Skip to content

Tuesday, Jul. 9, 2024

Did US unemployment fall to the lowest rate in 50 years under Biden?


yes

The unemployment rate was 3.4% in January and April 2023, the lowest in 55 years.

The last time the unemployment rate in the U.S. was this low was in the first five months of 1969. The unemployment rate has never been less than 3.4% since October 1953.

The average unemployment rate during the Biden Administration (February 2021 through May 2024) was 4.1%, with the highest rates of over 6% from February 2021 to April 2021. The unemployment rate remained below 4% in the 27 months from February 2022 through April 2024. This is the longest stretch of sub-4% unemployment since the end of the 1960s.

The most recent unemployment rate in June 2024 was recorded at 4.1%.

See a full discussion of this at EconoFact

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

About fact briefs

Fact briefs are bite-sized, well-sourced explanations that offer clear "yes" or "no" answers to questions, confusions, and unsupported claims circulating online. They rely on publicly available data and documents, often from the original source. Fact briefs are written and published by Gigafact contributor publications.

See all fact briefs

EconoFact is a non-partisan publication designed to bring key facts and incisive analysis to the national debate on economic and social policies. Launched in January 2017, it is written by leading academic economists from across the country who belong to the EconoFact Network. It is published by the Edward R. Murrow Center for a Digital World at The Fletcher School at Tufts University.

Learn More

Be a Friend of facts

Help us fund more great fact briefs like this one.