The local economy of Delaware and its counties, metro areas and cities, from official US government data, plus daily local gas prices for the state, its counties and metro areas.
Unemployment rate
4.7%
-0.3 ptsvs a year ago
Counties: lowest Sussex County 4.5%, highest Kent County 5.5%.
August 2026, seasonally adjusted, preliminary
Average weekly pay
$1,606
+3.1%vs a year ago
473,598 jobs at 47,081 business locations.
Q1 2026, all jobs
New homes permitted
6,477
+5.6%this year vs last year
Most in Sussex County 3,621, New Castle County 1,536.
Homes in the last 12 months, to August 2026
People moving in
+7,734
+9.6 per 1,000residents
36,247 moved in and 28,513 moved out. Most newcomers came from Pennsylvania.
Net people, 2022 to 2023, the newest year published
Delaware gas price
$4.23
+$1.30vs a year ago
Counties: lowest New Castle County $4.23, highest Kent County $4.24. Counties and metro areas
Regular, per gallon, Delaware, October 9, 2026
Newest data: -. Not seasonally adjusted: compare with the same month a year earlier. Click a row for the history of that area.
The state, its counties and metro areas, updated daily. A separate series from the weekly survey prices above.
Business locations, employees and payroll by industry, 2023. Click an industry for its US report.
Business locations
30K
+1.8%vs 2022
2023, places with paid employees
Employees
458K
+7.9%vs 2022
Largest sector: Health Care and Social Assistance (16.8%).
2023, mid-March
Annual payroll
$33.2B
Wages and salaries paid during the year.
2023, all industries
Average pay
$72,543
Highest sector: Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction $164,515.
Per employee per year
Share of Delaware's employees, 2023
| Industry | Employees | Average pay |
|---|---|---|
| Restaurants and Other Eating Places | 38,651 | $24,963 |
| Depository Credit Intermediation | 24,559 | $119,272 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals | 22,894 | $93,557 |
| Employment Services | 13,104 | $43,937 |
| Computer Systems Design and Related Services | 11,143 | $140,102 |
| Offices of Physicians | 9,719 | $102,328 |
| Grocery Stores | 9,372 | $28,894 |
| Electronic Shopping and Mail-Order Houses | 8,740 | $47,410 |
| Animal Slaughtering and Processing | 8,701 | $43,715 |
| Services to Buildings and Dwellings | 8,592 | $41,689 |
| Building Equipment Contractors | 8,414 | $73,748 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 7,586 | $134,968 |
Most values are changed slightly to protect the privacy of single businesses; a few are withheld and shown as a range. Counties and metro areas have the same numbers in the area card above (Industries).
Cost, students and graduate earnings of the colleges in the state, from official public data.
The newest unemployment rate, pay, new home permits, moves and gas price for Delaware, updated as new official numbers come out.
Unemployment for Delaware is seasonally adjusted; for its counties, metro areas and cities it is not, so compare a month with the same month a year earlier. Pay covers all jobs that pay into unemployment insurance. Building permits count homes approved to be built, not homes sold. Moves count households by where they filed their tax returns in two years in a row. Daily gas prices are average pump prices for Delaware, its counties and metro areas on the day shown. The weekly gas prices in the explorer come from a separate weekly survey that publishes a price for only some states, so a state without one shows the price of its region there; the two series are never combined.
The unemployment rate in Delaware was 4.7% in August 2026 (seasonally adjusted, preliminary), compared with 5.0% a year earlier. 481,714 people were employed out of a labor force of 505,307. Among its counties, Sussex County had the lowest rate (4.5%) and Kent County the highest (5.5%, not seasonally adjusted).
Average weekly pay in Delaware was $1,606 in Q1 2026, up 3.1% from a year earlier, across 473,598 jobs at 47,081 business locations.
Building permits were issued for 582 new homes in Delaware in August 2026 (498 single-family and 84 in buildings with 5 or more units). From January to August the total was 4,583, up 5.6% from the same months last year, and 6,477 in the last 12 months. The most homes were permitted in Sussex County (3,621), New Castle County (1,536), Kent County (1,320) over the last 12 months.
Yes. From 2022 to 2023, 36,247 people moved to Delaware and 28,513 moved away, a net gain of 7,734 (+9.6 per 1,000 residents). Most newcomers came from Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey, and most people who left went to Pennsylvania, Maryland, Florida.
Regular gasoline in Delaware averaged $4.23 per gallon on October 9, 2026, up $1.30 from a year earlier. Diesel averaged $6.33. Among its counties, New Castle County had the lowest regular price ($4.23) and Kent County the highest ($4.24).
Health Care and Social Assistance (76,784 employees), Retail Trade (62,102 employees), Accommodation and Food Services (46,106 employees) were the largest sectors in Delaware in 2023. In all, 29,706 business locations employed 457,635 people at an average pay of $72,543 a year.