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The number of Fairfax County residents counted as unemployed reached 23,518 in February, climbing 22% from a year earlier and 62.5% since December 2024.

New state data shows the total rose from 19,315 in February 2025 and 14,465 during the final full month of the Biden administration.

Fairfax County had 607,294 employed residents in its civilian workforce in February. The county’s non-seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.7%, essentially unchanged from January but higher than the 3% recorded a year earlier.

Although the year-over-year growth in unemployment has begun to moderate, the figures do not capture everyone who may be without work. Some residents could have stopped seeking jobs, exhausted unemployment benefits or left the county or region in search of employment.

The shift in reported employment was considerably larger than the increase in unemployment. While the number of unemployed residents grew by 4,203 over the year, the number counted as employed fell by 22,116.

Nearby jurisdictions also posted higher unemployment. Fairfax City’s rate rose from 2.8% to 3.3%, while its unemployed population increased 18.8% to 473.

Alexandria’s rate climbed from 2.9% to 3.4%, Arlington’s increased from 2.8% to 3.2%, and Falls Church’s rose from 3.1% to 4%.

Across the Washington metropolitan area, employment fell by 119,000 year over year—more than triple the decline of any other metro area. A shrinking federal workforce contributed to the losses, including about 32,000 jobs lost in Northern Virginia.

The February state figures arrived only two weeks after the release of January’s data. Reporting has faced delays since last fall because of lingering effects from the federal government’s seven-week shutdown. The February 2026 numbers remain preliminary and may be revised.

Unemployment rises across most U.S. metro areas

Nationally, unemployment rates increased year over year in 236 of 387 metropolitan areas during February. Rates declined in 110 areas and remained unchanged in 41.

The nationwide non-seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 4.7%, up from 4.5% in February 2025.

Honolulu recorded the lowest metropolitan unemployment rate at 2.2%, while El Centro, California, posted the highest at 17.6%. Among the 56 metro areas with at least 1 million residents, Honolulu again had the lowest rate, while Fresno, California, had the highest at 9.1%.

The Washington region’s loss of 119,000 jobs was the nation’s largest decline by raw numbers. Its 3.5% decrease ranked third by percentage, behind Yuma, Arizona, at 5% and Sierra Vista, Arizona, at 4.6%.