South Carolina’s Employment Situation July 2024 - July 2025: Payroll Jobs Continue to Grow

By Lainey Stalnaker, Data Analytics Writer

The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ July employment report  pointed to favorable labor market conditions in South Carolina, one of only five states to record a statistically significant decline in the unemployment rate from July 2024 to July 2025. The majority of states recorded an increase in the unemployment rate over the year, but unemployment declined 0.3 percentage points in South Carolina, from 4.5 percent to 4.2 percent. 
Over the last twelve months, South Carolina’s unemployment rate had been slightly elevated compared to the national average, but the rate slowly inched down and has been lately equal to or lower than the U.S. rate, as shown in Figure 1.

One reason for this improvement may be the rapid job creation across the state. South Carolina was one of only four states to record a significant increase in month-over-month employment growth from June to July. Payroll employment increased 0.4 percent, representing 9,000 new jobs.

This was part of a continued trend over the past year of massive employment gains. South Carolina has repeatedly ranked first in the country for 12-month job growth, and it took the top spot again in July. South Carolina added 79,000 jobs between July 2024 and July 2025, a 3.4 percent increase. Only a few states came close to this rate—New Mexico at 2.7 percent, Hawaii at 2.1, Idaho at 1.9, and Missouri and North Carolina at 1.7. South Carolina more than doubled the growth rate of any state other than these. 

Employment gains were spread across sectors, but the largest contributor to job creation was the professional and business services sector, which added 21,700 jobs over the year. Education and health services added 16,100, and leisure and hospitality added 13,100. Figure 2 shows the change in employment over the year in each supersector in the state. 

Relative to the United States average, South Carolina’s unemployment rate has been slightly high in recent years, but it is low by historical standards and continues to fall. The rocketing job growth indicates that employment opportunities remain abundant.

Note: In September 2025, the Bureau of Labor Statistics issued its benchmark revisions for estimates through March 2025, and some employment levels were adjusted downward. This benchmarking is a standard part of the process and it improves the accuracy of estimates over time.  The July 2025 figures in this article remain preliminary, but comparisons across the 12-month period should be interpreted with the awareness that they could be revised. Nevertheless, LMI considers the underlying trends revealed by both preliminary and revised data to be highly useful.