Cities With the Most Job Openings in Every State

If you’re looking for a job, the good news is that employers are hiring.

Although the U.S. economy has been slowing, the job market has remained strong. The unemployment rate hit a 50-year low of 3.5% in September. It edged up slightly in October to 3.6%, but the increase was caused in part by striking General Motors workers, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Overall, employers added 128,000 jobs in October. Some of the biggest gains were in the food, social and financial services industries. Average hourly earnings also increased slightly in October.

What was also notable in the October jobs report was the decline in the number of discouraged workers — people who weren’t looking for work because they believed there weren’t jobs available for them. The report showed that more people are feeling encouraged to return to the job market.

Of course, whether you can land a job — if you’re in the market for a new position or returning to the workforce — will depend on many things. One of those is the job market where you live. Although job growth has been steady nationwide, openings can vary greatly from city to city.

To find out where job seekers might have a greater chance of getting hired, GOBankingRates used data from CareerBuilder to identify the top three places in each state with the most job listings over the past year. Job posting data are for metro areas, which include both cities and surrounding suburbs. Some of these metro areas cross state lines, so they appear among the top places with the most job openings in multiple states. For example, Chicago appears as one of the cities with the most job openings in Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin because the metro area expands into all of those states.

Knowing where there are more openings can help with your job search. Keep reading to find out which are the best places for job seekers.

• Birmingham-Hoover, Alabama: 250,858
• Huntsville, Alabama: 114,370
• Montgomery, Alabama: 80,805

• Anchorage, Alaska: 90,186
• Fairbanks, Alaska: 26,485
• Juneau, Alaska: 21,742

• Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, Arizona: 901,487
• Tucson, Arizona: 159,640
• Prescott Valley-Prescott, Arizona: 38,449

• Memphis, Tennessee, metro area: 293,728
• Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, Arkansas: 176,664
• Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, Arkansas: 123,169

• Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, California: 2,301,867
• San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, California: 1,519,991
• San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California: 730,357

• Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, Colorado: 913,188
• Colorado Springs, Colorado: 136,915
• Boulder, Colorado: 112,191

• Hartford-East Hartford-Middletown, Connecticut: 311,773
• Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Connecticut: 218,059
• New Haven-Milford, Connecticut: 152,682

• Philadelphia metro area: 1,422,399
• Salisbury, Maryland, metro area: 87,969
• Dover, Delaware: 54,449

• Washington D.C. metro area: 2,101,962

• Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, Florida: 935,042
• Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida: 557,911
• Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, Florida: 460,615

• Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Alpharetta, Georgia: 1,344,257
• Augusta, Georgia/Richmond County metro area: 117,023
• Chattanooga, Tennessee, metro area: 114,226

• Honolulu, Hawaii: 127,950
• Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, Hawaii: 26,807
• Hilo, Hawaii: 17,744

• Boise, Idaho: 154,121
• Idaho Falls, Idaho: 31,972
• Twin Falls, Idaho: 21,223

• Chicago metro area: 2,180,539
• St. Louis metro area: 718,659
• Peoria, Illinois: 108,418

• Chicago metro area: 2,180,539
• Cincinnati metro area: 555,953
• Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, Indiana: 501,460

• Omaha, Nebraska, metro area: 255,354
• Des Moines-West Des Moines, Iowa: 226,006
• Davenport, Iowa, metro area: 107,329

• Kansas City, Kansas, metro area: 595,468
• Wichita, Kansas: 145,696
• Topeka, Kansas: 68,744

• Cincinnati metro area: 555,953
• Louisville, Kentucky/Jefferson County metro area: 289,928
• Lexington-Fayette, Kentucky: 130,105

• New Orleans-Metairie, Louisiana: 244,518
• Baton Rouge, Louisiana: 163,768
• Lafayette, Louisiana: 71,427

• Portland-South Portland, Maine: 157,174
• Augusta-Waterville, Maine: 49,163
• Bangor, Maine: 42,051

• Washington D.C. metro area: 2,101,962
• Philadelphia metro area: 1,422,399
• Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, Maryland: 757,243

• Boston metro area: 1,553,944
• Providence-Warwick, Rhode Island, metro area: 368,824
• Worcester, Massachusetts, metro area: 197,366

• Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, Michigan: 890,363
• Grand Rapids-Kentwood, Michigan: 215,910
• Lansing-East Lansing, Michigan: 132,600

• Minneapolis metro area: 1,147,081
• Fargo, North Dakota, metro area: 74,696
• Duluth, Minnesota: 66,118

• Memphis, Tennessee, metro area: 293,647
• Jackson, Mississippi: 149,649
• Gulfport-Biloxi, Mississippi: 69,843

• St. Louis metro area: 718,659
• Kansas City, Missouri, metro area: 595,468
• Springfield, Missouri: 101,122

• Billings, Montana: 61,738
• Helena, Montana: 43,251
• Bozeman, Montana: 33,789

• Omaha, Nebraska, metro area: 255,354
• Lincoln, Nebraska: 86,061
• Sioux City, South Dakota, metro area: 42,960

• Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, Nevada: 341,361
• Reno, Nevada: 111,994
• Carson City, Nevada: 24,770

• Manchester-Nashua, New Hampshire: 131,605
• Lebanon, New Hampshire: 79,833
• Concord, New Hampshire: 54,065

• New York metro area: 3,517,639
• Philadelphia metro area: 1,422,399
• Trenton-Princeton, New Jersey: 149,097

• Albuquerque, New Mexico: 173,700
• Santa Fe, New Mexico: 42,598
• Las Cruces, New Mexico: 36,606

• New York metro area: 3,517,639
• Albany-Schenectady-Troy, New York: 229,777
• Rochester, New York: 224,158

• Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, North Carolina: 619,840
• Raleigh-Cary, North Carolina: 369,206
• Durham-Chapel Hill, North Carolina: 169,553

• Fargo, North Dakota, metro area: 74,696
• Bismarck, North Dakota: 41,729
• Grand Forks, North Dakota, metro area: 36,065

• Cincinnati metro area: 555,953
• Columbus, Ohio: 532,052
• Cleveland-Elyria, Ohio: 505,539

• Oklahoma City: 285,197
• Tulsa, Oklahoma: 204,789
• Fort Smith, Arkansas, metro area: 49,199

• Portland, Oregon, metro area: 646,971
• Salem, Oregon: 86,059
• Eugene-Springfield, Oregon: 69,697

• New York metro area: 3,517,639
• Philadelphia metro area: 1,422,399
• Pittsburgh: 650,228

• Providence, Rhode Island, metro area: 368,824

• Charleston-North Charleston, South Carolina: 194,525
• Columbia, South Carolina: 189,498
• Greenville-Anderson, South Carolina: 173,628

• Sioux Falls, South Dakota: 75,921
• Sioux City, South Dakota, metro area: 42,960
• Rapid City, South Dakota: 32,810

• Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, Tennessee: 570,384
• Memphis, Tennessee, metro area: 293,647
• Knoxville, Tennessee: 170,980

• Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas: 1,693,296
• Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, Texas: 1,061,448
• Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown, Texas: 547,648

• Salt Lake City: 356,421
• Provo-Orem, Utah: 112,390
• Ogden-Clearfield, Utah: 112,351

• Burlington-South Burlington, Vermont: 84,050
• Barre, Vermont: 38,974
• Rutland, Vermont: 21,953

• Washington D.C. metro area: 2,101,962
• Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, Virginia: 412,623
• Richmond, Virginia: 329,451

• Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Washington: 1,191,182
• Portland, Oregon, metro area: 646,971
• Spokane-Spokane Valley, Washington: 95,580

• Washington D.C. metro area: 2,101,962
• Charleston, West Virginia: 103,465
• Huntington, West Virginia, metro area: 75,559

• Chicago metro area: 2,180,539
• Minneapolis metro area: 1,147,081
• Milwaukee-Waukesha, Wisconsin: 438,640

• Cheyenne, Wyoming: 43,671
• Casper, Wyoming: 22,261
• Gillette, Wyoming: 17,312

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Disclaimer: Certain metropolitan areas listed have borders that overlap with multiple states. Therefore, some of the cities listed may not be located within that particular state.