PAYEMS
Total nonfarm payrolls — monthly jobs growth
Official name: All Employees, Total Nonfarm
Latest value
158637.0000
as of 2026-03-01
All-time percentile
100th
1-year change
+0.2%
Time series
Showing 59 of 59 data points
About this series
Total Nonfarm Payroll Employment. The headline number in the BLS Employment Situation report ("the jobs report"), released the first Friday of each month. This series is the total level in thousands of jobs.
Why it matters: Jobs growth is one of the most-watched monthly indicators for gauging US economic strength. The month-over-month change is what moves markets — "200,000 jobs added" is the phrase. Alongside unemployment (UNRATE), payrolls feed the Fed's "maximum employment" mandate.
How to read it: Look at the month-over-month change, not the level. ~150-200k/month is considered trend growth; sustained sub-100k is weakening; sub-zero is recessionary. The series gets revised in subsequent months — the initial print is often revised meaningfully.
Caveats: Heavily revised. A given month's print might change 50-100k in the following release. The BLS also publishes "QCEW" quarterly benchmarks that can shift the level by hundreds of thousands. Don't trade a single print.