Job openings
Job openings is 7.52M and has held roughly steady over the last 3 months. That is high by historical standards: higher than 82% of readings since 2006.
Latest (latest reading)
7.52M
As of
Sep 2026
3-month change
+341K
1-year change
+354K
20-year percentile
82nd
20-year median
5.84M
What it is. Unfilled jobs (thousands); how hard employers are trying to hire. A higher reading means more labor market strength in the Labor reading.
What it affects next
Job openings is unusually high: 7.52M, 82nd percentile of the last 20 years. Here is what has tended to follow, based on links the data backs up.
- →Nonfarm payrolls: has tended to rise about 1 month later. Following
What is driving it
None of its tested drivers is moving much right now.
All tested links
Fewer openings usually means slower hiring ahead. Typical lag: 1-6 months. Strongest match 1 month later (correlation 0.56, 298 observations since 2001).
Source: BLS via FRED (series JTSJOL).