What is the Job Market Index?

A daily score from −100 to +100 of worker pressure versus leverage in Reddit career conversations. Zero is a typical year for those communities. It is not official labor statistics.

Is this official labor statistics?

No. This is a reading of public posts from r/layoffs, r/jobs, and r/recruitinghell. It is not BLS unemployment, payrolls, or JOLTS.

How often is this updated?

Numbers update daily as new posts are ingested and classified.

How is the job market right now?

Q: How is the job market right now?

As of Oct 2, 2026, the Reddit Job Market Index is Pressured. Pressure is still high, but the index is rising versus the prior period.

Compared to previous 3 months

Posts from r/layoffs, r/jobs, and r/recruitinghell — not official labor statistics.

Jul 2, 2026 – Oct 2, 2026

vs the previous 3 monthsvs the previous 3 months, not the same months last year

Right now

Compared to previous 3 months

Pressured

-27

−100 to +100, 0 = this community's typical year

Pressure is still high, but the index is rising versus the prior period.

↑Getting better

11 points vs previous 3 months

Reddit Job Market Index

Overall labor market sentiment from Reddit conversations

Workers aheadPositive = workers have advantageTypical year0 = typical year for this communityEmployers aheadNegative = employers have advantage

Why it moved

Layoffs

Compared to previous 3 months

Mentions of people being laid off.

WORSENING

81% of posts

↑ +3% vs previous 3 months

Job search difficulty

Compared to previous 3 months

Applications needed per offer.

WORSENING

220 apps / offer

↑ +51% vs previous 3 months

Time unemployed in months

Compared to previous 3 months

Average number of months out of work.

LONGER

3.1 months

↑ +1% vs previous 3 months

Salary pressure

Compared to previous 3 months

Salary cuts and weaker offers.

WORSENING

+10% median change

↑ +56% vs previous 3 months

Job search desperation

Compared to previous 3 months

High-effort, distressed search posts.

MODERATE

14% of posts

↑ +5% vs previous 3 months

Worker leverage

Compared to previous 3 months

Worker vs employer bargaining power.

STRONG

12 index

↓ -42% vs previous 3 months

OccupationsTop Occupations

ShareShare of distressvs prevvs previous 3 months

1
Software Engineering
28%↓ 0.3pp
2
Marketing
10%↑ 0.6pp
3
Sales
9%↑ 0.5pp
4
Finance
9%↑ 0.9pp
5
Healthcare
7%↓ 0.8pp
6
Skilled Trades
6%↓ 0.6pp
7
Customer Support
6%↓ 1.4pp
8
Data / Analytics
6%↑ 0.1pp

IndustriesTop Industries

ShareShare of distressvs prevvs previous 3 months

1
Technology
40%↓ 2.2pp
2
Retail
12%↑ 0.2pp
3
Finance
11%↑ 0.2pp
4
Healthcare
10%↑ 0.2pp
5
Education
5%↑ 0.1pp
6
Hospitality
5%↑ 0.1pp
7
Government
3%↑ 0.3pp
8
Manufacturing
2%↑ 0.4pp

US StatesTop US States

Smaller share

Larger share

ShareShare of distressvs prevvs previous 3 months

1
New York
27%↓ 16.5pp
2
California
11%↑ 2.2pp
3
Florida
9%↑ 4.5pp
4
New Jersey
9%-
5
Texas
7%↑ 2.5pp

CountriesTop Countries

Smaller share

Larger share

ShareShare of distressvs prevvs previous 3 months

1
United States
56%↑ 2.3pp
2
India
12%↓ 0.4pp
3
Canada
10%↓ 0.3pp
4
United Kingdom
10%↓ 1.6pp
5
Germany
3%↑ 0.6pp

What's driving the conversation

Share of posts by topic in this period

This is the main topic of each post. The Layoffs card above is any mention of layoffs, so the two percentages will not match.

Job Search Struggles

66%

0pp vs previous 3 months

Layoffs & Downsizing

16%

+1pp vs previous 3 months

Salary & Offers

15%

-1pp vs previous 3 months

Career Changes

0pp vs previous 3 months