7.3%December 2015 | 6.8%January 2015 | ▲ +0.5 |
| 2014 | 7.1% | 7.3%January 2014 | 6.7%December 2014 | ▼ −0.6 |
| 2013 | 7.2% | 7.4%December 2013 | 7.1%January 2013 | ▲ +0.3 |
| 2012 | 7.4% | 7.7%January 2012 | 7.3%July 2012 | ▼ −0.4 |
| 2011 | 7.6% | 7.8%January 2011 | 7.4%July 2011 | ▼ −0.3 |
| 2010 | 8.2% | 8.4%January 2010 | 7.8%December 2010 | ▼ −0.6 |
| 2009 | 8.5% | 8.8%June 2009 | 7.5%January 2009 | ▲ +1.1 |
| 2008 | 6.3% | 7.0%December 2008 | 6.1%January 2008 | ▲ +0.9 |
| 2007 | 6.2% | 6.4%January 2007 | 6.0%July 2007 | ▼ −0.2 |
Show all
| Year | Average | High | Low | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 6.4% | 6.7%January 2006 | 6.2%May 2006 | ▼ −0.4 |
| 2005 | 6.8% | 7.0%February 2005 | 6.3%November 2005 | ▼ −0.3 |
| 2004 | 7.1% | 7.3%January 2004 | 6.9%September 2004 | ▼ −0.2 |
| 2003 | 7.6% | 7.9%September 2003 | 7.3%December 2003 | ▼ −0.2 |
| 2002 | 7.7% | 8.0%January 2002 | 7.4%August 2002 | ▼ −0.4 |
| 2001 | 7.2% | 8.1%December 2001 | 6.9%January 2001 | ▲ +1.2 |
| 2000 | 6.8% | 7.0%August 2000 | 6.6%May 2000 | 0.0 |
| 1999 | 7.6% | 8.2%April 1999 | 6.8%December 1999 | ▼ −1.1 |
| 1998 | 8.3% | 8.8%January 1998 | 8.0%October 1998 | ▼ −0.7 |
| 1997 | 9.1% | 9.5%January 1997 | 8.5%December 1997 | ▼ −1.0 |
| 1996 | 9.6% | 9.9%September 1996 | 9.2%May 1996 | ▲ +0.3 |
| 1995 | 9.5% | 9.7%March 1995 | 9.2%September 1995 | ▼ −0.2 |
| 1994 | 10.4% | 11.4%January 1994 | 9.6%December 1994 | ▼ −1.8 |
| 1993 | 11.4% | 11.7%June 1993 | 11.0%February 1993 | ▲ +0.2 |
| 1992 | 11.2% | 12.1%November 1992 | 10.4%January 1992 | ▲ +1.3 |
| 1991 | 10.3% | 10.5%March 1991 | 9.8%January 1991 | ▲ +0.5 |
| 1990 | 8.2% | 9.5%December 1990 | 7.3%March 1990 | ▲ +1.6 |
| 1989 | 7.5% | 7.8%April 1989 | 7.2%October 1989 | ▲ +0.2 |
| 1988 | 7.8% | 8.1%January 1988 | 7.5%December 1988 | ▼ −0.6 |
| 1987 | 8.8% | 9.5%January 1987 | 8.0%December 1987 | ▼ −1.5 |
| 1986 | 9.6% | 9.9%February 1986 | 9.4%October 1986 | ▼ −0.3 |
| 1985 | 10.5% | 11.0%March 1985 | 10.1%December 1985 | ▼ −0.5 |
| 1984 | 11.4% | 11.8%September 1984 | 11.1%December 1984 | ▼ −0.2 |
| 1983 | 12.0% | 12.7%January 1983 | 11.3%October 1983 | ▼ −1.4 |
| 1982 | 11.1% | 13.1%December 1982 | 8.6%January 1982 | ▲ +4.5 |
| 1981 | 7.6% | 8.7%December 1981 | 7.1%April 1981 | ▲ +1.3 |
| 1980 | 7.5% | 7.8%May 1980 | 7.2%November 1980 | ▼ −0.2 |
| 1979 | 7.5% | 8.2%January 1979 | 7.0%September 1979 | ▼ −1.0 |
| 1978 | 8.4% | 8.6%May 1978 | 8.2%October 1978 | 0.0 |
| 1977 | 8.1% | 8.5%November 1977 | 7.6%January 1977 | ▲ +0.9 |
| 1976 | 7.1% | 7.5%December 1976 | 6.7%March 1976 | ▲ +0.4 |
Download history
Preview
12 observations · January 2025 to December 2025
| Date or period | Value · Percent | Source |
|---|---|---|
| January 2025 | 6.7% | Statistics Canada |
| February 2025 | 6.6% | Statistics Canada |
| March 2025 | 6.8% | Statistics Canada |
| April 2025 | 6.9% | Statistics Canada |
| May 2025 | 7.0% | Statistics Canada |
| June 2025 | 6.9% | Statistics Canada |
| July 2025 | 6.9% | Statistics Canada |
| August 2025 | 7.1% | Statistics Canada |
| September 2025 | 7.1% | Statistics Canada |
| October 2025 | 6.9% | Statistics Canada |
| November 2025 | 6.6% | Statistics Canada |
| December 2025 | 6.8% | Statistics Canada |
Indicator info
- Category
- Labour
- Source
- Statistics Canada
- Frequency
- Monthly
- Units
- Percent
The share of the labour force that is out of work and actively looking for a job.
Related indicators
Reports
Released 9 Oct 20266.5%September 2026
In 24 days
Next release, 13:30 UTC6 Nov 2026October 2026
History
| Period | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| September 2026 | 6.5% | +0.1 |
| August 2026 | 6.4% | 0.0 |
| July 2026 | 6.4% | −0.1 |
| June 2026 | 6.5% | −0.1 |
| May 2026 | 6.6% | −0.3 |
| April 2026 | 6.9% | +0.2 |
| March 2026 | 6.7% | 0.0 |
| February 2026 | 6.7% | +0.2 |
| January 2026 | 6.5% | −0.3 |
| December 2025 | 6.8% | +0.2 |
| November 2025 | 6.6% | −0.3 |
| October 2025 | 6.9% | −0.2 |
| September 2025 | 7.1% |
Common questions
What is the unemployment rate in Canada now?
The unemployment rate in Canada was 6.5% in September 2026, up 0.1 points from Aug 2026. The figure was released on 9 Oct 2026.
When is the next unemployment rate release for Canada?
The next release is scheduled for 6 Nov 2026, 13:30 UTC, covering October 2026.
What are the highest and lowest values of the unemployment rate in Canada?
In data since 1976, the highest was 14.2% in May 2020 and the lowest was 4.8% in Jul 2022.
Where does this data come from?
Published by Statistics Canada, and shown here exactly as published. Publishers revise figures, and the latest published figure replaces the earlier one.
