SOUTH COAST New Bedford's unemployment rate fell to 5.8% in September from 6.4% in August, and Fall River's dropped to 5.2% from 5.6%, according to figures the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released Wednesday, Oct. 28. For Fall River, it is the lowest monthly rate the bureau has published for 2025 or 2026.
Both cities remain above Massachusetts as a whole, where the rate was 4.1% in September, and the nation, at 4.0%. The figures are not adjusted for seasonal swings. Compared with September 2025, New Bedford was up a tenth of a point from 5.7%, and Fall River was down two tenths from 5.4%.
The numbers
In New Bedford, 2,815 residents were out of work and looking for a job in September, out of a labor force of 48,864. That is 316 fewer than in August and 39 more than a year earlier. The number of city residents with a job, 46,049, rose by 145 over the month but was 253 below September 2025.
In Fall River, 2,425 residents were unemployed out of a labor force of 46,217, which is 180 fewer than in August and 104 fewer than a year earlier. Employed residents numbered 43,792, up 138 from August and down 241 from September 2025. The city's labor force, the residents working or looking for work, has shrunk by 345 people over the year.
Taunton's rate was 4.9%, down from 5.4% in August and 5.0% a year earlier, with 1,653 residents unemployed out of a labor force of 33,746.
The counties
Bristol County's rate fell to 4.5% from 4.9% in August and 4.7% in September 2025. The county counted 14,135 unemployed residents, 580 fewer than a year earlier. But the number of county residents with jobs also fell, to 299,119, which is 1,640 fewer than in September 2025, and the labor force shrank by 2,220 to 313,254.
Plymouth County was at 4.2%, down from 4.4% in both August and a year earlier, with 12,297 residents unemployed out of a labor force of 292,998.
Nationwide, unemployment rates were lower than a year earlier in 226 of 387 metro areas and higher in 138, the bureau said.
How the year has gone
Both cities started 2026 with rates above 8%, higher than the 7.4% each posted in January 2025. New Bedford was at 8.2% in January and February, and Fall River peaked at 8.3% in February. Rates fell through the spring to 5.7% in New Bedford and 5.4% in Fall River in May, rose in June and July, when New Bedford hit 6.6% and Fall River 6.1%, and have dropped each month since.
The figures count people where they live, not where they work, so a Fall River resident with a job in Providence counts as employed in Fall River. September's numbers are preliminary.
What comes next
October figures for the state are scheduled for Friday, Nov. 20, and the next metro area release is set for Wednesday, Dec. 2, both at 10 a.m., the bureau said.
Label: Reported by us, from the town's posted records.
Notes
Every fact comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: its Oct. 28 Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment release and table, and its Local Area Unemployment Statistics series for New Bedford, Fall River, Taunton, Bristol County, Plymouth County and Massachusetts. We read them on Oct. 29. We checked each date and weekday against a calendar. The monthly and yearly changes are our arithmetic from the bureau's figures. September figures are preliminary. No other news outlet is a source for this story.
Corrections
No corrections to this story. If something here is wrong, tell us. Every correction is dated on the story and listed in our public log.
Sources (8)
- Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment, September 2026 (USDL-26-1618)U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics news release, for release 10 a.m. ET Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026. National rate 4.0% not seasonally adjusted; rates lower than a year earlier in 226 of 387 metro areas, higher in 138; October state release Nov. 20, 2026, and October metro release Dec. 2, 2026, both 10 a.m. ET. Read Oct. 29, 2026.
- Table 1. Civilian labor force and unemployment by state and metropolitan areaU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, not seasonally adjusted. Massachusetts 4.4% September 2025, 4.1% September 2026. Read Oct. 29, 2026.
- New Bedford city, unemployment rate (LAUCT254500000000003)U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted, September 2026 preliminary. Rate 5.8% (6.4% August, 5.7% September 2025). Monthly rates January to August 2026: 8.2, 8.2, 7.4, 6.2, 5.7, 5.9, 6.6, 6.4. January 2025: 7.4. Unemployed 2,815 (3,131 August, 2,776 September 2025); employed 46,049 (45,904 August, 46,302 September 2025); labor force 48,864. Read Oct. 29, 2026.
- Fall River city, unemployment rate (LAUCT252300000000003)U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted, September 2026 preliminary. Rate 5.2% (5.6% August, 5.4% September 2025). Monthly rates January to August 2026: 8.1, 8.3, 7.5, 6.1, 5.4, 5.5, 6.1, 5.6. Monthly rates for 2025: 7.4, 7.9, 7.1, 6.1, 5.7, 5.8, 6.1, 6.0, 5.4, no October estimate, 5.8, 6.5. Unemployed 2,425 (2,605 August, 2,529 September 2025); employed 43,792 (43,654 August, 44,033 September 2025); labor force 46,217 (46,562 September 2025). Read Oct. 29, 2026.
- Taunton city, unemployment rate (LAUCT256917000000003)U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted, September 2026 preliminary. Rate 4.9% (5.4% August, 5.0% September 2025); unemployed 1,653; labor force 33,746. Read Oct. 29, 2026.
- Bristol County, unemployment rate (LAUCN250050000000003)U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted, September 2026 preliminary. Rate 4.5% (4.9% August, 4.7% September 2025); unemployed 14,135 (14,715 September 2025); employed 299,119 (300,759 September 2025); labor force 313,254 (315,474 September 2025). Read Oct. 29, 2026.
- Plymouth County, unemployment rate (LAUCN250230000000003)U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted, September 2026 preliminary. Rate 4.2% (4.4% August, 4.4% September 2025); unemployed 12,297; labor force 292,998. Read Oct. 29, 2026.
- Massachusetts, unemployment rate, not seasonally adjusted (LAUST250000000000003)U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted, September 2026 preliminary. Rate 4.1% (4.4% August, 4.4% September 2025). Read Oct. 29, 2026.