U.S. Employment Cost Index

Employment costs for total compensation of civilian workers, including wages, salaries and benefits.

3.38%

Q2 2026 · Year-over-year change
Percent · Seasonally adjusted

Compared with Q1 2026
-0.04 percentage points

Compared with Q2 2025
-0.23 percentage points

Source: BLS
Publication date: 2026-07-31
Status: Published
Site snapshot: 2026-09-30-d6e32ee5

Next scheduled: 2026-10-30 · Employment Cost Index

The headline uses reviewed snapshot 2026-09-30-d6e32ee5. Source publication is distinct from the observation period and site acquisition. Check freshness · See what changed.

Historical data

Employment Cost Index · Year-over-year change · Percent · Seasonally adjusted

Employment Cost Index — Percent 0.93.25.6 2001-Q12026-Q2 Employment Cost Index — Percent 0.93.25.6 2001-Q12026-Q2
Q2 2026: 3.38 Percent

102 periods. Unpublished values remain gaps; no interpolation is applied.

Accessible historical table
Employment Cost Index: Year-over-year change, Percent
Reference periodValueStatus
Q2 20263.383Published
Q1 20263.426Published
Q4 20253.415Published
Q3 20253.568Published
Q2 20253.615Published
Q1 20253.600Published
Q4 20243.761Published
Q3 20243.796Published
Q2 20244.025Published
Q1 20244.196Published
Q4 20234.175Published
Q3 20234.418Published
Q2 20234.536Published
Q1 20234.797Published
Q4 20225.061Published
Q3 20225.051Published
Q2 20225.114Published
Q1 20224.454Published
Q4 20214.000Published
Q3 20213.607Published
Q2 20212.843Published
Q1 20212.643Published
Q4 20202.592Published
Q3 20202.464Published
Q2 20202.701Published
Q1 20202.866Published
Q4 20192.661Published
Q3 20192.755Published
Q2 20192.776Published
Q1 20192.795Published
Q4 20182.968Published
Q3 20182.833Published
Q2 20182.776Published
Q1 20182.715Published
Q4 20172.576Published
Q3 20172.512Published
Q2 20172.368Published
Q1 20172.302Published
Q4 20162.235Published
Q3 20162.247Published
Q2 20162.342Published
Q1 20161.942Published
Q4 20152.036Published
Q3 20151.964Published
Q2 20151.977Published
Q1 20152.573Published
Q4 20142.248Published
Q3 20142.259Published
Q2 20142.017Published
Q1 20141.774Published
Q4 20131.952Published
Q3 20131.876Published
Q2 20131.884Published
Q1 20131.806Published
Q4 20121.903Published
Q3 20121.911Published
Q2 20121.831Published
Q1 20122.018Published
Q4 20112.030Published
Q3 20112.039Published
Q2 20112.137Published
Q1 20111.968Published
Q4 20101.980Published
Q3 20101.897Published
Q2 20101.906Published
Q1 20101.729Published
Q4 20091.369Published
Q3 20091.467Published
Q2 20091.754Published
Q1 20092.138Published
Q4 20082.622Published
Q3 20083.022Published
Q2 20083.045Published
Q1 20083.263Published
Q4 20073.288Published
Q3 20073.216Published
Q2 20073.445Published
Q1 20073.476Published
Q4 20063.297Published
Q3 20063.323Published
Q2 20063.043Published
Q1 20062.755Published
Q4 20053.090Published
Q3 20053.008Published
Q2 20053.246Published
Q1 20053.594Published
Q4 20043.739Published
Q3 20043.767Published
Q2 20043.804Published
Q1 20043.728Published
Q4 20033.885Published
Q3 20033.799Published
Q2 20033.604Published
Q1 20033.754Published
Q4 20023.326Published
Q3 20023.588Published
Q2 20023.860Published
Q1 20023.778Published
Q4 2001Not publishedNot published / transformation unavailable
Q3 2001Not publishedNot published / transformation unavailable
Q2 2001Not publishedNot published / transformation unavailable
Q1 2001Not publishedNot published / transformation unavailable

Reading the latest movement

For Q2 2026, this snapshot reports 3.38 percent in the year-over-year change view. The difference from the preceding available period is -0.04 percentage points. This comparison uses the prior value contained in the same acquired file. A difference between periods describes economic change; it is separate from a later revision of either observation.

Put the latest level in context

These comparisons use published levels in this snapshot, with matching reference periods. Rate differences use percentage points; growth of a rate is not a percentage-point difference. The chart above may use a different transformation.

Employment Cost Index: same-period historical comparisons · Index (December 2005 = 100)
Earlier periodEarlier levelLatest levelAbsolute differenceRelative change
Q2 2025171.380177.1785.7983.38%
Q2 2021144.700177.17832.47822.45%
Q2 2016126.700177.17850.47839.84%

How have prices, jobs and output changed since 2019? · Research questions and worked comparisons.

Definition and limitations

Uses a fixed employment structure to reduce composition effects. Civilian workers include private industry and state/local government, not federal government workers.

A quarterly growth rate can be reported at an annualized pace. The real GDP default uses BEA’s published annualized growth where available; the level remains in the raw download.

Which measure fits your question? Compare definitions and complementary measures before drawing a conclusion.

Transformations and related measures

Published level retains the source unit. Year-over-year change compares with the same reference period one year earlier. Weekly series compare with 52 weeks earlier (364 days) to retain the weekday. Previous-period percentage change measures the relative change; absolute change subtracts the preceding level. For a rate already expressed in percent, absolute change is in percentage points. Invalid or missing denominators produce an unavailable result. No frequency conversion or hidden rescaling is applied.

Source and methodology

Producer documentation · Acquisition endpoint / file · Producer release information

Revisions and archived snapshots

Two site acquisitions are archived. Matching unchanged series identities can be compared between versions; this is not a complete agency vintage history. Previous-period readings above come from the same acquired snapshot. The revision comparison separates changes to matching historical observations from new coverage and corrected series identities. Earlier agency vintages remain outside this archive. Read the revision policy and download this frozen snapshot.

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