The Strip, the Sphere and the full replica of the Eiffel Tower by day
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A sparsely populated state known for its world-class casinos and dry desert climate has been a bright spot in the tepid U.S. job market.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Nevada’s workforce grew 1.9% from April 2025 to 2026, the highest of any state. Nationally, this rate increased by just 0.2% over the same period.
Data shows that about 12% of new U.S. jobs were created in Nevada during those 12 months. That’s a huge win for the Silver State, which is home to only about 1% of the state’s population.
Business leaders in Nevada say their success is the culmination of years of work to diversify operations beyond gambling and entertainment. Nevada, home to 3.3 million residents, has long benefited from proximity to California and is increasingly becoming a hub of artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Economically, Nevada is “a relatively small state that is mentioned in the same breath as California, Texas and Florida,” said David Schmidt, chief economist at the state’s Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation. The labor market in particular shows “really remarkable numbers that we are seeing”.
“Comprehensive” staff growth
Last year, Nevada saw the strongest growth in professional and business services jobs, which Schmidt attributed to favorable state tax policies. Education and health care jobs also made the largest contributions, part of a national trend of health care leading to job gains.
Companies have long sought Nevada for new or expanded mines, thanks today to abundant supplies of lithium, a key component in batteries used to power AI models, Schmidt said. And Nevada’s 110,000-square-mile area offers large tracts of open land that are attractive for building AI-related infrastructure such as data centers, the economist said.
One of the few signs of a decline in Nevada’s labor economy has been public sector jobs, which fell last year, slowing even greater expansion. However, due to the small number of federal employees there, Nevada is less affected than other states by President Trump’s efforts to curb government hiring, according to Schmidt.
At first glance, the strength of Nevada’s job market is surprising given the weak state of the state’s iconic gaming industry. The Las Vegas Strip’s largest casinos overall experienced a nearly 4% decline in revenue between fiscal years 2024 and 2025, according to Nevada Gaming Control Board data released this month.
Guests play slots at Resorts World in Las Vegas on Wednesday, January 29, 2025.
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But the economy of the greater Las Vegas area — home to the lion’s share of the state’s population — is becoming less dependent on gambling. An analysis of federal data found that about 60% of the region’s new jobs from 2016 to 2025 came in industries outside of hospitality, construction and government, the Las Vegas Global Economic Alliance told CNBC.
“When you look at the data, the most striking thing is how widespread the growth is,” said Schmidt.
Nevada is bucking what economists have described as a nationwide “unemployment boom” and “low hire, low fire” job market. Now, however, the national labor market may be thawing: Nonfarm payroll growth was more than double Wall Street’s forecast in May. The BLS is expected to release the latest employment breakdown by state next week.
“Untapped” talent pool
According to Indeed, an online job site, job openings in Nevada are up about 20% compared to February 2020, while the national figure is up about 2%. Staffing firm ManpowerGroup found that demand for workers in Nevada held up better than the average state in the second quarter.
The majority of Nevada’s hiring may come from larger companies, according to Gusto, a payroll platform for small and medium-sized businesses, which told CNBC that Nevada’s net hiring rate was lower than the rest of the country.
However, despite the apparent growth, Nevada’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate is above the national average, which Stephen Miller, an economics professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, said may be a reflection of a growing workforce that has been recovering since the Covid pandemic.
“We had so many people unemployed starting in 2020,” Miller said. “We’re still catching up.”
The growing workforce is reflected in Nevada’s higher-than-average labor force participation rate – a measure of the working-age population that is employed or looking for work. That’s a positive for employers looking to expand in the state, Schmidt said.
Red Rock Canyon, Nevada.
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Kris Roach, CEO of LV Petroleum, saw this story unfold as he hired hundreds of employees to staff the company’s restaurants and travel centers last year.
Roach found it “very easy” to find staff, sometimes receiving more than 100 applications for a management position. There are also numerous employees – some previously employed at Las Vegas casinos – who can be hired for jobs in areas such as finance and human resources at LV Petroleum’s expanding corporate headquarters.
“It’s a great state to work in,” Roach said. “There is so much untapped talent.”
Beyond the Strip
Nevada must actively court businesses and attract workers to continue to be a leader in job growth, local business advocates said.
The Sun Belt state’s population has increased in recent decades, which economists attribute in part to its proximity to California. Federal data show Nevada’s resident population increased by more than 62% between 2000 and 2025, far outpacing the national increase of about 21%.
One new resident is Emma Keserich, who came to Las Vegas from the Washington, D.C. area last summer. The Washington metropolitan area, including suburban Virginia and Maryland, has lost thousands of jobs due to Trump’s federal government efficiency initiatives.
Keserich was initially surprised by the number of families and nearby natural attractions in a region known for its entertainment hub. As vice president of the Las Vegas Global Economic Alliance, Keserich plays up short commute times and relative affordability when introducing companies to the region.
The cost of living in Nevada was lower in the first quarter than in neighboring states such as California, Idaho and Arizona, according to a Missouri-based government researcher. Average hourly wages in Nevada rose nearly 6% from 2024 to 2025, the fifth-largest increase of any state, according to a CNBC analysis of BLS data.
“People think Las Vegas is just the Strip,” Keserich said. “There is simply more than what meets the eye.”
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