Colorado’s unemployment rate has gone up for the seventh time this year, hitting 4.1% in October, according to the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment. 

The increase is only one-tenth of a percentage point from September, which translates to roughly 3,900 newly unemployed individuals in the past month for a total of 134,700 unemployed residents, according to state survey data.  

Colorado’s unemployment rate has grown slowly but steadily since August 2022, when it hit its lowest level since the pandemic at 2.6%.  

The state’s October unemployment rate is now equal to the 4.1% national unemployment rate for the first time since January 2020, when both rates were 4%.

“Since mid-2022, unemployment rates in both Colorado and nationwide have been trending up,” Colorado Department of Labor and Employment Senior Economist Monicque Aragon said. “In recent months, however, the U.S. rate has been holding steady between 4.1%- 4.3%, while Colorado has been converging closer to the U.S. rate … The overall trend speaks to a general softening in the labor market, which was expected after the rapid recovery post-pandemic, and amidst a relatively high interest rate environment. However, the rates for both the U.S. and Colorado are still well below historical averages.”

Pitkin County holds the highest unemployment rate on Colorado’s Western Slope at 5.3%. 

Colorado’s labor force increased by 4,300 in October, 200 more than in August when the unemployment rate hit 4%. The labor force includes people who are employed, unemployed and looking for work. 

During the month of October, roughly 400 Coloradans were newly employed. This keeps the number of Coloradans participating in the labor force at 67.9%, unchanged since May. 

Survey data shows that Colorado added 9,000 nonfarm payroll jobs from September to October, the majority of which come from business services and hospitality. Total jobs in the state currently sit at just over 3 million, an increase of 59,500 jobs since October 2023.