Winston-Salem's unemployment rate was 4.1% in August, down from 4.7% a year earlier. Fewer people were out of work, but fewer had jobs too. Forsyth County: 3.9%.
Winston-Salem’s unemployment rate was 4.1% in August, down from 4.7% in August 2025. About 750 fewer city residents were out of work than a year earlier.
The drop is not all good news. The number of residents with a job also fell, by about 620. Taken together, the rate came down because people left the labor force, not because more residents found work.
Forsyth County’s rate was 3.9%, down from 4.4%.
The figures are the preliminary August estimates from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Local Area Unemployment Statistics program. They are not seasonally adjusted, so the fair comparison is with the same month a year earlier.
Winston-Salem against the Triad
| Area | August 2026 | August 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Kernersville | 3.6% | 3.6% |
| North Carolina | 3.6% | 4.1% |
| Forsyth County | 3.9% | 4.4% |
| Winston-Salem | 4.1% | 4.7% |
| Guilford County | 4.2% | 4.7% |
| Greensboro | 4.3% | 4.8% |
| United States | 4.3% | 4.5% |
| High Point | 4.5% | 5.0% |
All rates are not seasonally adjusted. Sources: BLS series for Kernersville, North Carolina, Forsyth County, Guilford County, Greensboro, the United States and High Point.
Winston-Salem’s rate was above the county and state rates and below the national rate. Kernersville, about 10 miles east, was lowest in the group at 3.6% and unchanged from a year earlier. Greensboro, about 25 miles east, was 4.3%. High Point, about 17 miles southeast, was 4.5%.
The city’s fall of 0.6 points was the largest in the group. Greensboro, High Point, Guilford County and North Carolina all fell 0.5 points.
The numbers behind the rate
In Winston-Salem in August, according to the BLS:
- 114,618 people were in the labor force, down from 115,991 a year earlier.
- 109,914 people had jobs, down from 110,533.
- 4,704 people were unemployed, down from 5,458.
Across Forsyth County:
- 181,386 people were in the labor force, down from 183,398.
- 174,377 people had jobs, down from 175,360.
- 7,009 people were unemployed, down from 8,038.
The labor force counts people who have a job or are looking for one. The unemployment rate is the share of the labor force without a job and looking for one. These are counts of residents, wherever they work. They are not counts of the jobs based in the city.
The labor force can shrink for many reasons: retirements, people moving away, students, or people who stop looking for work. The BLS figures do not say which.
The past year, month by month
Winston-Salem’s rate moved between 3.8% and 4.7% over the year. It was lowest in March and April and highest in August 2025.
| Month | Winston-Salem | Forsyth County |
|---|---|---|
| August 2025 | 4.7% | 4.4% |
| September 2025 | 4.1% | 3.9% |
| October 2025 | no data | no data |
| November 2025 | 4.2% | 4.0% |
| December 2025 | 3.9% | 3.6% |
| January 2026 | 4.5% | 4.3% |
| February 2026 | 4.2% | 4.0% |
| March 2026 | 3.8% | 3.6% |
| April 2026 | 3.8% | 3.6% |
| May 2026 | 3.9% | 3.7% |
| June 2026 | 4.1% | 3.8% |
| July 2026 | 4.1% | 3.9% |
| August 2026 | 4.1% | 3.9% |
The BLS published no local figures for October 2025 because of the 2025 lapse in federal appropriations, the agency notes on each series.
What it means for you
- If you are looking for work, NCWorks runs the state’s job centers and listings at ncworks.gov. The City of Winston-Salem posts its own openings on its careers page.
- If you run a business, a smaller labor force can mean fewer applicants even as the rate falls.
- The August figures are preliminary. The BLS revises them with the next month’s release, and we will update the numbers here when it does.
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