The local economy of Utah 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
3.5%
-0.1 ptsvs a year ago
Counties: lowest Daggett County 2.7%, highest Piute County 5.9%.
August 2026, seasonally adjusted, preliminary
Average weekly pay
$1,415
+4.0%vs a year ago
1,737,775 jobs at 140,599 business locations.
Q1 2026, all jobs
New homes permitted
25,666
-3.4%this year vs last year
Most in Salt Lake County 7,152, Utah County 6,129.
Homes in the last 12 months, to August 2026
People moving in
+1,039
+0.4 per 1,000residents
81,594 moved in and 80,555 moved out. Most newcomers came from California.
Net people, 2022 to 2023, the newest year published
Utah gas price
$4.86
+$1.48vs a year ago
Counties: lowest Salt Lake County $4.77, highest Rich County $5.27. Counties and metro areas
Regular, per gallon, Utah, 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
95K
+1.9%vs 2022
2023, places with paid employees
Employees
1.58M
+3.8%vs 2022
Largest sector: Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services (12.4%).
2023, mid-March
Annual payroll
$96.4B
Wages and salaries paid during the year.
2023, all industries
Average pay
$61,016
Highest sector: Management of Companies and Enterprises $126,225.
Per employee per year
Share of Utah's employees, 2023
| Industry | Employees | Average pay |
|---|---|---|
| Employment Services | 125,277 | $52,581 |
| Restaurants and Other Eating Places | 113,253 | $20,785 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals | 46,198 | $66,385 |
| Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools | 34,926 | $40,800 |
| Building Equipment Contractors | 34,572 | $67,373 |
| Software Publishers | 31,018 | $145,141 |
| General Merchandise Stores, including Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters | 27,381 | $32,731 |
| Grocery Stores | 26,516 | $28,630 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 26,147 | $126,225 |
| Depository Credit Intermediation | 24,823 | $96,969 |
| Offices of Physicians | 24,129 | $102,748 |
| Computer Systems Design and Related Services | 22,942 | $98,991 |
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 Utah, updated as new official numbers come out.
Unemployment for Utah 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 Utah, 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 Utah was 3.5% in August 2026 (seasonally adjusted, preliminary), compared with 3.6% a year earlier. 1,762,183 people were employed out of a labor force of 1,826,291. Among its counties, Daggett County had the lowest rate (2.7%) and Piute County the highest (5.9%, not seasonally adjusted).
Average weekly pay in Utah was $1,415 in Q1 2026, up 4.0% from a year earlier, across 1,737,775 jobs at 140,599 business locations.
Building permits were issued for 1,889 new homes in Utah in August 2026 (1,175 single-family and 673 in buildings with 5 or more units). From January to August the total was 16,124, down 3.4% from the same months last year, and 25,666 in the last 12 months. The most homes were permitted in Salt Lake County (7,152), Utah County (6,129), Washington County (2,830) over the last 12 months.
Yes. From 2022 to 2023, 81,594 people moved to Utah and 80,555 moved away, a net gain of 1,039 (+0.4 per 1,000 residents). Most newcomers came from California, Idaho, Texas, and most people who left went to California, Texas, Arizona.
Regular gasoline in Utah averaged $4.86 per gallon on October 9, 2026, up $1.48 from a year earlier. Diesel averaged $6.35. Among its counties, Salt Lake County had the lowest regular price ($4.77) and Rich County the highest ($5.27).
Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services (195,297 employees), Retail Trade (178,708 employees), Health Care and Social Assistance (176,253 employees) were the largest sectors in Utah in 2023. In all, 95,494 business locations employed 1,579,974 people at an average pay of $61,016 a year.