County Employment and Wages in Rhode Island — First Quarter 2026

Rhode Island employment decreased 0.6 percent over the year to 486,900 in March 2026, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See table 1.) Among the state's two largest counties, employment declined 1.1 percent in Providence County and 0.7 percent in Kent County from March 2025 to March 2026, as measured by the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) program. Regional Commissioner Mark J. Maggi noted that the rate of employment growth in Providence ranked 300^th and in Kent ranked 252^nd among the 371 largest U.S. counties with published data.

Employment was 285,300 in Providence and 74,900 in Kent in March 2026. Together these two large counties accounted for 74.0 percent of total employment in Rhode Island. Nationwide, the 376 largest counties comprise 73.5 percent of total covered employment in the United States. (Large counties and county equivalents are those with annual average employment levels of 75,000 or more in 2025.)

Large county average weekly wages in the first quarter 2026

The average weekly wage in Providence increased 4.0 percent over the year (ranked 132^nd nationally) to $1,513 (125^th). The average wage in Kent increased 2.7 percent (243^rd) to $1,319 (222^nd). The national average was $1,654, up 3.9 percent over the year.

Statewide, average weekly wages increased 4.2 percent over the year to $1,487. Rhode Island ranked 22^nd in average weekly wages among the 50 states and the District of Columbia and 14^th in wage growth.

Smaller county average weekly wages in the first quarter of 2026

Employment and wage levels (but not over-the-year changes) are also available for the three smaller counties in Rhode Island, defined as having employment below 75,000 in 2025. (See table 2.) Wage levels in all three smaller counties were below the national average: Newport ($1,529), Washington ($1,303), and Bristol ($1,242).

Among all 5 Rhode Island counties, 1 reported average weekly wages of less than $1,300, 2 registered wages from $1,300 to $1,499, and 2 had average weekly wages of $1,500 or higher. (See map 1 and table 2.)

Additional statistics and other information

QCEW data for all states have been included in this release in table 3.

Nationwide coverage of the largest counties is published in the County Employment and Wages news release. Additional information about quarterly employment and wages data is available in the news release Technical Note and from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages website.

If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.

The County Employment and Wages release for the second quarter 2026 is scheduled to be released on Wednesday, December 2, 2026.

Table 1. Covered establishments, employment, and wages in the United States and the two largest counties in Rhode Island, first quarter 2026

Area	Establishments, first quarter (thousands)	Employment			Average weekly wage (1)
		March 2026 (thousands)	Percent change, March 2025-26 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)	First quarter 2026 ($)	National ranking by level (3)	Percent change, first quarter 2025-26 (2)	National ranking by percent change (3)
United States (4)	12,381.8	154,771.9	0.1	--	1,654	--	3.9	--
Rhode Island	49.1	486.9	-0.6	--	1,487	22	4.2	14
Kent	7.1	74.9	-0.7	252	1,319	222	2.7	243
Providence	24.5	285.3	-1.1	300	1,513	125	4.0	132
Footnotes: (1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Percent changes were computed from employment and pay data adjusted for noneconomic county reclassifications. (3) Ranking does not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. (4) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
Note: Data are preliminary. Dashes indicate data not applicable or available. Covered employment and wages include workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.

Table 2. Covered establishments, employment, and wages in the United States and all counties in Rhode Island, first quarter 2026

Area	Establishments	Employment March 2026	Average weekly wage ($) (1)
United States (2)	12,381,750	154,771,941	1,654
Rhode Island	49,057	486,940	1,487
Bristol	2,364	14,492	1,242
Kent	7,074	74,857	1,319
Newport	4,489	40,418	1,529
Providence	24,503	285,278	1,513
Washington	5,919	57,458	1,303
Footnotes: (1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
Note: Data are preliminary. Dashes indicate data not applicable or available. Covered employment and wages include workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.

Table 3. Covered establishments, employment, and wages by state, first quarter 2026

State	Establishments, first quarter (thousands)	Employment		Average weekly wage (1)
		March 2026 (thousands)	Percent change, March 2025-26	First quarter 2026 ($)	National ranking by level	Percent change, first quarter 2025-26	National ranking by percent change
United States (2)	12,381.8	154,771.9	0.1	1,654	--	3.9	--
Alabama	168.7	2,121.2	0.7	1,292	38	3.6	28
Alaska	25.4	320.1	-1.3	1,519	18	4.8	6
Arizona	227.8	3,249.1	-0.6	1,495	21	4.5	10
Arkansas	109.4	1,305.2	-0.1	1,291	39	4.6	8
California	1,990.7	18,211.8	0.9	1,986	6	2.7	44
Colorado	264.7	2,848.5	-0.7	1,774	8	5.4	4
Connecticut	150.0	1,668.2	-0.4	2,080	4	5.2	5
Delaware	47.1	473.6	-0.3	1,606	15	3.1	39
District of Columbia	51.4	715.8	-4.5	2,725	1	4.5	10
Florida	894.1	9,962.8	0.0	1,518	19	4.3	13
Georgia	397.4	4,865.2	0.0	1,539	17	3.3	34
Hawaii	64.6	643.9	-0.3	1,387	29	1.7	51
Idaho	100.8	867.9	1.9	1,254	44	6.2	2
Illinois	389.4	5,992.4	0.0	1,731	9	4.1	16
Indiana	197.7	3,160.7	-0.1	1,356	30	2.7	44
Iowa	110.8	1,537.5	-0.1	1,301	36	3.9	22
Kansas	102.2	1,425.3	0.0	1,286	41	3.1	39
Kentucky	163.0	1,979.1	-0.4	1,248	45	2.9	43
Louisiana	159.6	1,917.2	-0.5	1,274	42	4.0	17
Maine	67.5	629.1	-0.5	1,327	34	3.5	30
Maryland	201.1	2,700.3	-1.7	1,676	10	2.7	44
Massachusetts	296.4	3,552.9	-0.9	2,201	3	4.8	6
Michigan	312.6	4,357.5	0.3	1,445	24	3.9	22
Minnesota	213.9	2,878.1	-0.3	1,630	14	3.8	24
Mississippi	93.3	1,162.9	-0.2	1,051	51	3.3	34
Missouri	263.5	2,890.5	0.1	1,354	31	3.4	32
Montana	63.2	506.6	0.6	1,229	48	3.5	30
Nebraska	78.9	1,008.2	-0.1	1,274	42	3.7	26
Nevada	112.8	1,575.7	2.0	1,391	28	2.1	50
New Hampshire	66.1	675.0	-1.2	1,656	12	3.0	41
New Jersey	343.4	4,247.8	0.0	1,879	7	3.3	34
New Mexico	67.1	867.4	-0.4	1,235	46	2.7	44
New York	710.5	9,743.6	-0.3	2,363	2	6.5	1
North Carolina	375.3	4,942.7	0.8	1,515	20	3.3	34
North Dakota	36.9	420.7	-0.5	1,333	33	2.4	49
Ohio	344.6	5,458.3	-0.2	1,417	26	4.0	17
Oklahoma	130.2	1,700.6	0.0	1,235	46	3.6	28
Oregon	173.5	1,952.3	-1.3	1,481	23	4.6	8
Pennsylvania	394.1	6,002.1	-0.1	1,550	16	3.3	34
Rhode Island	49.1	486.9	-0.6	1,487	22	4.2	14
South Carolina	193.1	2,326.6	0.7	1,296	37	4.0	17
South Dakota	41.1	451.7	0.2	1,211	49	4.2	14
Tennessee	228.1	3,254.1	-0.2	1,426	25	4.4	12
Texas	868.8	14,124.6	0.6	1,646	13	3.8	24
Utah	140.6	1,737.8	0.9	1,415	27	4.0	17
Vermont	33.4	304.2	-1.0	1,322	35	3.0	41
Virginia	324.8	4,118.7	-0.2	1,665	11	4.0	17
Washington	240.6	3,558.6	-0.2	1,998	5	2.7	44
West Virginia	63.0	693.3	-0.4	1,188	50	3.4	32
Wisconsin	208.0	2,902.6	0.0	1,353	32	3.7	26
Wyoming	31.8	275.2	-0.1	1,287	40	5.8	3
Puerto Rico	52.9	944.5	-0.8	724	(3)	3.4	(3)
Virgin Islands	2.9	34.9	1.2	1,054	(3)	1.5	(3)
Footnotes: (1) Average weekly wages were calculated using unrounded data. (2) Totals for the United States do not include data for Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands. (3) Data not included in the national ranking.
Note: Data are preliminary. Dashes indicate data not applicable or available. Covered employment and wages include workers covered by Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs.