Curated rankings and comparisons across all data topics and geographies.
In 2025, the New York-Newark-Jersey City metro area led the United States with an estimated GDP of $2.189 trillion, followed by Los Angeles ($1.078 trillion) and Chicago ($760 billion). The top 10 metro areas generate about 42.8% of U.S. GDP while holding only 28.4% of the population. This article ranks the largest U.S. metropolitan economies and explains the data, methodology, and implications.
The New York-Newark-Jersey City metropolitan area remains the largest U.S. metro area in the Census Bureau’s Vintage 2025 estimates, with 20,112,448 residents as of July 1, 2025. Los Angeles and Chicago follow, while Sun Belt metros such as Dallas, Houston, Austin, and Orlando continue to post the strongest long-term growth. The official rankings cover 387 metropolitan statistical areas in the 50 states and the District of Columbia.
A look at the counties and local areas reporting the lowest unemployment rates in 2026 according to Bureau of Labor Statistics Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) data. Recent state-level releases show several rural and suburban counties in Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Kentucky with rates below 3 percent, while Nevada’s micropolitan areas also rank among the lowest in the state.
Real GDP per capita by state measures inflation-adjusted economic output per resident. In the third quarter of 2025, real GDP grew in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, with Kansas leading at 6.5% and North Dakota slowest at 0.4%. The highest per capita output is concentrated in the District of Columbia and states with large finance, technology, and energy sectors.
The most recent comprehensive official data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis shows Midland, TX had the highest GDP per capita among U.S. metropolitan areas in 2021 at $228,069, followed by San Jose and San Francisco. Although 2025 rankings are not yet available in official BEA releases, the 2021 figures highlight how energy production and technology hubs drive the highest per-person economic output.
New York County, New York — the borough of Manhattan — is the most densely populated county in the United States, with 73,478 residents per square mile in 2025. It is followed by Kings County (Brooklyn), Bronx County, and Queens County, making four of the five densest counties part of New York City. County-level density rankings highlight extreme urban concentration and the wide gap between coastal cities and rural America.
The cost of living in the U.S. varies by as much as $75,000 per year between the most and least expensive states. Hawaii is the most expensive state with annual household costs of $141,127, while Oklahoma is the cheapest at $66,284. Housing costs are the biggest driver of state differences, followed by groceries, utilities, healthcare, and taxes.
South Dakota posted the lowest unemployment rate in the United States in June 2026 at 2.0 percent, followed by North Dakota at 2.3 percent and Hawaii and Vermont at 2.6 percent. The national unemployment rate was 4.2 percent, and 17 states had rates significantly below that level. These figures come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ state employment and unemployment report released July 21, 2026.
New York remains the largest U.S. city by population, with more than 8.5 million residents, followed by Los Angeles and Chicago. The latest Census Bureau estimates show 12 cities above one million, with Texas and the Sun Belt driving much of the growth. This article breaks down the top rankings, year-over-year changes, and what city-proper population figures do and do not capture.
In June 2026, the U.S. unemployment rate was 4.2%, with state rates ranging from 2.6% in Hawaii to 6.0% in the District of Columbia. Most states saw little change over the month, but 13 states recorded higher jobless rates than a year earlier, led by Connecticut, Florida, and Illinois.