The Ultimate Breakdown of Unemployment Applications, State by State

Unemployment is at an all-time high in the United States. Over the last 8 weeks, 36.5 million Americans have applied for unemployment.  But job losses aren't hitting the entire country equally,  so here at Skip we decided to dive a little deeper.  We have created a guide for you of total unemployment claims of the top 20 states by population since mid-March, state by state.  Click on your state below to see total unemployment applications over the last 2 months in your state.  As you will see, daily averages for most states range between from the tens of thousands on low days to over 100,000 on high days.  If you have filed for unemployment and would like to track your state's progress on disbursing benefits, check out our unemployment tracker.

Unemployment Applications in:

California
Washington
Texas
Florida
New York
Pennsylvania
Illinois
Ohio
Georgia
North Carolina
Michigan
New Jersey
Virginia
Arizona
Massachusetts
Tennessee
Missouri
Maryland
Wisconsin

Unemployment claims are so high in California that Governor Gavin Newsom has requested $43.8 billion from the federal government to cover them.

Job losses in Washington State now include 1,500 furloughed employees at UW Medicine, which has been at the forefront of fighting the coronavirus not only locally but globally.

Unemployment may start to drop off in Texas, as the state is beginning to reopen--bars, restaurants, salons, gyms and child care centers are now allowed to operate, with more businesses expected to be allowed soon.

Florida's government has been criticized for being too slow to pay out unemployment, including federal supplementary unemployment.

New York State has paid out about $9.2 billion in unemployment, but still has a significant backlog.

Unemployment in PA is beginning to drop off as the state reopens.

IL distributes unemployment through debit cards, which some recipients say has been slow to arrive or not loaded properly.

OH state unemployment funds are expected to last another month before the state will need to borrow federal funds.

Analysis by WalletHub shows that GA has the most steep increase in the country in unemployment claims (compared to the same time last year).  

Unemployment claims in NC have surged by 5,000 percent over the past two months.

If you need to file for unemployment in Michigan, click here.  You will need to create a login for the website, but the state suggests doing online rather than phone claims for faster service.

New Jersey has just announced that they are now reviewing claims for extended unemployment through the CARES Act for claimants that have exhausted their regular benefits.

Although VA is beginning to reopen, at present unemployment claimants still do not have to prove that they are applying for jobs to receive benefits.

Arizona disbursed more than $519 million in unemployment funds last week alone.

Although all of Massachusetts is feeling the impact of coronavirus, the Western part of the state has far higher unemployment rates than the Eastern half.

Tennessee is a hub for musicians, many of whom are now out of work due to the virus (entertainment industries were hit very hard by the lockdown).

Indiana residents are frustrated by the long wait for unemployment benefits, as the state's Department of Workforce Development struggles to keep up with massively increased demand.

Missouri lifted its stay at home order earlier than many other states, in early May. Workers who were laid off due to COVID-19 and are called back to work will have to report to work or lose their benefits, unless they meet a few exceptions.

Like other states, Maryland's government has been heavily criticized for mishandling unemployment claims, with some waiting nearly 9 weeks without benefits.

An outdated unemployment portal left Wisconsin unprepared to deal with the flood of claims from COVID-19, and many are still waiting for benefits.