Alberta had 2,661.1 thousand employed people in August 2026, with a seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of 6.8%. The latest snapshot also shows important differences by age, gender, and metropolitan area. This guide brings those figures together with Alberta’s annual unemployment rates from 2021 through 2025.
Table of contents
- Province-wide employment snapshot
- Youth employment statistics
- Men aged 25 and over
- Women aged 25 and over
- Major metropolitan areas
- Annual unemployment context
Province-wide employment snapshot
Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey, August 2026 reports a seasonally adjusted population aged 15 and over of 4,156.6 thousand in Alberta. The province’s seasonally adjusted labour force was 2,855.4 thousand, including 2,661.1 thousand employed people and 194.3 thousand unemployed people. These figures describe the Alberta population aged 15 and over and refer specifically to August 2026.
The main rates provide a useful way to read the size of the labour market. Alberta’s participation rate was 68.7%, meaning that the labour force represented 68.7% of the population aged 15 and over. The employment rate was 64.0%, while the unemployment rate was 6.8%. Full-time employment accounted for 2,197.0 thousand people on a seasonally adjusted basis.
| Alberta measure | August 2026 | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Population aged 15 and over | 4,156.6 thousand | Seasonally adjusted |
| Labour force | 2,855.4 thousand | Seasonally adjusted |
| Employed people | 2,661.1 thousand | Seasonally adjusted |
| Full-time employment | 2,197.0 thousand | Seasonally adjusted |
| Unemployed people | 194.3 thousand | Seasonally adjusted |
| Participation rate | 68.7% | Seasonally adjusted |
| Employment rate | 64.0% | Seasonally adjusted |
| Unemployment rate | 6.8% | Seasonally adjusted |
The year-over-year comparison covers August 2025 to August 2026. Over that period, Alberta employment increased by 3.6% and full-time employment increased by 3.4%, both on a seasonally adjusted basis. The labour force increased by 2.1%, while the population aged 15 and over increased by 2.2%. Unemployment decreased by 15.0% over the same period.
Those changes describe movement between two seasonally adjusted points in time. They should not be read as an annual average or as a forecast. The source is Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey, August 2026.
Youth employment statistics
In August 2026, Alberta had 633.0 thousand people aged 15 to 24, seasonally adjusted. The youth labour force was 400.6 thousand, including 339.4 thousand employed people and 61.1 thousand unemployed people. The youth participation rate was 63.3%, and the youth employment rate was 53.6%.
The youth unemployment rate was 15.3% in August 2026. This is the unemployment rate for Alberta people aged 15 to 24, not the rate for all Albertans aged 15 and over. Keeping the age group explicit matters because the youth figures describe a different segment of the labour market than the province-wide rate of 6.8%.
| Alberta youth measure | August 2026 | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Population aged 15 to 24 | 633.0 thousand | Seasonally adjusted |
| Youth labour force | 400.6 thousand | Seasonally adjusted |
| Youth employment | 339.4 thousand | Seasonally adjusted |
| Youth unemployment | 61.1 thousand | Seasonally adjusted |
| Youth participation rate | 63.3% | Seasonally adjusted |
| Youth employment rate | 53.6% | Seasonally adjusted |
| Youth unemployment rate | 15.3% | Seasonally adjusted |
From August 2025 to August 2026, youth employment increased by 3.0% on a seasonally adjusted basis. Youth unemployment decreased by 6.1%, while Alberta’s population aged 15 to 24 increased by 2.1%. These are year-over-year percentage changes for the specified youth population and should not be confused with changes in the province-wide totals.
Men aged 25 and over
Alberta had 1,752.1 thousand men aged 25 and over in August 2026, seasonally adjusted. Their labour force was 1,321.5 thousand. Within that group, 1,254.0 thousand were employed and 67.5 thousand were unemployed.
The participation rate for Alberta men aged 25 and over was 75.4%. Their employment rate was 71.6%, and their unemployment rate was 5.1%. These measures use the population of Alberta men aged 25 and over as their relevant population base; they are not measures for all men in Canada or for all Alberta residents.
Employment among Alberta men aged 25 and over increased by 3.9% from August 2025 to August 2026, on a seasonally adjusted basis. Unemployment in this group decreased by 27.5%. Over the same comparison, the participation rate decreased by 0.4 percentage points. The percentage and percentage-point measures describe different types of change: the first two are relative changes, while the last is a change in the rate itself.
Women aged 25 and over
Alberta had 1,771.5 thousand women aged 25 and over in August 2026, seasonally adjusted. The labour force for this group was 1,133.3 thousand, including 1,067.7 thousand employed women and 65.6 thousand unemployed women.
The participation rate for Alberta women aged 25 and over was 64.0%. Their employment rate was 60.3%, and their unemployment rate was 5.8%. As with the figures for men, these rates are specific to Alberta women aged 25 and over and to the August 2026 measurement period.
From August 2025 to August 2026, employment among Alberta women aged 25 and over increased by 3.4% on a seasonally adjusted basis. Unemployment decreased by 6.7%, and the participation rate increased by 0.3 percentage points.
The supplied August 2026 figures show the two groups side by side without requiring an unsupported combined calculation. Men aged 25 and over had a 75.4% participation rate, a 71.6% employment rate, and a 5.1% unemployment rate. Women aged 25 and over had a 64.0% participation rate, a 60.3% employment rate, and a 5.8% unemployment rate. Employment rose year over year for both groups, by 3.9% for men and 3.4% for women.
Major metropolitan areas
Statistics Canada’s August 2026 metropolitan figures use a three-month moving average ending in August 2026. They are seasonally adjusted and therefore are not the same measurement as Alberta’s single-month province-wide snapshot. The reported employment totals and rates show the scale and labour-market conditions in four Alberta metropolitan areas.
| Metropolitan area | Employed people | Unemployment rate | Employment rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lethbridge | 73.7 thousand | 5.6% | 61.8% |
| Calgary | 1,046.3 thousand | 6.7% | 66.5% |
| Red Deer | 61.1 thousand | 7.3% | 63.7% |
| Edmonton | 891.5 thousand | 6.9% | 64.2% |
Lethbridge recorded 73.7 thousand employed people, a 5.6% unemployment rate, and a 61.8% employment rate in the three-month moving average ending August 2026. Calgary recorded 1,046.3 thousand employed people, with a 6.7% unemployment rate and a 66.5% employment rate.
Red Deer recorded 61.1 thousand employed people. Its unemployment rate was 7.3%, and its employment rate was 63.7%. Edmonton recorded 891.5 thousand employed people, a 6.9% unemployment rate, and a 64.2% employment rate.
Because these are three-month moving averages, each metropolitan result summarizes a period ending in August 2026 rather than a single August observation. The source is the Labour Force Survey, August 2026.
Annual unemployment context
Annual unemployment rates provide a longer reference point than the August 2026 monthly snapshot. Statistics Canada’s table Labour force characteristics by province, territory and economic region, annual reports an Alberta annual unemployment rate of 8.6% in 2021, followed by 5.8% in 2022 and 5.9% in 2023.
The annual rate was 7.0% in 2024 and 7.2% in 2025. These annual figures should be kept separate from the seasonally adjusted 6.8% monthly unemployment rate reported for August 2026. One is an annual measure and the other is a specific monthly measure, so they do not represent identical periods.
| Year or period | Alberta unemployment rate | Measure |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 8.6% | Annual |
| 2022 | 5.8% | Annual |
| 2023 | 5.9% | Annual |
| 2024 | 7.0% | Annual |
| 2025 | 7.2% | Annual |
| August 2026 | 6.8% | Monthly, seasonally adjusted |
The annual series shows a lower rate in 2022 and 2023 than in 2021, followed by higher annual rates in 2024 and 2025. The August 2026 figure is a later monthly observation, not an annual estimate for 2026. The annual source is Statistics Canada’s labour force characteristics table.
When comparing Alberta employment statistics, the most important qualifications are the measurement period, geography, age group, and adjustment method. The province-wide August figures are seasonally adjusted monthly estimates; the metropolitan figures are seasonally adjusted three-month moving averages ending in August; and the historical series contains annual unemployment rates. Reading the numbers with those labels intact keeps the comparisons within their stated scope.