FILE-In this photo illustration, a person files an application for unemployment benefits in Arlington, Virginia. (Photo by OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty Images)
The nation’s job market is showing signs of improvement as applications for unemployment benefits dropped to their lowest level in more than three years during the week of Thanksgiving.
While the number of unemployment claims differ across the country, WalletHub released a new report to identify which claims are declining the most in states.
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To collect data, the personal finance website compared the 50 states and Washington, D.C. based on changes in unemployment insurance claims for several key weeks and the number of unemployment insurance initial claims per 100,000 people in the work force.
WalletHub then created a ranking of states using data obtained from the U.S. Department of Labor.
States with the biggest decreases in unemployment claims
Why you should care:
In addition to comparing unemployment claims for key weeks, WalletHub’s report also used pertinent data to rank the states by analyzing the following categories:
- Changes in the number of unemployment insurance initial claims in the latest week vs. the previous week, comparing the week of Nov. 17, 2025, to Nov. 24, 2025.
- Changes in the number of unemployment insurance initial claims in the latest week vs. the same week in 2024.
- Changes in the number of unemployment insurance initial claims year to date vs. the same period of 2024.
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Here’s a ranking of the top states for unemployment
- Alabama
- Arizona
- Georgia
- North Carolina
- Florida
- Louisiana
- New Hampshire
- Indiana
- Arkansas
- Oklahoma
- West Virginia
- Texas
- Mississippi
- South Carolina
- Maryland
- Nevada
- Massachusetts
- Utah
- Wyoming
- California
By the numbers:
The Department of Labor reported on Dec. 4 that the number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits for the week ending Nov. 29 dipped to 191,000 from the previous week’s 218,000.
The agency’s report also highlighted that the four-week average of unemployment claims, which balances out some of the week-to-week changes, dropped by 9,500 to 214,750.
Additionally, the total number of Americans filing for unemployment claims for the previous week ending Nov. 22 decreased by 4,000 to 1.94 million.
The Source: Information for this story was provided by Department of Labor data via a WalletHub report, which compared the 50 states and Washington, D.C. based on changes in unemployment insurance claims for several key weeks and the number of unemployment insurance initial claims per 100,000 people in the work force via the Department of Labor. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.