The Wyoming Department of Workforce Services has released its latest Economic Indicators Report, showing that the state’s unemployment rate has risen from 2.8% in 2024 to 3.6% in 2025, Wyoming News Now reports.
This increase represents approximately 2,300 additional people counted as unemployed.
Despite the uptick, Wyoming’s unemployment rate remains lower than the national average of 4%. Economist David Bullard from the Department of Workforce Services noted that the increase aligns with broader trends.
“The national unemployment rate is up a little bit, and job growth has been slowing for some time now. So it’s not surprising to see our statewide unemployment rate come up a little bit,” Bullard explained.
The report also breaks down unemployment rates by county, highlighting increases in:
Laramie County, where the rate rose from 3.7% to 4.4%.
Natrona County, which saw an increase from 3.8% to 4.3%.
According to Bullard, the rise in unemployment is not primarily due to job losses, but rather a result of more people entering the workforce.
“What we see is not so much people losing their jobs, but people joining the labor force,” he said.
The report identifies three main factors driving the increase:
New workforce participants – individuals who were previously not working but are now seeking jobs.
People returning to work after time away from employment.
Individuals moving to Wyoming in search of job opportunities.
Despite the rise in unemployment, the state’s job market still has more job openings than unemployed individuals. Wyoming currently has an estimated 16,000 job openings, while the number of unemployed individuals falls between 10,000 and 11,000.
“We’ve seen the number of job openings trending downward, but there are still many more job openings than there are unemployed people,” Bullard noted.
With approximately 1.5 job openings for every job seeker, experts remain optimistic about the state’s economic trajectory.
“We absolutely expect Wyoming’s economy to continue to grow,” Bullard added.
