When Does the Jobs Report Come Out? 2026 and 2027 Release Dates

Short answer: the US jobs report, officially called the Employment Situation, is published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time. It usually comes out on the first Friday of the month and covers the month before. The next release, for October 2026, is scheduled for Friday, November 6, 2026.

When is the next jobs report?

These are the dates BLS has published on its Employment Situation release schedule. Every release is at 8:30 a.m. Eastern.

Notice the January 2027 release on January 8, which is the second Friday. That happens when the first Friday falls too close to the end of the survey period or a holiday. If you need the date for planning, the table above is safer than the "first Friday" rule of thumb.

What time does the jobs report come out?

It's 8:30 a.m. Eastern every time. That's before the US stock market opens, which is why futures and the dollar often move sharply at that minute. In other time zones:

• Central: 7:30 a.m.
• Mountain: 6:30 a.m.
• Pacific: 5:30 a.m.
• London: 1:30 p.m. most of the year (12:30 p.m. for the short spells when the US and UK clocks change on different weekends).
• Pakistan (PKT): 6:30 p.m. in US winter, 5:30 p.m. in US summer.

Why does the date sometimes move?

The report is built around a reference week, the pay period that includes the 12th of the month. BLS needs time after that week to collect and check the data. When the calendar is awkward, or a federal holiday falls near the release, the date moves to the following Friday or to another weekday. Government shutdowns can also delay it, because BLS staff can't publish while funding has lapsed. When that happens, BLS posts a revised date on its site.

What's actually in the jobs report?

The report combines two separate surveys, which is why the headline numbers sometimes seem to disagree.

The BLS quick guide to the Employment Situation explains both surveys in more detail. The report also includes average hourly earnings, the average workweek, the labour force participation rate and a broader measure of underemployment called U-6.

Why does the jobs number get revised?

Not every employer responds in time for the first estimate. BLS publishes a first figure about three weeks after the reference period, revises it the next month and again the month after, using the late responses. Once a year it also benchmarks the payroll series against unemployment insurance tax records, which can shift the totals for almost two years of data. So when you read "the economy added X jobs", treat X as a first draft.

How can you get the report the moment it's out?

1. Go to the BLS Employment Situation news release page just after 8:30 a.m. Eastern. The full PDF and the summary text appear at the same time.
2. Subscribe to the BLS online calendar. The schedule page offers an .ics link that works with Google Calendar, Outlook and Apple Calendar and updates itself if a date changes.
3. Use BLS email alerts if you want the release in your inbox.

News sites publish within minutes, but their first headlines often skip the revisions and the household survey details. Reading the BLS summary table yourself takes five minutes and gives you the whole picture.

What does the jobs report mean for job seekers?

One month's number tells you very little about your own search. What helps more is the industry table. If health care and local government keep adding jobs while tech and finance shed them, that tells you where hiring is easier right now. For a wider view of what's going on, see our guide on why companies aren't hiring in 2026 and where they still are, and our check on how to tell if a job is actually hiring before you spend time on an application. If you're comparing pay as well, our middle-class salary guide uses the same federal data.

Key numbers in the report, explained simply

How to read the jobs report in five minutes

1. Start with the summary at the top of the BLS release. It gives the headline payroll change and unemployment rate in plain language.
2. Check the revisions to the previous two months. A big revision can change the story.
3. Look at the industries table. This tells you where hiring is happening, which matters more to a job seeker than the total.
4. Check average hourly earnings for a sense of pay pressure.
5. Compare with a three-month average rather than reacting to one month.

Other labor reports worth knowing

• JOLTS (Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey): from BLS, shows job openings, hires and quits.
• Weekly unemployment insurance claims: from the Department of Labor, a fast weekly signal of layoffs.
• State employment and unemployment: from BLS, shows conditions in each state, usually later in the month.
• Private payroll estimates: some private companies publish their own estimates before the official report. They do not always match it.

What job seekers can actually take from it

The headline number is about the whole US economy, so it says little about your local market or your field. The more useful parts for a job search are the industry table, which shows where employers are adding staff, and wage growth, which helps when you set salary expectations. If health care or construction added jobs for several months in a row, for example, those employers are likely still hiring. Pair this with local job ads and state data from BLS for a fuller picture.

The full release, tables and the official schedule of future dates are all on the BLS website, which is the only source you need for the official numbers.

Frequently asked questions

Is the jobs report always on the first Friday?

Usually, but not always. BLS sometimes uses the second Friday or another weekday because of the survey calendar, holidays or a government shutdown. The BLS schedule page is the only reliable source.

What time is the jobs report released?

8:30 a.m. Eastern Time, which is 5:30 a.m. Pacific.

Who publishes the jobs report?

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics, part of the Department of Labor.

Which month does the report cover?

The previous month. The report released on November 6, 2026 covers October 2026.

Why are the payroll number and the unemployment rate sometimes out of step?

They come from different surveys. One counts jobs at employers, the other counts people in households, and each has its own sampling error.

What is a good jobs number?

There's no fixed target. What counts as solid depends on how fast the working-age population is growing, and economists' estimates of that change over time.

Does the jobs report come out during a government shutdown?

Not normally. BLS stops publishing while its funding has lapsed and announces a new date once it reopens.

Is there a separate report for job openings?

Yes. The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) is a different BLS release that covers openings, hires and quits. It comes out on its own schedule.